# Is pronouncing trail as trial "normal"? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 8, 2014, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-pronouncing-trail-as-trial-normal/700761 "2014-10-08T15:23:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![naita](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/naita/32/5862_2.png) [@naita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/naita)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2014, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-pronouncing-trail-as-trial-normal/700761/1 "2014-10-08T15:23:39Z")
There’s teaser on History Channel (may be a special HC for Scandinavia) for one of those annoying Psychic Detective shows. The voice over seems to me to be reading “When the trail goes cold” with “trail” pronounced the way I’d pronounce “trial”. M-W only gives the pronunciations I’m used to, but before I continue shouting “trail” at the TV once every couple of days I wanted to check with the entirety of the English speaking world (you’re all here right) if this is actually normal somewhere, and not just television stupidity. ---
**Author:** ![Xema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9de053/32.png) [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2014, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-pronouncing-trail-as-trial-normal/700761/2 "2014-10-08T15:25:15Z")
In Oz it would be. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2014, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-pronouncing-trail-as-trial-normal/700761/3 "2014-10-08T15:36:48Z")
Some southern US accents might approximate that, if not exactly. But yeah, Australia definitely. They like to throw some shrimp on the barbie after hiking on the trial. Maybe more like Trile than Trial. But… How do Australians pronounce the word “trial”? ---
**Author:** ![Shakester](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shakester/32/437_2.png) [@Shakester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shakester)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2014, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-pronouncing-trail-as-trial-normal/700761/4 "2014-10-08T15:45:15Z")
I’m Australian and we do not pronounce _trail_ like anything but tray-ell. And we pronounce _trial_ try-ell. I’ve never had the slightest difficulty telling the two words apart. Why do Americans pronounce both words as “troll”? ---
**Author:** ![robert\_columbia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e79b87/32.png) [@robert\_columbia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robert_columbia)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2014, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-pronouncing-trail-as-trial-normal/700761/5 "2014-10-08T16:18:42Z")
> [@Shakester](#): > > I’m Australian and we do not pronounce _trail_ like anything but tray-ell. And we pronounce _trial_ try-ell. > > I’ve never had the slightest difficulty telling the two words apart. > > Why do Americans pronounce both words as “troll”? I’m American, and most definitely do not pronounce “troll” the same as “trial” _or_ “trail”. I have a NJ-ish accent, sort of a halfway point between a NYC and a Philly accent, but quite different from a Georgia or California accent. This means that I don’t have most “typical” US vowel mergers. I differentiate Mary, marry, and merry, pronounce “cot” differently than “caught”, and would never confuse a pin and a pen. ---
**Author:** ![DChord568](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@DChord568](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DChord568)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2014, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-pronouncing-trail-as-trial-normal/700761/6 "2014-10-08T16:26:44Z")
And for the opposite phenomenon, there’s the Association song “Along Comes Mary,” in which composer Tandyn Almer wrote: And maybe rather gather tales From all the trails and tribulations No one ever sees ---
**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:** [October 8, 2014, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-pronouncing-trail-as-trial-normal/700761/7 "2014-10-08T16:47:35Z")
> [@Shakester](#): > > I’m Australian and we do not pronounce _trail_ like anything but tray-ell. And we pronounce _trial_ try-ell. > > I’ve never had the slightest difficulty telling the two words apart. > > Why do Americans pronounce both words as “troll”? I’m trying to imagine what this “troll” you hear is. The way we pronounce “troll” is quite different than “trial” or “trail.” I imagine you’re using the “o” there to denote the vowel in most American accents that corresponds to the “o” in “cot.” I guess that can maybe approximate some sort of Southern accent, but it’s not the common pronunciation for either of those words. ---
**Author:** ![JKilez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e5b9ba/32.png) [@JKilez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKilez)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2014, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-pronouncing-trail-as-trial-normal/700761/8 "2014-10-08T16:57:30Z")
> [@Shakester](#): > > I’m Australian and we do not pronounce _trail_ like anything but tray-ell. And we pronounce _trial_ try-ell. That would be southern US as well. > [@Shakester](#): > > Why do Americans pronounce both words as “troll”? Would those be Central Americans? Or, possibly South Americans? Outside the US, they do pronounce English words oddly. :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2014, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-pronouncing-trail-as-trial-normal/700761/9 "2014-10-08T18:07:08Z")
You have to forgive the Aussies, since they have to read everything upside down. Sometimes that makes them get the vowels mixed up. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2014, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-pronouncing-trail-as-trial-normal/700761/10 "2014-10-08T19:44:25Z")
