Silent h and unvoiced w

[pizza]

Regarding the whine/wine merger but without getting too fussy about details and history nor trying to be hypercorrect, am I wrong if I use the unvoiced w (whispered h) before words like:

what
when
whine
whale

Also, not exactly related, can you show me some words where the h is silent in English, like:

hour
honest
honor
heir
herb

 

[emsr2d2]

Regarding the whine/wine merger but without getting too fussy about details and history nor trying to be hypercorrect, am I wrong if I use the unvoiced w (whispered h) before words like:

what
when
whine
whale

Some people use the whispered "wh" and some use the voiced "w". I personally find that a very obvious whispered "wh" sounds somewhat old-fashioned, verging on pretentious.

Also, not exactly related, can you show me some words where the h is silent in English, like:

hour
honest
honor
heir
herb

Try Googling for more lists of words starting with a silent "h".
Note: in BrE, we always pronounce the "h" at the beginning of "herb". In AmE, it sounds like "erb".

See above.

 

[5jj]

I find that if I am delivering a prepared talk, the 'whispered h' of my youth comes back, but generally I agree with emsr2d2's opinion - for English people. The form is natural for many Scottish and Irish people.

If you have been taught to use it, and it comes naturally, don't worry, but I would generally recommend that learners use a standard /w/