# British/Canadian/American pronunciation of "shone" **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 22, 2006, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-canadian-american-pronunciation-of-shone/341166 "2006-01-22T23:22:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Zabali\_Clawbane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ecd19e/32.png) [@Zabali\_Clawbane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zabali_Clawbane)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2006, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-canadian-american-pronunciation-of-shone/341166/41 "2006-01-23T18:17:49Z")
That’s the point I was making. Listen to the newscasters[here](http://www.ksn.com/), (Teen Shot in Back) and tell me if they don’t seem fairly neutral in pronunciation. That really is how people speak in Central Kansas, not just a “professional accent”. ---
**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2006, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-canadian-american-pronunciation-of-shone/341166/42 "2006-01-23T18:26:05Z")
> [@Brynda](#): > > The other day on Jeopardy! Alex Trebec pronounced “shone” as “shawn” (sorta like Sean). I remarked on it to my British husband who said, “But that is how it is pronounced.” What??? So, dopers, how do you pronounce “shone”? Is my husband typical of other Brits? Or he just a crazy tyke\*? Another Tyke checking in: I say it with the short o as in con, John etc. But as you are from the south, who knows how you pronounce those words anyway? Around here, even “and” is a two-syllable word. Which part of godzone country is your husband from to pronounce it like Sean? ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2006, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-canadian-american-pronunciation-of-shone/341166/43 "2006-01-23T18:27:40Z")
What about the British pronunciation of “scone”? I heard it might be something like “scun” ?? I won’t post my pronunciation of the other words in the thread as I’m from the US and don’t have a dawg or even a dahg in this fight. ---
**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2006, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-canadian-american-pronunciation-of-shone/341166/44 "2006-01-23T18:31:22Z")
> [@gigi](#): > > What about the British pronunciation of “scone”? I heard it might be something like “scun” ?? I say it to rhyme with “shone” 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Zabali\_Clawbane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ecd19e/32.png) [@Zabali\_Clawbane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zabali_Clawbane)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2006, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-canadian-american-pronunciation-of-shone/341166/45 "2006-01-23T18:40:53Z")
In the interest of accuracy I thought to double check where people were from. [This](http://www.ksn.com/bios/llocke.html) anchor is from Central Kansas. Listen to how she says “shown” in [this](http://www.ksn.com/news/stories/10941914.html) report. Also, if you listened to the “Teen Shot in Back” report, note how the officer says dog. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2006, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-canadian-american-pronunciation-of-shone/341166/46 "2006-01-23T18:47:30Z")
Around here, shone rhymes with bone and cone. A tyke, in these parts, is a small child, maybe age 2-5. ---
**Author:** ![WotNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e19b73/32.png) [@WotNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WotNot)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2006, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-canadian-american-pronunciation-of-shone/341166/47 "2006-01-23T19:32:40Z")
> [@gigi](#): > > What about the British pronunciation of “scone”? I heard it might be something like “scun” ?? Well, there are three popular British pronunciations of “scone”, and none of them are like “scun”. The Scottish pronunciation (used for the place, and the stone of the same name) rhymes with “soon”. One English pronunciation rhymes with “phone” (long “o”). The other (which I favour) rhymes with “gone” (short “o”). Quite frankly, I wouldn’t worry about it. From the evidence of this thread, Americans don’t use English short “o” sound at all, so you’re unlikely to ever be able to pronounce the word the way we do (to my ears, the “neutrally accented” reporters in **Zabali\_Clawbane’s** link are talking about a teen who was “shaht uhn th’ behck”). Besides which, since there are two common (English) pronunciations, whichever one you choose you’ll find an Englishman will come along and insist it’s wrong. It’s quite a bone of contention over here (or is that bon?). ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2006, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-canadian-american-pronunciation-of-shone/341166/48 "2006-01-23T19:33:39Z")
> [@Zabali\_Clawbane](#): > > In the interest of accuracy I thought to double check where people were from. [This](http://www.ksn.com/bios/llocke.html) anchor is from Central Kansas. Listen to how she says “shown” in [this](http://www.ksn.com/news/stories/10941914.html) report. Also, if you listened to the “Teen Shot in Back” report, note how the officer says dog. To me, it sounds she’s saying it just like as if it were spelled “shone” or “shoan”; that is, rhyming with “loan.” I don’t hear any _w_s. ---
**Author:** ![Brynda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e79b87/32.png) [@Brynda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brynda)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2006, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-canadian-american-pronunciation-of-shone/341166/49 "2006-01-24T00:48:57Z")
> [@amarone](#): > > Another Tyke checking in: I say it with the short o as in con, John etc. But as you are from the south, who knows how you pronounce those words anyway? Around here, even “and” is a two-syllable word. > > Which part of godzone country is your husband from to pronounce it like Sean? See, here’s the thing–I don’t know how you pronounce John and con. Would you mind checking here? I pronounce it like the first sound bite, my hubby like the second. And he is from 'ipper’olme, near 'alifax. ---
**Author:** ![TheLoadedDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/35a633/32.png) [@TheLoadedDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheLoadedDog)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2006, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-canadian-american-pronunciation-of-shone/341166/50 "2006-01-24T01:03:45Z")
> [@Cunctator](#): > > Here also. Not sure I agree with that. I’ve always pronounced them differently. “Shone” is a _very_ short ‘O’, but “gone” isn’t: ‘gone’ doesn’t rhyme with ‘on’ like ‘shone’ does. ‘Gone’ isn’t ‘gawn’ either in (educated) Australian English. I’m not sure how to display the phonetics of ‘gone’, but it’s not a rhyme of any of: on, one, cone. It’s certainly closest to an ‘on’ rhyme, but it’s not an exact fit, unlike ‘shone’ which is. ---
**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2006, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-canadian-american-pronunciation-of-shone/341166/51 "2006-01-24T01:05:12Z")
> [@Brynda](#): > > See, here’s the thing–I don’t know how you pronounce John and con. > > Would you mind checking here? I pronounce it like the first sound bite, my hubby like the second. Taking a guess you are referring to the links earlier in this thread, most definitely the second - except even shorter and harder on the vowel sound. I would not even guess that the first one was meant to be the same word. > [@Brynda](#): > > And he is from 'ipper’olme, near 'alifax. Selby myself. Referencing a long-dead thread: Are you eating that bacon with a fork yet? ---
**Author:** ![Brynda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e79b87/32.png) [@Brynda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brynda)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2006, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-canadian-american-pronunciation-of-shone/341166/52 "2006-01-24T01:09:56Z")
> [@amarone](#): > > \ > Referencing a long-dead thread: Are you eating that bacon with a fork yet? Never!!! I eat bacon like God intended–with me fingers. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2006, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-canadian-american-pronunciation-of-shone/341166/53 "2006-01-24T01:47:23Z")
> [@Brynda](#): > > with me fingers. 😃 Spoken like a true (adopted) Yorkshirewoman. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2006, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-canadian-american-pronunciation-of-shone/341166/54 "2006-01-24T03:44:06Z")
> [@Zabali\_Clawbane](#): > > Adding, that to my way of thinking, since my “accent” is pretty nuetral,\* my reasoning is that what I’m hearing could be considered more accurate since my “regional listening habit” has a more neutral basis. > > [SUB]\*In fact it’s more a lack of accent than an actual accent. [/SUB] If your Kansas accent is anything like the accents I heard in the clip, you do indeed have an accent - clipping some vowels, broadening others, and a rhythm very different from how we speak in the Canadian prairies (and I’ve never lived anywhere that didn’t pronounce it “shon”). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-canadian-american-pronunciation-of-shone/341166.md?page=2)