tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post9164267542433805947..comments2024-03-28T16:11:36.465+00:00Comments on Separated by a Common Language: crescentlynneguisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10171345732985610861noreply@blogger.comBlogger41125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-41189485587159732632022-10-25T16:18:16.620+01:002022-10-25T16:18:16.620+01:00Native Fluffyan (Philadelphia) speaker. I have not...Native Fluffyan (Philadelphia) speaker. I have noticed the /z/ for /s/ in words such as gas and house among Jewish West Philadelphians of a certain age. I believe this has been documented by linguists at the U of P. But I can't find the citation. Edhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00910495245763808378noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-11748671951906258862022-09-13T15:09:22.343+01:002022-09-13T15:09:22.343+01:00I realized after reading this that I say crescent ...I realized after reading this that I say crescent with an /s/ when talking about the moon or the Red Crescent organization, and with a /z/ when talking about a street. The difference is probably because I think of them as two completely different things, respectively: 1) a specific shape; and 2) a street name (I guess I don't think about Crescents as necessarily being crescent shaped). Interesting!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-70136791909788841572022-09-13T03:15:38.844+01:002022-09-13T03:15:38.844+01:00British RP speaker, 50s, living in US for 20 years...British RP speaker, 50s, living in US for 20 years: <br />I say crescent with an /s/ when describing the moon, and with a /z/ when in a street name. I think it's because I see them as two different entities (an actual crescent shape vs. one of many possible words for a road). <br /><br />For the other words on the list: <br />I pronounce them all with a /z/ except:<br />- greasy (I don't think I've ever heard it pronounced with a /z/) <br />- resource (/s/ when the emphasis is on the first syllable, but /z/ in "resources", with the emphasis on the middle syllable)<br />- mimosa<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-88623518318810315922022-08-26T22:51:46.444+01:002022-08-26T22:51:46.444+01:00Personal view (BrE) I can't imagine saying pre...Personal view (BrE) I can't imagine saying present with /s/, so it would seem strange that adding a 'c' would make the sound more /s/ than /z/ in crescent. But then scent is definitely /s/, and prescient which is also /s/, as is science etc., so maybe that is the value of the 'c' to make it more /s/ than /z. On that logic I'd have to conclude that crescent should be /s/, though I think laziness can lead to /z/ when I say it.<br />And as ease has /z/ it would seem reasonable that easy would also be /z/, whereas grease has /s/ so consequently greasy is naturally also /s/.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-12613687332344938132022-08-11T20:51:26.497+01:002022-08-11T20:51:26.497+01:00I thought the pronunciation might have shifted mor...I thought the pronunciation might have shifted more where “crescent” is a not- uncommon location/address name. Americans hardly ever speak the word as part of everyday conversation. But the other examples don’t have that in common. <br /><br />It reminds me of the Great British Bake-Off/Baking Show where more than one contestant was unfamiliar with the word to describe a shape. And they’d have heard the word “croissant.”<br /><br />(US mid-Atlantic here)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-81695616933865886222022-08-06T22:12:24.334+01:002022-08-06T22:12:24.334+01:00Even more strange and irritating - ‘precedent’ wit...Even more strange and irritating - ‘precedent’ with /z/ in the middleAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-70407172074915390562022-08-04T23:00:43.300+01:002022-08-04T23:00:43.300+01:00I'm British, 77, and I've always heard the...I'm British, 77, and I've always heard the word with /z/ though it always seemed anomalous — but the, so does 'dessert'Tom Dawkesnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-89650815062027133772022-08-01T09:04:12.892+01:002022-08-01T09:04:12.892+01:00This 1958 video about American accents uses the pr...This 1958 video about American accents uses the pronunciation of "greasy" to establish accent regions in the part from 4:00-6:00: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hIvBSMxRG9Q&t=378s.Kendrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06488942021460604107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-46127908633934414162022-07-31T17:15:40.514+01:002022-07-31T17:15:40.514+01:00I´m Irish (from midlands), and pronounce about hal...I´m Irish (from midlands), and pronounce about half of that list with the /z/. (Crescent, vase, blouse, eraser, diagnose). For whatever it´s worth...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-43015458465867046752022-07-30T21:00:28.391+01:002022-07-30T21:00:28.391+01:0068, Wirral – actually grew up in a place called Gr...68, Wirral – actually grew up in a place called Greasby, with the s always pronounced /z/, but I've always pronounced 'greasy' with /s/. I'm out on a limb with 'mimosa', which I always give an /s/. For the rest of the list it's always a /z/ for me.<br />enitharmonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17829757748223670291noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-20961323923392660512022-07-27T23:52:58.934+01:002022-07-27T23:52:58.934+01:0061, born in Australia, 31+ years in SoCal
Eraser -...61, born in Australia, 31+ years in SoCal<br />Eraser - z, although s is creeping into my speech<br />Blouse - z, never s<br />Diagnose - z, never s<br />Greasy - z, never s<br />Opposite - s, whether I pronounce the middle o or not<br />Resource - s <br />Vase - z, hard to say s with the long a I use<br />Mimosa - s<br />Crescent - s<br />Joseph - s<br />Venison - s<br />...and Aussie is always Ozzie. SoCalAussiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07541820041115930991noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-68224806489547305202022-07-27T10:09:06.174+01:002022-07-27T10:09:06.174+01:0074, born in Arkansas, 60+ years in SoCal
