Ful or fl

[Rachel Adams]

Hello.

When you pronounce the ending ''ful'' in ''beautiful'' do you pronounce it as ''ful'' in spoken English or as ''fl''? Because I hear it as ''ful.''

[GoesStation]

The ending /fl/ can't be pronounced in English. It needs a vowel. The vowel in the suffix -ful is a schwa.

[Charlie Bernstein]

Yes, it's a schwa. There might be regional differences in pronunciation. I do pronounce it fl — like waffle.

[Rachel Adams]

Yes, it's a schwa. There might be regional differences in pronunciation. I do pronounce it fl — like waffle.

Yes, that's what I was interested in. If native speakers ever say "ful" in "beautiful"?

[Tarheel]

Yes, that's what I was interested in. If native speakers ever say "ful" in "beautiful"?

I pronounce the last syllable exactly like the word full and stress the first syllable.

[Rachel Adams]

Some will pronounce the -ful with the full /ʊ/, some with a schwa, and some with a syllabic vowel.

So it can be pronounced as /fl/, /ful/, and with a schwa, but how do you transcribe and pronounce it when it is pronounced with a schwa and which pronunciation is standard?
Ful as /fl/ as a syllabic /l/
Ful as /u/
Ful with a schwa /?/

[GoesStation]

People who aren't familiar with phonetic transcription won't know how to pronounce "/fl/". Did you notice the IPA symbol in Piscean's transcription, "/fl̩/"?

[Rachel Adams]

People who aren't familiar with phonetic transcription won't know how to pronounce "/fl/". Did you notice the IPA symbol in Piscean's transcription, "/fl̩/"?

Yes, it would be very helpful to read about those signs. I often see commas in different places in phonetic transcription. But how would a native ranscribe and pronounce it with a schwa?

[GoesStation]

Yes, it would be very helpful to read about those signs. I often see commas in different places in phonetic transcription. But how would a native ranscribe and pronounce it with a schwa?

I'd write BYOO-tih-full as an approximate transcription. That's a good example of why the IPA exists, though: it could be read a number of ways.

I don't think the descending line in /fl̩/ is a comma. It's just a symbol indicating that the L is syllabic.

[Charlie Bernstein]

So it can be pronounced as /fl/, /ful/, and with a schwa, but how do you transcribe and pronounce it when it is pronounced with a schwa and which pronunciation is standard?
Ful as /fl/ as a syllabic /l/
Ful as /u/
Ful with a schwa /?/

As you can see, you have some choices. All the pronunciations we've mentioned are standard (and very close to each other).