Calling all linguists and linguists wannabes...

[raccoon]

Why is "Higher Power" so hard to say? In my neck of the woods people occasionally say, "Hower Power" which drives me nuts but I really can't fault them because it is sort of hard to say.

[HopeHoops]

1. Probably the same reason people spell "vacuum" as "H-o-o-v-e-r"

And do these people "wash" or "worsh" their clothes?

[TZ]

3. Its Washington DC...Not Warshington....

That makes me nuts...

[HopeHoops]

5. I grew up in a "worsh the clothes" environment, but we still said "Washington".

Then there's "Bal-mer, Merlan", which you only know how to say correctly if you lived near there for a while.

[NewJeffCT]

2. I consider myself a cunning linguist

but, I don't see it as hard to pronounce? Maybe it's a regional accent where you are?

[raccoon]

4. May be. nt

[HopeHoops]

6. That's what SHE said!

[NewJeffCT]

10. as long as she keeps saying it!

:9

[HopeHoops]

18. SHIT! That's the first time anyone EVER replied that way!

:toast: :party: :bounce: :evilgrin: O8) :smoke: :thumbsup: :fistbump: :headbang: :woohoo:

[Iggo]

7. Higher Power rolls off the tongue easy in West Coast Lingo.

However, you should hear the kids try to say 'Real World' in SoCal/Surfer/Valley Speak. They sound like they're gonna swallow their tongues...lol.

I even trip over it sometimes when I slip back into my teen-talk ways.

[Duer 157099]

20. This west-coaster agrees, I don't see the problem

But then, neither do I have a problem saying "real world" either.

[ZombieNixon]

8. The pervading trend in American English

seems to be for the "ow" <aw> and "eye" <aj> sounds to merge. There's no real reason why these sound changes happen. Someone just starts talking that way and it rubs off on people. Regardless, that seems to be the way things are going. The Hower Power people just seem to be on the leading edge this time.

[Iggo]

9. Come to think of it...

...we had a guy in one of my NA groups many years ago who said "Har Par."

Texas, maybe.

[Odin2005]

17. That's the typical Southern monothongization of /ai/ to /a:/

[DFW]

11. Harder to believe than to pronounce..... n/t

[Iggo]

23. .

:rofl:

[tigereye]

12. hmm, don't see why the " Yer" in higher pronunciation should be that hard

that y sound is made with the sides of the tongue on the back teeth, so I wouldn't think the physical aspects of the sound would be the issue, but more an issue of regional accents.

Signed, took one linguistics class in college... :hi:

[Iggo]

24. Yer one o' them there experts, then. (n/t)

[Deep13]

13. Don't know. I never say it.

I would like to protest the Mid-West's war on vowels.

[old mark]

14. May be some problem with your neck

of the woods.

Here where I am, we speak correctly.

mark:rofl:

[Bennyboy]

15. I'm a cunning linguist wannabe.....

does that count?

[Odin2005]

16. I've never heard that pronunciation before.

There is no English dialect I know of that merges those 2 diphthongs.

[trof]

19. It's 'Har Par'.

;-)

[Duer 157099]

21. Hey, ain't he that guy in them movin' picshures? The wizardy guy? n/t

[TrogL]

22. Up here it's "higher pighwer"

really nasal