[General] Pronunciation of "August"

[raindoctor]

I say with an unrounded version: ɑ:

It is same as the second vowel in hindi

[BobK]

Originally Posted by anupumh

Hi,

What is the correct pronunciatio of the word "August"?

What is the first sound in "August"?

...

And what about the second? It's a schwa in the month name, but a stressed /ʌ/ in the (not very common) adjective meaning something like 'highly educated'.

b

[Soup]

Originally Posted by anupumh

Hi,

What is the correct pronunciatio of the word "August"?

What is the first sound in "August"?

Is it...// or /:/ or /u:/...?

Thanks

I pronounce it as aw in law, jaw, and as au in caught. Listen to the first vowel sound here. Scroll down to the second entry--from Random House.

[yiuho]

Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English 5 Edition

Au‧gust / ɔːˈɡʌst $ ɒː- /


ɔː (British English)
ɒː (American English)

[Raymott]

Originally Posted by yiuho

Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English 5 Edition

Au‧gust / ɔːˈɡʌst $ ɒː- /


ɔː (British English)
ɒː (American English)

I think most would agree on the first syllable, but the second is usually schwa in the month name. It is as you have written (/ʌ/)in the emporer Augustus, and the adjective august, in which the stress is on the second syllable.

[DougLewis]

Not to confuse... but!

August (noun)
august (adjective)

... have both different meanings and pronunciation.

Sounding out words in text is a challenge.

The noun I believe is often said like... "Awg - ust"
The adjective I believe is often said like... "Aw - gust"

Anyway...

[Soup]

Originally Posted by Raymott

I think most would agree on the first syllable, but the second is usually schwa in the month name.

Not to be the odd one out here, but the second syllable in August (the month) is also pronounced with high lax [I] as in gist, mist, au'g[I]st, at least in North American English.

[konungursvia]

It's debatable whether we really say something different to the schwa. I regularly use the schwa to teach the phenomenon of vowel simplification in English (in which about 50% of pronounced vowels are simplified to a relaxed mouth with indeterminate vocal vibrations).

E.g. international, in which only the first and third vowels (2 of the 5) are distinctlly pronounced. I would say all the others are schwas.

[Soup]

Originally Posted by konungursvia

It's debatable whether we really say something different to the schwa.

A phonetic process, Palatalization, accounts for high lax [I] in Aug[I]st: schwa is (raised and) fronted before a high velar /g/.

[konungursvia]

Undoubtedly, but this is necessary, involuntary and all but indistinguishable from Ray's simpler suggestion.