Pronunciation rule for every English word

[fenglish]

Hi,

With using English, it is inevitable we will encounter some unknown words, and when it happens the first action is to find the definition or pronunciation in the Oxford dictionary.

But I may also search such words many times because forgot the exact pronunciation.

So, I want to know if there is any pronunciation rules for every English word?
My intention is to say every word clearly and exactly even without knowing the exact definition first. This may help to remember it more easily.

Thanks.

 

[MikeNewYork]

There are no rules for pronunciation of every English word.

 

[emsr2d2]

It's one of the most wonderful, and infuriating, things about the English language!

 

[SoothingDave]

We can't even decide amongst ourselves how to pronounce some words. Ask people how they pronounce "pecan" and you could start a fight.

And what the BrE speakers do to "schedule" is another!

 

[MikeNewYork]

Shed yule?

 

[fenglish]

Why TTS (Text To Speech) software can speak any words??? Is it based on some rules????

 

[MikeNewYork]

I have not found TTS to be infallible. But it is probably not based on rules; it is probably based on phonetic entries in dictionaries. And they don't always agree.

 

[emsr2d2]

Why/How can TTS (Text To Speech) software [STRIKE]can[/STRIKE] [STRIKE]speak[/STRIKE] pronounce any [STRIKE]words[/STRIKE] word? [STRIKE]???[/STRIKE] Is it based on some rules? [STRIKE]???[/STRIKE]

Like Mike, I think TTS services base their pronunciation on information they have been given or programmed with, or they instantly search an inbuilt dictionary and take the pronunciation from there. I think if you gave them a string of letters that doesn't appear in any dictionary, they would simply pronounce it phonetically which, as we all know, doesn't work for many English words.

Referring to "schedule", I can only assume that BrE pronounce it "sh" at the beginning because we take so much pronunciation from German, in which "Sch" is pronounced "sh". We take the pronunciation of one word we know and apply its "rule" to other words. One of my biggest bugbears with that particular sound is "bruschetta" - almost everyone in this country asks for "broo-shetter" in an Italian restaurant, despite the fact that it should be "bru-sketta". They're using the German pronunciation of "sch" and applying it to an Italian word. Don't get me wrong - I don't pretend for one instant that the majority of speakers spend even a nano-second considering the origin a word before trying to pronounce it! I imagine many BrE speakers only know how to pronounce "Sch" because of the film "Schindler's List".
Another offender is "ratatouille". Most English speakers will say "Rat-a-too-eee" (not helped, this time, by the fact that it was pronounced that way in the animated film of the same name!). Because there are no pronunciation rules in English, we try to pronounce foreign words phonetically. To most Brits, the word "ratatouille" looks like it has far too many letters to simply be "rat-a-twee".

 

[Roman55]

Don't get me wrong - I don't pretend for one instant that the majority of speakers spend even a nano-second considering the origin a word before trying to pronounce it!

I am not a teacher.

I agree with that if it's an English word or one that was adopted into the language long ago, but for more recent words that are clearly of foreign origin, I think some thought is given to it.

As for the sked yule/shed yule debate, the word comes from Latin via the old French word cédule, which has no 'k' sound in it, so the BrE pronunciation can easily be defended. Having said that, the other pronunciation is very common even in England, and these things have a tendency to evolve on their own.

 

[Raymott]

... so the BrE pronunciation can easily be defended.

Not many shools have done it though.

 

[SoothingDave]

I am never sure how to say "bruschetta." I just order something else. ;-)

 

[Rover_KE]

That's an Italian word.

 

[SoothingDave]

Yes, as emsr2d2 pointed out, many (most?) say it with a "shett" but according to Italian rules it should be "skett."

 

[Rover_KE]

Your server will understand either version.

 

[Tdol]

And what the BrE speakers do to "schedule" is another!

The AmE pronunciation is growing in BrE among younger speakers.

I hope the AmE pronunciation of Parmesan doesn't follow. ;-)

 

[SoothingDave]

The AmE pronunciation is growing in BrE among younger speakers.

I hope the AmE pronunciation of Parmesan doesn't follow. ;-)

How do you say it? I didn't know there were other ways.

 

[MikeNewYork]

There is parm a zan and parm a jhan.

 

[emsr2d2]

Well, at least "parm a zhan/jhan" is closer to the Italian - "Parrrrr-mee-jee-ah-no". Sorry, I can't do phonetics, that's the best I could do.

 

[MikeNewYork]

I am also phonetic-symbol challenged. :-(