female

[Odessa Dawn]

I have checked the dictionary, but it seems to me that this female pronounces the word female (at 1:50) not as it transcribed here. Is her pronunciation correct, please?



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[5jj]

What do you mean by 'correct'? It's not exactly the same as my moderately standard southern British accent, but it doesn't stand out as unusual.

 

[Odessa Dawn]

WIt's not exactly the same as my moderately standard southern British accent, but it doesn't stand out as unusual.

:up:

What do you mean by 'correct'?

I mean is it acceptable to pronounce it in that way? Whenever I hear someone says a word not identical to the dictionary transcription, I start doubting it.

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[5jj]

Even dictionaries such as John Well's LPD or the Cambridge EPD can give only the main variant pronunciations. You'll have a fulltime job if you check on every minor variant yo hear to see if it's acceptable.

In any case, 'acceptable' itself is fuzzy.

 

[Tdol]

I mean is it acceptable to pronounce it in that way?

It's acceptable to me.

 

[Raymott]

All indications are that she's Saudi. Why should she have the accent of a native English speaker? You're not suggesting that "female" is the first word you came across that was not native-like, are you?

 

[Odessa Dawn]

You're not suggesting that "female" is the first word you came across that was not native-like, are you?

Yes.

 

[Tdol]

All indications are that she's Saudi. Why should she have the accent of a native English speaker?

She does speak extremely well, though.

 

[5jj]

I don't know when she began to learn English, but it must have been at a very early age.

I would say she is bilingual. I have encountered many native-speaking English people, born to native speakers, who do not speak so clearly and fluently.

 

[Raymott]

She does speak extremely well, though.

Yes, she speaks very well. I wasn't equating not speaking with a native accent with not speaking well.

 

[5jj]

Yes, she does. I wasn't equating not speaking with a native accent with not speaking well.

I didn't think you were.

I was just making a point. I suspect that some of our members believe that only native speakers can speak the language well.

In fact, while not many (as a percentage of all learners) reach the stage where that can be mistaken for native speakers, an impressive number do reach a stage where they speak more clearly and effectively than many native speakers. And, as we see in this forum, some non-native speakers demonstrate a real understanding of the workings of the language and an ability to explain problems effectvely.

(Sorry. I got a bit side-tracked there on one of my hobby horses.)