# How do \[i\]you\[/i\] pronounce this? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 10, 2002, 11:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-you-i-pronounce-this/108262 "2002-05-10T11:40:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2002, 11:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-you-i-pronounce-this/108262/1 "2002-05-10T11:40:01Z")
from a making fun of Americans [thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=114007&perpage=50&pagenumber=1), **andygirl** pointed out that: > [@](#): > > The California (and West coast in general) accent is generally characterized by a loss of vowels. Marry, merry, and Mary are generally pronounced the same way by Californians, but with three different vowels by Northeasterners. My response: > [@](#): > > I, as a born-n-raised Californian, must agree. I have only one question: How the hell do you pronounce those three words differently? > > They, uh, all rhyme with bury, berry, and Barry, right? So, dopers, let’s hear it. How do you say the above three (or six) words? Is there a difference, or do those Noreasterners need to stop inventing vowel sounds? Is it just select words, or do Californians butcher vowels in a standard way? ---
**Author:** ![Spritle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5daacb/32.png) [@Spritle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spritle)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2002, 11:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-you-i-pronounce-this/108262/2 "2002-05-10T11:46:55Z")
Barry Me: Bear-ee Mrs. S: Baa-ree (baa, as in what sheep say) We each accuse the other of mispronouncing it (ain’t we just the cutest couple ever?) FTR, we were raised about 65 miles from each other. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2002, 11:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-you-i-pronounce-this/108262/3 "2002-05-10T11:48:18Z")
I pronounce them all the same. (at least I think I do) I live in California, but I come from Ohio. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2002, 11:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-you-i-pronounce-this/108262/4 "2002-05-10T11:58:37Z")
You’re kidding, right? **marry** rhymes with **carry** **Mary** rhymes with **Kerry**. They’re both names. You don’t pronounce “carry” and “Kerry” the same. None of my Western friends pronounced “marry” the same as “Mary”. Although my Utahn friends _did_ pronounced “Spanish Fork” as if it was spelled “Spanish Fark”. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2002, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-you-i-pronounce-this/108262/5 "2002-05-10T12:08:52Z")
Ummm…Chicago checking in…Speaking for myself: Marry, Mary & Merry I pronounce the first two the same, and the third with more of an “eh” than a short “a.” But sometimes I pronounce all three the same. I also pronounce “carry” and “kerry” the same; Here’s the question: Do you pronounce “Carrie” and “Kerry” differently? I don’t. “bury” is “berry”, but not “barry” Incidentally, there are maps somewhere (I can’t remember where I’ve seen them) mapping out the States and whether these words have one common pronunciation, or two or three different pronunciations. ---
**Author:** ![robinc308](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b782af/32.png) [@robinc308](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robinc308)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2002, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-you-i-pronounce-this/108262/6 "2002-05-10T12:34:32Z")
Marry rhymes with carry or tarry Mary rhymes with hairy merry rhymes with berry. ---
**Author:** ![trishdish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d2c977/32.png) [@trishdish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/trishdish)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2002, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-you-i-pronounce-this/108262/7 "2002-05-10T13:55:49Z")
What the hell?!? I’m so utterly confused. “Marry me!” and “The Wind Cries Mary” are pronounced the same. “Merry Christmas” is different and the beginning sound is more like “Mir” as in the space station. Who pronounces Barry as Bah-ree. Unless you’re British or something. It’s Bear-ee. Just like a raspberry. And how are carry and kerry pronounced differently anyway? If anything, this might be a midwestern thing. Because I’ve had to conciously teach myself that bin and ben are not pronounced exactly the same. Same for pin and pen. ---
**Author:** ![istara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e79b87/32.png) [@istara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/istara)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2002, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-you-i-pronounce-this/108262/8 "2002-05-10T13:55:54Z")
Ditto what **robinc308** said. ---
