the teachers and the professors and <shooters>

[Ostap]

It's kind of like universities -- how many campuses find themselves very left-wing, how the teachers and the professors and shooters are very left-wing.

timecode

Hello, teachers. Does she mean here mass shooters who fire guns at campuses?

 

[jutfrank]

It's 'tutors', not 'shooters'.

 

[Ostap]

It's 'tutors', not 'shooters'.

That was my initial thought too. But I clearly hear "shooters". I even checked the American pronounciation of "tutor" on "youglish.com" -- it's not pronounced that way.
Two other reasons: a tutor does not necessarily refer to the campus as they can teach you at home. And, she didn't use the definite article with this word like she did with "teachers" and "professors", which I think implies they are not an inherent part of the campus.

 

[jutfrank]

Are you really attempting to disagree, Ostap?

It's very clear that she says 'tutors', with a perfectly natural pronunciation of the word.

 

[Ostap]

Are you really attempting to disagree, Ostap?

It's very clear that she says 'tutors', with a perfectly natural pronunciation of the word.

Please look at this timecode. Does this "tutor" sound the same to you as the OPs? (the "tu" part).

It doesn't to me -- I hear her say "shooter", and him "chooter". The difference is slight but clear. Unless I'm hearing things.

By the way, she speaks American English, and they say tuːtər not tjuːtə.

 

[5jj]

It's very clear that she says 'tutors', with a perfectly natural pronunciation of the word.

 

[emsr2d2]

The pronunciation "chooter" is very common, in BrE and, judging by the video, also AmE. That's what I hear in the original video. It's entirely natural.

 

[Ostap]

Thank you. I would also like to hear an American speaker's opinion on that.

 

[dunchee]

The pronunciation "chooter" is very common, in BrE and, judging by the video, also AmE. That's what I hear in the original video. It's entirely natural.

That's what I hear too, not "shooters." But I must admit It's new to me, so out of curiosity I looked the word up and listened to the word's audio file. To my surprise, it really it "chooter":
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tutor
(click on the audio/speaker icon to play it)
(I don't think it's synthesized, but I could be wrong)

Update:
I think this "phenomenon" is related to this:
t + y = "ch"

According to Merriam-Webster Dictionary, tutor has two (American) pronunciations, \ ˈtü-tər \ and \ ˈtyü-tər \
-- "t + y".

 

[Skrej]

In the original video, as an AmE speaker myself, she very clearly says 'tutors'. I think what you're mishearing is the result of her speaking rapidly, blending the final 's' in "professors' with the 'tu' sound in 'tutors'. Note that the word 'and' is reduced to merely 'n', so with the rapid speech you almost do get a blended 'stu' sound that mimics a 'ch' sound.

In AmE the pronunciation of 'shooter' as 'choot' is distinct to some regional accents. Troy Landry from the Swamp People TV show has a notoriously thick Cajun accent, and his catchphrase of "choot 'em" has actually entered pop culture - to the extent it's even been popularized in a Louisiana state lottery advertisement.

I think part of the public's fascination with Troy is how almost unintelligible his accent is to anyone not from that general region.

 

[Skrej]

That's what I hear too, not "shooters." But I must admit It's new to me, so out of curiosity I looked the word up and listened to the word's audio file. Surprise! Surprise! It's actually "chooter":
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tutor
(click on the audio/speaker icon to play it)
(I don't think it's synthesized, but I could be wrong)

Update:
I think this "phenomenon" is related to this:
t + y = "ch"

According to Merriam-Webster Dictionary, tutor has two (American) pronunciations, \ ˈtü-tər \ and \ ˈtyü-tər \
-- "t + y".

If you're suggesting that your link gives the pronunciation of 'tutor' as 'chooter', that's incorrect. The link you provided sounds nothing like 'chooter'.

 

[5jj]

I looked the word up and listened to the word's audio file. To my surprise, it really it "chooter":
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tutor

The first sound in the word in M-W is /t/.

 

[emsr2d2]

The AmE pronunciation on the M-W website sounds like "tooter". If a BrE speaker pronounced it "properly", it would sound like "t-yoo-tuh". However, most of us are lazy when pronouncing "tu" at the start of words (depending on the word) so in AmE it sounds like "too" and in BrE it sounds like "choo".

 

[dunchee]

If you're suggesting that your link gives the pronunciation of 'tutor' as 'chooter', that's incorrect. The link you provided sounds nothing like 'chooter'.

Yes, you are right. I was about to ask a friend(a native speaker of AmE) to listen to the audio, but before I did that I thought maybe it was the poor-quality built-in monitor speakers of mine. So I switched my speakers and I heard "tutor," and then I played it on my tablet and it was "tutor."

Sorry about the confusion....

 

[dunchee]

, blending the final 's' in "professors' with the 'tu' sound in 'tutors'.

(Now with my "better" speakers)
In the original video in post #1, she says "... professors and tutors ..." -- there's an "and( an' )" after "professors" so I don't see how the final 's' in "professors" can blend in with the 'tu' sound in "tutors". ...

Oh, I still hear "chooters". (very soft 'ch' sound, almost like 'sh'.)

 

[Ostap]

(very soft 'ch' sound, almost like 'sh'.)

That's the whole point.

 

[Peedeebee]

I hear tutors, with a shade of ch and as much BrE as AmE.
Perhaps I can lighten it up a bit.. Years ago my nephew (aged about 8?) and his family were playing "I spy" on a car journey. He said, "I spy with my little eye, something beginning with C."
Everyone tried all the possible C words in the known universe until eventually they gave up. He said "Chrees! Look, with all those branches."
"Trees!" - everyone groaned and berated him, and brought him up to speed on spelling.
If you think it's weird for a child to know how to spell the ch sound, but not know how to spell trees, well, just look at his uncle!
(But it does show how close the sounds can be to a listener.)

 

[Ostap]

I think what you're mishearing is the result of her speaking rapidly, blending the final 's' in "professors' with the 'tu' sound in 'tutors'.

I listened to it at a lowered speed:

Doesn't it still sound "shooters"?

 

[emsr2d2]

I listened to it at a lowered slower speed:

Doesn't it still sound "shooters"?

You can't ask if it "still" sounds like "shooters" when no one in this thread has agreed with you that it sounds like that. We all hear "chooters" because that's what he says. You're flogging a dead horse, @Ostap.

Also, remember that slowing down the speed of any speech will change some of the sounds. You need to simply listen to it at normal speaking speed.

 

[5jj]

In the original video, jutfrank, skrej and I all heard the first phoneme of 'tutors' as /t/.