Re: USAGE: English vowel transcription

Dirk Elzinga wrote:

>On Thu, 12 Oct 2000, Irina Rempt wrote:
>
>> On Thu, 12 Oct 2000, Roger Mills wrote:
>>
>> >         The Dutch word _vaak_ (meaning 'hobby', inter alia) can sound
very
>> > naughty, to the careless American ear.
>>
>> I've been speaking Dutch for about forty years and I've never
>> encountered "vaak" meaning "hobby"! Usually, it means "often", and in
>> archaic expressions it can mean "sleep".
>
>Isn't there a word 'vaak' cognate with German 'Fach'? Perhaps this is
>the one Roger is referring to ...>
I hope you're right, Dirk-- but a belated trip to the dictionary tells me
Irina is right.
I'm afraid my little bit of nonsense was acquired third-hand at best. (But
it would still sound naughty!!)

Aha-- a later post from Irina:
>Belatedly, trying to pronounce "vaak" with an American accent, I
realize that you probably mean "vak" [vAk], not "vaak" [vak].

It doesn't mean "hobby" either, however; quite the contrary, it means
"job, trade, profession" or "school subject", or "compartment,
pigeon-hole".>

OK.  Still, acquired third hand.  The memory banks have been duly chastised
and corrected.  Apologies for my carelessness.