# What does it mean to "aspirate words"? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 21, 2015, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-to-aspirate-words/741000 "2015-12-21T15:17:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Brodi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/cc9497/32.png) [@Brodi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brodi)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2015, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-to-aspirate-words/741000/1 "2015-12-21T15:17:45Z")
I was looking at the script for the 1895 theatrical adaptation of “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” and noticed it has this to say about Hyde: > [@](#): > > Mr. Hyde is a dwarf; speaks in a jerky manner and **aspirates his words**. So, what exactly, does the bolded mean? I googled it but can’t figure it out. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2015, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-to-aspirate-words/741000/2 "2015-12-21T15:26:34Z")
Breathy. Think Marilyn Monroe’s “Happy Birthday, Mr. President” ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2015, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-to-aspirate-words/741000/3 "2015-12-21T15:38:33Z")
It means to say with an “H” sound. The difference between the word “ate” and the word “hate” is that “hate” is aspirated. What you quoted indicates that the speaker tends to continually exhale noticeably when speaking. ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2015, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-to-aspirate-words/741000/4 "2015-12-21T18:25:46Z")
And at the very least means that he doesn’t drop the initial aspirate on words like “happen” and “home” and isn’t to be played as a conventional comical lower-class stereotype. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2015, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-to-aspirate-words/741000/5 "2015-12-21T18:35:53Z")
[Here’s the use of the term back in 1821](https://books.google.com/books?id=yjs5AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA472&lpg=PA472&dq=%22aspirates+his+words%22&source=bl&ots=UYkNY0XstE&sig=Pp3Axs880O9b1epbca7w1Azc5ms&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjk-8eiy-3JAhXHHT4KHdZPA9wQ6AEIJTAB#v=onepage&q=%22aspirates%20his%20words%22&f=false) describing a character in a play. It must have been a well recognized affect in Victorian England. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2015, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-to-aspirate-words/741000/6 "2015-12-21T19:37:45Z")
In English, we aspirate letters like ‘P’ and ‘T’. This isn’t done in many other languages. To get an idea of how that sounds, try saying the word ‘pop’ without expelling breath. This is part of the reason why non-native English speakers, such as those from the Indian subcontinent, sound odd to us. ---
**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:** [December 21, 2015, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-to-aspirate-words/741000/7 "2015-12-21T19:40:47Z")
As an exaggerated example, think Gollum in _LotR_ movies. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2015, 5:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-to-aspirate-words/741000/8 "2015-12-22T05:39:12Z")
Think of Darth Vader. ---
**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:** [December 22, 2015, 11:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-to-aspirate-words/741000/9 "2015-12-22T11:03:54Z")
There is a class of English speaking people who aspirate words where the initial ‘H’ is normally silent. It is generally accepted that dropping aitches, as when “Give him a hug” comes out as “Givimm anug”, is a clear indication of a lack of education. A few people will overcompensate, adding them where they don’t exist. "“Hit’s a nice day, hisn’t tit”. ---
**Author:** ![MacCat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maccat/32/216_2.png) [@MacCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacCat)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2015, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-to-aspirate-words/741000/10 "2015-12-22T23:51:26Z")
> [@bob\_2](#): > > There is a class of English speaking people who aspirate words where the initial ‘H’ is normally silent. It is generally accepted that dropping aitches, as when “Give him a hug” comes out as “Givimm anug”, is a clear indication of a lack of education. A few people will overcompensate, adding them where they don’t exist. "“Hit’s a nice day, hisn’t tit”. ln Hertford, Hereford and Hampshire hurricanes hardly ever happen… ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2015, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-to-aspirate-words/741000/11 "2015-12-23T04:16:49Z")
_Haitches!_ (an English Cockney’s explanation of How To Become Very Famous) by Edwina May > [@](#): > > Halways sound your Haitches, > Haspirate your Haitches, > Hif you want to get hon in this world. > Show the Haitch in helephant; study haspiration, > Show you’ve a Heton or a Hoxford heducation. > > Halways sound your Haitches, > Remember hall your Haitches, > Then famous you will surely be. > Hand maybe the Queen will take you by the 'and, > Saying, " 'Enery, there’s kippers for tea!" ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2015, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-to-aspirate-words/741000/12 "2015-12-23T04:55:32Z")
[From some ask-any-question site](http://www.chacha.com/question/what-does-the-term,-%22choke-on-your-words%22-mean): > [@](#): > > What does the term, “choke on your words” mean? > > The term “choke on your words” means you can’t speak your words correctly because of being nervous, angry, upset, or surprised. So be very careful not to aspirate your words. You could choke and suffocate on them. ---
**Author:** ![Isilder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/cc9497/32.png) [@Isilder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isilder)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2015, 12:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-to-aspirate-words/741000/13 "2015-12-23T12:13:00Z")
Because Mr Hyde is changing the voice from a regular mans voice, the script writer, and hence the actor, must have chosen a voice a regular man could successfully put on… There’s only one… hence the list of characters you see already… and of course so many more… This is the squeaky, poorly projected (no boom to it), nasal , “aspirated” voice… So the aspirated syllables are what come across… the nasal tone accentuates the vowels (gutteral consanents are weak if speaking nasally …) , the S’s and others are lisped (insufficiant blockage of flow of air…) and other examples toward aspirated… It doesn’t mean purely aspirated… it means more aspirated…