# Post Something Interesting About English **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 23, 2017, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-something-interesting-about-english/782836 "2017-03-23T15:46:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 11
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2017, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-something-interesting-about-english/782836/201 "2017-03-29T20:17:45Z")
> [@harmonicamoon](#): > > “i” before “e”, except after “c” That is just weird. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2017, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-something-interesting-about-english/782836/202 "2017-03-29T21:22:13Z")
> [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#): > > So let’s make a coherent sentence out of as many of them as we can. > > **The tough cough and hiccough as they plough through the borough’s dough.** A measly 7 used there. > > Let’s see what others can come up with. I started a thread on pronunciations of “ough” and was educated that “hiccough” was backed into and “hiccup” is correct. ☹ [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=19347758&postcount=28](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=19347758&postcount=28) We got cough -off thought -aw tough/enough/chough/sough -uff bough/plough/doughty -ow dough/though/sough -oh McCullough/Scarborough -uh slough -ew ~ through -oo lough -ɒx same as Cloughjordan? Loughborough ---
**Author:** ![rat\_avatar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rat_avatar/32/255_2.png) [@rat\_avatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rat_avatar)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2017, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-something-interesting-about-english/782836/203 "2017-03-29T21:56:03Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > Or sounded as “a” as in neighbor and weigh. Or happy-tensing; fancied Or Latin words ending c(i) wen adding a suffix staring with (i)e; efficient, science Or Chemical names ending in -ein or -eine; protein Or Prefixes de- or re- before words starting with i; deindustrialize Or leisure, neither, surveillance Or … Really “It’s a trap!!!” 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2017, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-something-interesting-about-english/782836/204 "2017-03-29T22:00:02Z")
> [@gigi](#): > > I started a thread on pronunciations of “ough” and was educated that “hiccough” was backed into and “hiccup” is correct. ☹ > > [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=19347758&postcount=28](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=19347758&postcount=28) > > We got > > cough -off > thought -aw > tough/enough/chough/sough -uff > bough/plough/doughty -ow > dough/though/sough -oh > McCullough/Scarborough -uh > slough -ew ~ through -oo > lough -x same as Cloughjordan? > Loughborough And of course, depending upon where you’re from some of these are the same sound: Cough = Thought Slough = Through In my accent anyway. Sent from my adequate mobile device using Tapatalk. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2017, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-something-interesting-about-english/782836/205 "2017-03-29T22:18:36Z")
> [@Yllaria](#): > > Conversations, by convention, go back and forth. Pauses may be taken as a signal that your turn is over and someone else can start talking. Soooooo, in conversations, these words take up time, allowing us to maintain our turn while we think for half a second about what we want to say next. It’s not accidental that they tend to crop up at the beginning of a sentence. > > They’re not needed in public speaking, where the audience is not supposed to take a turn. It takes concentration and practice to trust your pauses and not use these crutch words. They _ **can** _ be used that way, but most of the time they actually have a utilitarian function as discourse markers, serving to ease in a response and avoid abruptness, as was noted, which makes them more than mere crutch words. If they’re used as mere filler, they’re going to be drawn out the way you suggested, and most of the time they’re not. For instance I was listening to a radio interview recently with a researcher on some scientific topic, and the person was so keen and enthusiastic in her responses that she could barely stop for breath, yet practically each response began with a “so, …”. Obama has a way of starting sentences with a drawn-out “and …” which is an example of the kind of filler you’re talking about. But a conversation completely devoid of markers like “well” and “so” would risk sounding like an angry debate! “You know” is another one that serves a similar purpose, introducing the flattering intimacy-creating fiction that the parties are discussing shared knowledge, even when the purpose is obviously to inform. “You know” can occur in the middle or end as well as the beginning of a sentence. If we noticed some poor fool waiting at a bus stop at a time when buses weren’t running, we might say something like “You know there are no buses on the weekend, right?” or “There are no buses on the weekend, you know” and maybe throw in a confirmational “right?” at the end of that one, too. Without any of those modal markers, you’re left with the stark declaration “There are no buses on the weekend!”, which has all the conversational warmth of a klaxon horn or a slap in the face, and might even be taken as mockery! ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2017, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-something-interesting-about-english/782836/206 "2017-03-29T22:26:51Z")
You forgot the Canadian version: “There are no buses on the weekend, eh?” 😉 Sent from my adequate mobile device using Tapatalk. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2017, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-something-interesting-about-english/782836/207 "2017-03-29T22:37:42Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > And of course, depending upon where you’re from some of these are the same sound: > > Cough = Thought > Slough = Through > > In my accent anyway. > > Sent from my adequate mobile device using Tapatalk. But the ough in cough is “off” and the ough in “thought” is “aw” (no f). ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2017, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-something-interesting-about-english/782836/208 "2017-03-29T22:42:16Z")
> [@gigi](#): > > But the ough in cough is “off” and the ough in “thought” is “aw” (no f). Lol. Yeah, and they’re the same sound to this whitey Canadian. 😃 Is your “off” more like an “aff” sound? Sent from my adequate mobile device using Tapatalk. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2017, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-something-interesting-about-english/782836/209 "2017-03-29T22:45:36Z")
