Help with correct pronunciation, please

[Tomasz Klimkiewicz]

Hello Everyone,

I'd like to consult our experts about the correct pronunciation of the following words:

plague

plaque

status

stratum

What I mean is whether the first (and only, in the first two cases) syllable in the above words should be pronounced as a vowell [a:] or a diphtong [ei]. My question concerns standard British English, in the first place, but any indications as to other varieties would be welcome, too. (Dictionary explanations vary on this one).

Thank you very much in advance.

Regards,

Tee Kay

[Casiopea]

Canadian English

pl[ei]gue

pl[ae]que ([ae] as in apple)

st[ei]tus

str[ae]tum

[Tomasz Klimkiewicz]

Thanks a lot, Casiopea.

Actually I suspected the pronunciation might not be identical within the pairs of similarly looking nouns. Now I'm sure it is not.

[Tdol]

In BrE, many would use a long vowel for 'stratum', otherwise we'd follow our Canadian friends.