> [@Shakester](#): > > Why do Americans pronounce both words as “troll”? **Moderator Note** Accusations of trolling (which this appears to be) are not permitted outside the Pit. No warning issued, but don’t this again. Colibri General Questions Moderator ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2014, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-pronouncing-trail-as-trial-normal/700761/11 "2014-10-08T20:04:37Z")
I’d consider trail a single syllable word that rhymes with whale or jail. Trial on the other hand would be two syllable rhyming with vial. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2014, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-pronouncing-trail-as-trial-normal/700761/12 "2014-10-08T20:47:18Z")
> [@Hampshire](#): > > I’d consider trail a single syllable word that rhymes with whale or jail. > > Trial on the other hand would be two syllable rhyming with vial. What if you pronounce whale and jail “while” and “Jile”? ---
**Author:** ![leahcim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b4bc9f/32.png) [@leahcim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/leahcim)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2014, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-pronouncing-trail-as-trial-normal/700761/13 "2014-10-08T21:31:05Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > They like to throw some shrimp on the barbie after hiking on the trial. Well, technically it’s more likely _prawns_ that they would throw on the barbie. ---
**Author:** ![CT\_Damsel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dfb087/32.png) [@CT\_Damsel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CT_Damsel)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2014, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-pronouncing-trail-as-trial-normal/700761/14 "2014-10-08T21:41:59Z")
> [@Shakester](#): > > I’m Australian and we do not pronounce _trail_ like anything but **tray-ell**. And we pronounce _trial_ **try-ell**. > > I’ve never had the slightest difficulty telling the two words apart. > > Why do Americans pronounce both words as “troll”? I am from CT in the US and everyone I have ever heard say trail or trail prounce them as you do (bolded mine.) I have never heard troll for trail or trial. ---
**Author:** ![hibernicus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hibernicus/32/2802_2.png) [@hibernicus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hibernicus)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2014, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-pronouncing-trail-as-trial-normal/700761/15 "2014-10-08T21:45:14Z")
Could be Cockney. ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2014, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-pronouncing-trail-as-trial-normal/700761/16 "2014-10-08T22:55:14Z")
More likely New Zealand [Graham Norton's reaction to the New Zealand accent - YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u7t2f-L6Z04) ---
**Author:** ![Shakester](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shakester/32/437_2.png) [@Shakester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shakester)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2014, 5:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-pronouncing-trail-as-trial-normal/700761/17 "2014-10-09T05:27:18Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > **Moderator Note** > > Accusations of trolling (which this appears to be) are not permitted outside the Pit. No warning issued, but don’t this again. > > Colibri > General Questions Moderator It wasn’t an accusation of trolling, it was an example of making up stupid shit and claiming foreigners really talk that way. Unsurprisingly the Americans who missed the glaringly obvious clue in my word choice felt obliged to tell me that Americans don’t really talk that way. O RLY? ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2014, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-pronouncing-trail-as-trial-normal/700761/18 "2014-10-09T13:34:28Z")
> [@Shakester](#): > > It wasn’t an accusation of trolling, it was an example of making up stupid shit and claiming foreigners really talk that way. Unsurprisingly the Americans who missed the glaringly obvious clue in my word choice felt obliged to tell me that Americans don’t really talk that way. O RLY? Well, I snickered. And I haven’t finished my first cuppa joe yet. I was going to point out that people were being whooshed, but you’ve done that already. In our defence though, I have to say that to American ears many times ‘ay’ and in ‘hay’ sounds like ‘I’ as in ‘eye’ when pronounced by an Australian. Hence the joke about the difference between a buffalo and a bison. (Yew cahn’t wash yer **fice** in a **buffalo**!') A counterexample is the Australian pronunciation of ‘trail’ in Men At Work’s _Down Under_, where ‘trail’ is definitely **not** pronounced like ‘trial’. I reckoned it was a regional thing. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2014, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-pronouncing-trail-as-trial-normal/700761/19 "2014-10-09T13:55:26Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > In our defence though, I have to say that to American ears many times ‘ay’ and in ‘hay’ sounds like ‘I’ as in ‘eye’ when pronounced by an Australian. Hence the joke about the difference between a buffalo and a bison. (Yew cahn’t wash yer **fice** in a **buffalo**!') A counterexample is the Australian pronunciation of ‘trail’ in Men At Work’s _Down Under_, where ‘trail’ is definitely **not** pronounced like ‘trial’. I reckoned it was a regional thing. Accents are often masked in songs. ---
**Author:** ![knitcrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/2acd7d/32.png) [@knitcrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/knitcrew)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2014, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-pronouncing-trail-as-trial-normal/700761/20 "2014-10-09T14:38:08Z")
It actually depends on the accent a person has. Some has a good diction, the softer way of pronouncing words while some gives emphasis to every syllable, making the pronunciation differ. We may compare how a American speaks from that of the European and Asian.