**Author:** ![trishdish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d2c977/32.png) [@trishdish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/trishdish)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2002, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-you-i-pronounce-this/108262/9 "2002-05-10T13:58:55Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by istara \* > \*\*Ditto what **robinc308** said. \*\* But carry, berry and hairy all rhyme with each other. So, that makes no sense. At least to me it doesn’t. ---
**Author:** ![Cougarfang](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c67d28/32.png) [@Cougarfang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cougarfang)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2002, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-you-i-pronounce-this/108262/10 "2002-05-10T14:16:31Z")
Mary and marry are the same: you pronounce the “a” sort of “ayh”, not “ay” or “ah”, but somewhere in between. Merry has an “e” sound - “meh-rry”. ---
**Author:** ![ShibbOleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@ShibbOleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShibbOleth)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2002, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-you-i-pronounce-this/108262/11 "2002-05-10T14:45:13Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by spooje \* > \*\*I pronounce them all the same. (at least I think I do) > > I live in California, but I come from Ohio. \*\* I pronounce them all the same (or extremely close to the same) I live in Ohio, but I come from California. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2002, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-you-i-pronounce-this/108262/12 "2002-05-10T15:24:38Z")
[A few](http://www.bartleby.com/68/50/3850.html) [sites worth reading.](http://www-personal.umich.edu/~jlawler/aue/vowels.html) Other questions…Do you pronounce “wear” and “where” the same? I do. Not everyone does. How 'bout “weary” and “wary”? Is it a “pail” or a “bucket”…“See-saw” or “teeter-totter?” “Tap,” “faucet” or “spigot”? And let’s not even get started on the variations of “submarine sandwich”… ---
**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:** [May 10, 2002, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-you-i-pronounce-this/108262/13 "2002-05-10T15:25:56Z")
Central Indiana here. In my mouth, merry and Mary are just about the same. They rhyme with airy. Marry, though, gets a short a, almost like in bat. I know several people who say bury as “burr-y.” ---
**Author:** ![manwithaplan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f1d935/32.png) [@manwithaplan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/manwithaplan)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2002, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-you-i-pronounce-this/108262/14 "2002-05-10T15:28:08Z")
The view from the old world is… Marry = mar(as in spoil)-ee Mary=mare(as in a female horse)-ee Merry=mer (as in the second syllable of America)-ee To me, this is also what **robin308** said. But its great crack pronouncing carry, berry and hairy so that they all rhyme - when I do it I sound like your woman off ‘Married with Children’. ---
**Author:** ![Cazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cazzle/32/75_2.png) [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2002, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-you-i-pronounce-this/108262/15 "2002-05-10T16:10:55Z")
Australian checking in. Marry: Maah-ry (Maa, like Baa) Mary: Mare-y or M-heir-y (draw out the mare part) Merry: Meh-ry (softer than Mary) Barry: Baa-ry (like in Marry, like a sheep, baa). Carry: Caa-ry (really nasal sounding “a”) Kerry: care-y or k-heir-y Those last two can be confusing. Mum told me my Aunt moved to Mary Street and I couldn’t find it on the map until she pointed out Merry Street. They’re very close, just a slightly longer sound on Mary. ---
**Author:** ![Cazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cazzle/32/75_2.png) [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2002, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-you-i-pronounce-this/108262/16 "2002-05-10T16:22:46Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by pulykamell \* > \*\*[A few](http://www.bartleby.com/68/50/3850.html) > [sites worth reading.](http://www-personal.umich.edu/~jlawler/aue/vowels.html) > > Other questions…Do you pronounce “wear” and “where” the same? I do. Not everyone does. How 'bout “weary” and “wary”? > Is it a “pail” or a “bucket”…“See-saw” or “teeter-totter?” “Tap,” “faucet” or “spigot”? > > And let’s not even get started on the variations of “submarine sandwich”… \*\* LOL, now this is fun 