Eraser - ...74, born in Arkansas, 60+ years in SoCal<br />Eraser - s<br />Blouse - s for the noun, z for the verb<br />Diagnose - s<br />Greasy** - s usually unless recently exposed to Southern relatives<br />Opposite - s almost always, three syllables<br />Resource - s, Z would sound like a different word<br />Vase - s<br />Mimosa - s, never would have thought of a z<br />Crescent - s, again, a z would not occur to me<br />Joseph - s/z almost equally<br />Venison - s, z I've heard but don't think I use itJoyce Meltonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-13260403318072850512022-07-26T09:42:20.191+01:002022-07-26T09:42:20.191+01:00I live on a Crescent in Melbourne, Australia, and ...I live on a Crescent in Melbourne, Australia, and all three people here at the moment say /z/<br /><br />A comment abive re: -escent words? Incandescent, fluorescent, evanescent, opalescent - I say /s/ for all of them.rdknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-46934362228650147952022-07-21T00:18:57.499+01:002022-07-21T00:18:57.499+01:00Nope, not that I can tell. Makes no sense at all...Nope, not that I can tell. Makes no sense at all!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-86067430918173094792022-07-21T00:00:21.490+01:002022-07-21T00:00:21.490+01:00There is a link in the post to another post about ...There is a link in the post to another post about thatAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-59951253130484995962022-07-20T12:52:59.863+01:002022-07-20T12:52:59.863+01:00Oh, and here's another one that briefly became...Oh, and here's another one that briefly became important a few years ago: Theresa.David Arthurnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-27966173629068836352022-07-19T13:12:49.615+01:002022-07-19T13:12:49.615+01:00Canadian, and while I have /s/ for most of them, I...Canadian, and while I have /s/ for most of them, I can't imagine saying 'blouse' or 'resource' with anything other than /z/ (if I try, they sound like completely different words). 'Opposite. is sort of borderline.David Arthurnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-52855488893645439772022-07-19T08:19:51.415+01:002022-07-19T08:19:51.415+01:00Maybe you differentiate between the noun and the v...Maybe you differentiate between the noun and the verb resource?RAHhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14843804791626789096noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-75823350964314789762022-07-19T08:18:45.500+01:002022-07-19T08:18:45.500+01:00What about other -escent words? Incandescent, fluo...What about other -escent words? Incandescent, fluorescent, evanescent, opalescent etc. These are less common than "crescent", but is there a tendency to voice the sound /s/ in these as well? and what about words like adjacent, complacent etc., where the first vowel is represented by the letter a?<br />RAHhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14843804791626789096noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-15406274289611449822022-07-19T03:46:45.021+01:002022-07-19T03:46:45.021+01:00Whoa! Born in 1949, raised in central Texas, and m...Whoa! Born in 1949, raised in central Texas, and my pronunciations of these things are all over the place. "Blouse" always has a z; "greasy" and "Joseph" can go either way (but probably more commonly z), I guess depending mostly on the mood I'm in. The rest always have s, although I sometimes say REsource and sometimes reSOURCE; no idea why. <br /><br />Someone mentioned venison, which I think I usually say with a z but often with an s.djwhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01592073218947095173noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-90557877788711774742022-07-18T19:15:29.381+01:002022-07-18T19:15:29.381+01:00Another "s" vs. "z" sound that...Another "s" vs. "z" sound that I heard once in an advertisement on the radio (here in the States), which pronunciation brought me up short (but which I suspect is not in the least bit common anywhere) is "electricity." The word was pronounced "e-leg-driz-iddy." Sounded like a lazy tongue to me.<br /><br />With regard to "greasy" - "s" or "z" sound - in northern New England, slushy snow on the roads is referred to as "greasy" with a "z" sound, for its slipperiness. Sometimes the roads are actually greasy, when oils and exhaust accumulate on the pavement because of a lack of rain - once moisture comes into contact with this invisible accumulation, whether as rain, drizzle, mist, or fog, it is very slippery until enough traffic has passed over it, mixing it with the moisture so it washes or is splashed away.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-19543850785663799042022-07-18T16:45:58.226+01:002022-07-18T16:45:58.226+01:00'greasy' is traditionally considered to be...'greasy' is traditionally considered to be a marker of Northern vs. Southern and Midland dialects in the US. The American Heritage Dictionary discusses it here: https://www.ahdictionary.com/word/search.html?q=greasy<br /><br />Sam FoxAbbahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08553579701455627576noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-11976417062367639612022-07-18T14:27:21.272+01:002022-07-18T14:27:21.272+01:00AmE speaker long resident in France and with BrE s...AmE speaker long resident in France and with BrE speaker SO. I first heard "crescent" with a z on Radio 4 when I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue would feature a round of Mornington Crescent. Humphrey Lyttleton usually said it with an s, more or less (the Alan Bennett approach?), but various team members used the z. I'm only commenting because you can't have a discussion of crescent without Mornington. It's against the original modern rules.Rebecca...https://www.blogger.com/profile/17458100626790852861noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-55401924236923268652022-07-18T14:17:48.477+01:002022-07-18T14:17:48.477+01:00In honor of my mother, I’d like to add venison to ...In honor of my mother, I’d like to add venison to this discussion.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-90501577882125118702022-07-18T12:32:05.674+01:002022-07-18T12:32:05.674+01:00Me too (US Northeast)Me too (US Northeast)André Mayernoreply@blogger.com