Post by The Ghoul on May 4, 2006 14:25:34 GMT -5
I have come to prove that W is a vowel and to rub it in old Ray's face. First, I'll quote the website www.StraightDope.com and Cecil:
"In elementary school I remember the teacher telling me that the vowels were AEIOU and sometimes Y and W. But I can't think of a single word where W is used as a vowel. Are there any? --Michael S., Baltimore
Dear Michael:
Sure. Try "how," which is phonetically equivalent to "hou," as in house. Ou and ow are diphthongs--that is, two vowel sounds that kind of slide together when you say them. W and Y are often called semivowels because they go both ways, as it were, depending on the company they keep within the word. (Low morals are obviously a problem at every level of our society.) In cow, for instance, W is a vowel, but make the word coward and you can hear W working as a consonant. Similarly with Y become I in copy and copier. I could also expound on the vowel-likes, yet another class of letters with an identity crisis, but I think we've had enough angst for one column already."
Now to quote from Dictionary.com:
"Q. Are there any words that use w as a vowel?
A. Yes.
Cwm (a steep-walled semicircular basin in a mountain, sometimes containing a lake; a cirque) and crwth (an ancient Celtic musical instrument), both from the Welsh, use w as a vowel — standing for the same sound that "oo" stands for in boom and booth. Crwth is also spelled "crowd.""
and lastly from the Encyclopedia Britannica:
"Vowels and diphthongs. There are fifteen common vowel and diphthong sounds. But only seven letters are used to represent them. Those letters are a, e, i, o, u, and sometimes y and w. Vowel sounds are represented by a variety of phonograms. "
Now. I believe I have proved my point, Ray. It just goes to show that a degree doesn't mean you know everything.
By the way,
told you so.
AHHAHA
"In elementary school I remember the teacher telling me that the vowels were AEIOU and sometimes Y and W. But I can't think of a single word where W is used as a vowel. Are there any? --Michael S., Baltimore
Dear Michael:
Sure. Try "how," which is phonetically equivalent to "hou," as in house. Ou and ow are diphthongs--that is, two vowel sounds that kind of slide together when you say them. W and Y are often called semivowels because they go both ways, as it were, depending on the company they keep within the word. (Low morals are obviously a problem at every level of our society.) In cow, for instance, W is a vowel, but make the word coward and you can hear W working as a consonant. Similarly with Y become I in copy and copier. I could also expound on the vowel-likes, yet another class of letters with an identity crisis, but I think we've had enough angst for one column already."
Now to quote from Dictionary.com:
"Q. Are there any words that use w as a vowel?
A. Yes.
Cwm (a steep-walled semicircular basin in a mountain, sometimes containing a lake; a cirque) and crwth (an ancient Celtic musical instrument), both from the Welsh, use w as a vowel — standing for the same sound that "oo" stands for in boom and booth. Crwth is also spelled "crowd.""
and lastly from the Encyclopedia Britannica:
"Vowels and diphthongs. There are fifteen common vowel and diphthong sounds. But only seven letters are used to represent them. Those letters are a, e, i, o, u, and sometimes y and w. Vowel sounds are represented by a variety of phonograms. "
Now. I believe I have proved my point, Ray. It just goes to show that a degree doesn't mean you know everything.
By the way,
told you so.AHHAHA