Maybe I’m mistaken? I thought we were only discussing the vowel sound. Sent from my adequate mobile device using Tapatalk. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2017, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-something-interesting-about-english/782836/210 "2017-03-30T00:09:08Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > … Obama has a way of starting sentences with a drawn-out “and …” which is an example of the kind of filler you’re talking about… Which is still miles beyond his free-speaking style in 2008, where 5 minutes of talk would be punctuated by dozens of "um"s. I suspect he had a speaking coach thrust upon him, because that habit was getting to be annoying as hell. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2017, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-something-interesting-about-english/782836/211 "2017-03-30T00:12:07Z")
> [@harmonicamoon](#): > > “i” before “e”, except after “c” That rule is ancient, but hardly scientific. Neither I, nor my eight foreign neighbours agree. Go to your beige hacienda. Let it weigh on your conscience. Repent at your leisure. Pay a forfeit before you leave. ---
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2017, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-something-interesting-about-english/782836/212 "2017-03-30T01:03:37Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > Sent from my adequate mobile device using Tapatalk. Could you go into more detail about how you are accessing the boards? It’s just tantalizingly not enough info about what fucking phone you are using. ---
**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:** [March 30, 2017, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-something-interesting-about-english/782836/213 "2017-03-30T01:21:23Z")
> [@gigi](#): > > But the ough in cough is “off” and the ough in “thought” is “aw” (no f). The vowels in these words seem exactly the same to me. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2017, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-something-interesting-about-english/782836/214 "2017-03-30T02:18:32Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > The vowels in these words seem exactly the same to me. Yes, the “off” is equivalent to “awf.” ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2017, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-something-interesting-about-english/782836/215 "2017-03-30T03:03:29Z")
The more unique the name given by a parent to their kid, the more upset they get when it is mispronounced. By all means name your child Siobhan Featheringstonehaugh. Just don’t get upset if people don’t pronounce this “Chevonne Fanshawe” or what have you. ---
**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:** [March 30, 2017, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-something-interesting-about-english/782836/216 "2017-03-30T04:45:36Z")
Is slowing up the same as slowing down? ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2017, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-something-interesting-about-english/782836/217 "2017-03-30T05:07:40Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > Is slowing up the same as slowing down? Depends on the age of the speaker. Seven-year old bicycling down the street trying to keep up with his friend: “Hey! Wait up! Slow up!” Ancient grandma in the back seat of a car: “Slow down!” ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2017, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-something-interesting-about-english/782836/218 "2017-03-30T05:17:42Z")
> [@gigi](#): > > But the ough in cough is “off” and the ough in “thought” is “aw” (no f). Perchance, are you pronouncing “thought” in Deep Southern, like the late Senator Sam Ervin? 😉 I quote Dave Barry on this subject: … the [Watergate] scandal was such hot news that it was turned into a highly popular television series called The Senate Watergate Committee’s Parade of Scuzzballs, starring genial host “Senator Sam” Ervin (Okeefenokee), who had the entire nation listening with rapt attention in an effort to figure out what the hell he was saying. Senator Sam spoke in Deep Southern, which is similar to English, only unintelligible, so everything he said came out sounding like “We go’ heppin’ wif de bane pone.” ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2017, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-something-interesting-about-english/782836/219 "2017-03-30T05:35:15Z")
> [@Peter\_Morris](#): > > That rule is ancient, but hardly scientific. Neither I, nor my eight foreign neighbours agree. Go to your beige hacienda. Let it weigh on your conscience. Repent at your leisure. Pay a forfeit before you leave. A lot of those are “long a” sounds though, which is part of the “a as in weigh” exception. And some like “hacienda” are very easy to spell if you sound it out: the i and e are distinct. “Leisure” is perhaps the biggest WTF. > [@panache45](#): > > The vowels in these words seem exactly the same to me. “Thought” is /ɔ/, “cough” can be /ɔ/ or /ɒ/, depending on dialect. I can’t even really tell if I do them different or not. > [@Dr\_Paprika](#): > > The more unique the name given by a parent to their kid, the more upset they get when it is mispronounced. By all means name your child Siobhan Featheringstonehaugh. Just don’t get upset if people don’t pronounce this “Chevonne Fanshawe” or what have you. Siobhan is a very phonetic name, just not in English. Irish orthography is downright phonetic compared to English (s\>sh before i or e, i is short, o is a weird modifier that follows a specific rule, h is not a true letter but modifies the b into a v sound depending on the next vowel, a and n are an a and an n). If that is your name you certainly shouldn’t get _mad_ or assume everyone should know, but it’s a perfectly cromulent name. I reserve my ire for the Jaa’dyns and Mykynkys of the world (or at least their parents). ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2017, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-something-interesting-about-english/782836/220 "2017-03-30T06:04:14Z")
> [@thelurkinghorror](#): > > … And some like “hacienda” are very easy to spell if you sound it out: the i and e are distinct. Notwithstanding that “hacienda” is simply _not_ an English word, the “i before e” rule applies specifically to diphthongs. There are a few English words where i and e do not pair up as a diphthong (“deist”) but it is somewhat uncommon. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-something-interesting-about-english/782836.md?page=10) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/post-something-interesting-about-english/782836.md?page=12)