AmE t (__nt)

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adrs

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Hi everyone!

I've noticed that those words which contain "nt" as in twenty, the t sound is silent in AmE.
Eg: twenty, counter, internet, winter, plenty...

Does it occur with all words with nt as in center or sentence?

Thanks
 

euncu

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Hi everyone!
twenty, counter, internet, winter, plenty...

Does it occur with all words with nt as in center or sentence?

***neither a teacher nor a native-speaker***

None of them are silent.
 

adrs

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After googling a bit, I came into this. Therefore, I have to say I do not agree with you, sorry.

"When you listen to Americans talk in everyday conversations you may notice that the /t/ sound is often dropped after the /n/ sound. This is a very natural component of spoken English because it helps speakers to pronounce clusters of consonants more easily.

Here are some examples of words in which many Americans drop the /t/ sound.
1. winter = It’s too cold here in the winner!
2. painting = Her painings are at the gallery.
3. twenty = Thomas’ job pays tweny dollars an hour.
4. plenty = Sally has pleny of money in the bank.
5. gigantic = That pizza is giganic!
6. Toronto=Torono is a great place to visit. "


Thanks for you reply though. :)
 

Raymott

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After googling a bit, I came into this. Therefore, I have to say I do not agree with you, sorry.

"When you listen to Americans talk in everyday conversations you may notice that the /t/ sound is often dropped after the /n/ sound. This is a very natural component of spoken English because it helps speakers to pronounce clusters of consonants more easily.

Here are some examples of words in which many Americans drop the /t/ sound.
1. winter = It’s too cold here in the winner!
2. painting = Her painings are at the gallery.
3. twenty = Thomas’ job pays tweny dollars an hour.
4. plenty = Sally has pleny of money in the bank.
5. gigantic = That pizza is giganic!
6. Toronto=Torono is a great place to visit. "


Thanks for you reply though. :)
Yes, that's true. Perhaps in 100 years, normal American English will be spelled that way. For now, students should pronounce these letters, since English with a foreign accent is always more understandable when articulation is good. No one is going to understand you better if you say "winner" for "winter", even in America.

euncu is right. The letters aren't silent, even if some people don't pronounce them properly. "Silent letters" are letters that no one now pronounces, as in the 'b' in 'doubt'.
 

leonwool

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My favourite sentence (senance) to say with a Southern states accent is this:

My aunt was bitten by an ant, -

I could hardly stop rolling around on the floor when I was told that 'ant' was a homophone of 'aunt'.
In my accent 'ant' has the vowel sound of 'Cat' and 'Aunt' has the vowel sound of 'Car' or 'Art'

Other famous American homophones include 'sordid affairs being sorted out.

More to hear here:

Could someone record some authentic Southern accents for me to post there please?The page only has English and Scottish but not American.

Homophones

.
 
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