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Thread: Which are the possible ways to pronounce the word 'britain'?

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    Default Which are the possible ways to pronounce the word 'britain'?

    Hello:

    I have heard that there are three possible ways of pronouncing 'britain': complete plosion, incomplete plosion and schwa.

    I guess the first one is the traditional one, standard English, with a "strong" /t/; the second one would be a softer /t/ and the third one just with a schwa sound, but I'm confused and I don't know how to write it phonetically. Could you write them for me, please?

    Thanks.

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    Default Re: Which are the possible ways to pronounce the word 'britain'?

    Where did you hear this? The 't' may be released nasally, and the /n/ may be syllabic, but you cannot contrast complete/incomplete plosion and schwa.
    Context is important. Please provide enough for us to be able to deal effectively with your question.
    Your thread title should include all or part of the word/phrase being discussed.
    If you just want to know the meaning of a word, try OneLook Dictionary Search first.


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    Default Re: Which are the possible ways to pronounce the word 'britain'?

    Quote Originally Posted by 5jj View Post
    Where did you hear this? The 't' may be released nasally, and the /n/ may be syllabic, but you cannot contrast complete/incomplete plosion and schwa.
    Ok, then tell me please, which do you think are the forms of pronouncing 'britain'?

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    Default Re: Which are the possible ways to pronounce the word 'britain'?

    Phonemically I'd go for somewhere in this range: /ˈbrɪtən/, /ˈbrɪtən/, /ˈbrɪtn/.
    bagzi94 and Raymott like this.
    Context is important. Please provide enough for us to be able to deal effectively with your question.
    Your thread title should include all or part of the word/phrase being discussed.
    If you just want to know the meaning of a word, try OneLook Dictionary Search first.


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    Default Re: Which are the possible ways to pronounce the word 'britain'?

    Quote Originally Posted by 5jj View Post
    Phonemically I'd go for somewhere in this range: /ˈbrɪtən/, /ˈbrɪtən/, /ˈbrɪtn/.
    I thought they were three different ways of transcribing the same sound. But I can't think of any other way to pronounce "Britian"

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