🙂 Wear and Where - yes, pretty much the same. Slightly more effort in Where to get the “h” sound in, but barely noticable. Weary and Wary - nothing alike, not even close. Weeiry and wherey are the most accurate definitions I can make. Not a pail - a bucket. Not a teeter-totter - a see-saw. Not a faucet or a spigot - a tap. Not a diaper - a nappy. Not a pacifier - a dummy Not a bum - a tramp Not a fanny - a bum Don’t use the word “fanny” in Australia - you’re likely to offend someone. It’s not a Fanny-Pak, it’s a Bum-Bag. A fanny-pak would have to be exclusively female and sit in front if you get my drift… Not a vacation - a holiday Not a crib - a cot Not a biscuit - a scone Not a cookie - a biscuit “Chook” is another word for “chicken”. eg “We’re having roast chook for dinner” “Dunny” is another word for “toilet”. Every time I post to a message board, I have to translate from Australian into American. Sometimes it’s easy, but sometimes it’s harder because I have no idea that they don’t have what I’m talking about, or that they have a different name for it. I’m getting there, though I’ll never be able to hang out on US based recipe sites. ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2002, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-you-i-pronounce-this/108262/17 "2002-05-10T16:43:45Z")
What the OP is asking about is what phoneticists call \*\*“r-coloring.” \*\* In English, the sound of [r] is made by a retroflex position of the tongue—the tip of the tongue bent up and a little backward. This placement of the tongue affects the vowel that precedes it. Some dialects have it, some don’t. Some have it more, some have it less. This accounts for the variations described here. Born and raised in Ohio, I pronounce all three the same. The vowel in all three is the open [E] as in “met.” The r-coloring has reduced the originally 3 different vowels into one. In Boston, so I understand, “marry” has the flat [æ] sound as in “matter.” “Mary” has the close [é] sound as in “mate”. “merry” has the open [E] sound as in “met”. The Allegheny Mountain ridge in central-western Pennsylvania has been identified as the boundary between the dialect areas where to the east the 3 vowels are different, and to the west they’re all [E]. The r-coloring has moved the /æ/ sound forward, and the /é/ sound downward, so that they meet in the middle which is [E]. When I drive on the Pennsylvania Turnpike, I notice how Allegheny Mountain seems to form a natural boundary. After going through the tunnel, the weather is often different on one side from the other. Perhaps the flora and fauna are slightly different too. When you travel through there and see the lay of the land, you get a sense of how it could form a dialect boundary too. ---
**Author:** ![Futile\_Gesture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f05b48/32.png) [@Futile\_Gesture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Futile_Gesture)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2002, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-you-i-pronounce-this/108262/18 "2002-05-10T17:13:01Z")
Scots: Marry Barry Carry Marie = ahrry Mary Hairy Fairy Dairy Wary = airry Merry Berry Kerry Ferry = erry Bury Hurry Furry Worry = urry Weary Teary Eerie = eery All different. ---
**Author:** ![Strainger](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/strainger/32/244_2.png) [@Strainger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Strainger)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2002, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-you-i-pronounce-this/108262/19 "2002-05-10T17:16:01Z")
I pronounce them all the same. The same way I pronounce “Murray”. What? ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2002, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-you-i-pronounce-this/108262/20 "2002-05-10T18:09:02Z")
Born and lived in New Orleans until age 29 : **marry** =\> has the flat [æ] sound as in “matter.” **Mary** =\> has the open [E] sound as in “met”. **merry** =\> has the open [E] sound as in “met”. **Barry** =\> has the flat [æ] sound as in “batter.” **bury** =\> has the open [E] sound as in “bet”. **berry** =\> has the open [E] sound as in “bet”. … Also: **where** , **ware** , and **wear** are perfect homophones. **Weary** is “wee-ree”, **wary** is “ware-ree”. Not a pail - a bucket. Not a teeter-totter - a see-saw. Not a tap or a spigot - a faucet . Not a tramp - a bum Not a fanny or a bum – a butt or an ass And most importantly … While one may “pop” a balloon, or take after one’s “pop”, one cannot drink “pop”. There is no real generic name in New Orleans for “soda” or “pop” – you must call either call it by brand name, or refer to them as “cold drinks”. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-you-i-pronounce-this/108262.md?page=2)