Why are bass(fish) and bass(instrument) pronounced differently?

[Amentep]

Thanks. Are you a linguist?

 

About english, if I am not sure I look into the oxford dictianary because a) we used it in school and b) I have it at home.

I do not know the differences between british and american english (or any other dialect) but at least in internet forums and when talking to other people nobody complained that they cannot understand me so far.

The best english (as in I can understand it best) I have heard in norway.

 

Nope, not a linguist.  So if any linguists want to come along and correct me feel free!  I find word etymology fascinating and its one of the (many) things I read about in my free time.  So really I'm just saying my understanding of things (and if I'm wrong, my misunderstanding of them).

 

Most of the differences in US and UK English are cosmetic to us average users so typically if you're not getting into slang you're probably not going to have trouble being understood.  There are a couple of places where US and UK use different words entirely (for example lift vs elevator, lorry vs truck) or spelled radically different (the aforementioned draughts vs drafts, curb on a roadway vs kerb on a roadway).

 

 

On a similar topic, is there a reason why dessert is pronounced with a Z sound and desert with an S sound ?

 

I find this extremely puzzling, since in French it's this exact opposite !

 

Don't know the exact reason for this; as you say its borrowed from the French but unlike other borrowed French words not pronounced the French way (des-seir) so it may have something to do with the expected sound when saying the rt ending (which to me makes it sound like cert in certify, so des-cert which ran together starts to sound like des-zert).  No real clue on this one though beyond that guess.  Sorry!

[HoonDing]

Leicester

 

Gloucester

 

explain that

[majestic]

Bonus points: Get Feargus Urquhart right. Both the spelling and the pronunciation.

[Gorth]

Isn't that pronounced something along the lines of fer-guss ur-kart?

 

Edit: @Madscientist - You are perfectly understandable. I've always considered German the "Lego" of languages. Can't find a word that fits, just put a pile of words together until you got a new (often very long) word that explains what it is

[Malcador]

Ferguss Urk-hurt I think.

 

Now saw a guy at work with first name of Yigit. Not sure how you pronounce that

[Madscientist]

Isn't that pronounced something along the lines of fer-guss ur-kart?

 

Edit: @Madscientist - You are perfectly understandable. I've always considered German the "Lego" of languages. Can't find a word that fits, just put a pile of words together until you got a new (often very long) word that explains what it is

 

Try this one: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rinderkennzeichnungs-_und_Rindfleischetikettierungs%C3%BCberwachungsaufgaben%C3%BCbertragungsgesetz

and forget about this village in wales https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Llanfairpwllgwyngyll

or new zealand https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taumatawhakatangihangakoauauotamateaturipukakapikimaungahoronukupokaiwhenuakitanatahu

see, how short they are

 

I do not know an english example at the moment, but the german "Eissporthalle" in french would be translated as "hall of sports of ice". How are you supposed to know that these 5 words are the name for one thing, just throw everything together

If I want to write something complicated in english, I have to use "word1 word2 word3" or word1-word2-word3.

 

EDIT: How unfair, it does not show the whole lengh of the link

 

PS: How can you post a link and the continue writing without your new writing becomes part of the link?

Edited March 10, 2017 by Madscientist

[Amentep]

Leicester

 

Gloucester

 

explain that

 

Internet research (FWIW) indicates that both names are evolutions from their pre-Roman names (Careloyw, Cairlerion) that made their Roman Names (Glevum Castrum, Ligora Castum). This becomes adapted by the Anglo-Saxons (Glevceastre, Ledeceastre).  In the case of Glevceastre, the Latin pronunciation of the name Glev would make the v a "u" so Gleu.  The Anglo-Saxon "ceastre" would be pronounced (if I understand it correctly) as "chah-ayst-r" hence "glou-chah-ayst-r".  Eventually the Anglo-Saxon pronunciation altered through use or outside influence (France?) making ceastre into cester pronounced with an "S", thus making the pronunciation Glah-ster.

 

I'm a little less clear on how Ledeceastre (Leh-deh-chah-ayst-r) dropped the d.  Could have been just a concatenation thing of convenience, saying "leh" over "leh-deh" was more economical. Ceastre had the same evolution to cester and thus beccam "less-ter"

[Hiro Protagonist]

Live in a house. Live concert. My girlfriend whose second language is English only ever pronounces it as the first example and it's funny when she says live concert.

[Amentep]

I think that's a case of them both having the same root (Middle English: lif) but Live as an adjective derives its meaning from alive (from Middle English: on life meaning in life).  My understanding is that usage dropped the forward a, my guess would be because the awkwardness of saying something like "An alive fire"

[Gorth]

PS: How can you post a link and the continue writing without your new writing becomes part of the link?

You can "split" the info. Posting a link and a label that is a friendly hint to what the link leads to.

 

For example:

 

[url=http://icanhas.cheezburger.com/lolcats]Funny cat pictures[/url]

The above gives something like Funny cat pictures

 

Not sure if that is what you are looking for?

 

Alternatively there are sites like https://tinyurl.com/ which can create redirections to links you don't really want to (or can't) post.

[Zoraptor]

I think he means that if you use an in text link any text you add after the link gets included as (blue) link text.
 
eg this should only have eg showing as link text not the rest of the text help how do I stop it?

That happens when you add the link at the end of your current bit of writing, any text you write afterwards gets included in the hyperlink text. The way to get out of it is to use the BBCode toggle (top left of message composition box) and write some text outside the [/url] tag or manually copy/ paste the tag.

[Leferd]

One homophone that's bugging me: Irish Spring.

 

Is it referring to the the vernal season or the source of water? The ambiguity is troubling me.

 

All part of the Hibernian Conspiracy?

[Gfted1]

Its referring to the soap. Duh.

[Amentep]

Irish Spring as in the soap product?  I have no clue the product origins, but I'd suspect since its soap, its supposed to refer to both; as in its as "clean as Irish spring water" with a fresh scent like "Ireland in the spring".