pronunciations

[arjitsharma]

I would like to know how the American pronounce "Putin" and "panting." In "Putin" are there vowel sounds before and after the "t." If it is so, it should be pronounce "Pudin."

I don't know much about it. I am confused! Should I say the flap t or true t or dropped t in "putin" and "painting?"

 

[Raymott]

You've been told a few times that you should say the 't', and not try at this time to mimic minor regional variations until they occur naturally. Are you hoping for a different answer? Regarding dropping the 't' in 'painting' or 'panting', it depends entirely on whether you want to be understood when you speak. Did you find a dictionary that says to drop the 't' in these words? 'Paining' and 'panning' are entirely different words.

As far as 'Putin' is concerned, no American is going to misunderstand you if you just say 'Putin'. You will not be misunderstood by an American if you say 't' where an American might pronounce a flap.

 

[Rover_KE]

I don't know much about it.

You should - we've told you often enough.

As you're in India, say the words as other Indians say them.

 

[jutfrank]

As you're in India, say the words as other Indians say them.

I agree.

My advice is to either pronounce the word as it is said in Russian or as it is pronounced by the newsreaders on Indian TV news networks.

 

[GoesStation]

My advice is to either pronounce the word as it is said in Russian or as it is pronounced by the newsreaders on Indian TV news networks.

I'd advise the latter. I believe that Russians tend to intrude a /z/ after the /t/, which might confuse Anglophone listeners.

 

[jutfrank]

I believe that Russians tend to intrude a /z/ after the /t/, which might confuse Anglophone listeners.

I don't think so. I say this because I happened to ask two Russian-speaking friends of mine this exact question recently.

The question came up because of my irritation with how many British journalists pronounce it Pew-tin. It's pronounced Poo-tin.

 

[bubbha]

Americans often pronounce "Putin" as ['pu ʔn̩].

The [ʔn̩] (glottal stop followed by syllabic n) combination is found in common American pronunciations of "mountain", "Latin", "Clinton", "important", etc.

 

[probus]

When I am in India, which is often, I tend to adopt Indian pronunciation. The reason can be summed up in one word: inertia. There is no chance at all that the hundreds of millions are going to be influenced by my pronuniation. So I am best served by making it easier for them to understand me.