Re: OT: English -uice

Philip Newton skrev:
> On 7/31/06, Steven Williams <feurieaux@...> wrote:
>
>> --- Mark Reed <markjreed@...> wrote:
>>
>> > "Juice" is second-nature, but "sluice" still throws
>> > me.  Makes me want to say /sluwIs/ or something.
>>
>> Hold on, you mean it's _not_ pronounced [sluwIs]?
>> How's it really pronounced, then? [slu:s]?
>>
>> ...And I've been saying *that* for how many years
>> (well over a decade, since I first encountered the
>> word in print)?
>
>
> Same here -- you're not alone.
>
> In fact, I don't think I've ever heard that word spoken, so I only had
> my guessed spelling pronunciation to go on.
>
> But according to http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=sluice, it
> does appear to be an exact rhyme for "juice" (and "abstruse", "loose",
> etc.). Who knew.
>
> Cheers,
The LPD gives [slu:s] as the one and only pronunciation.
I've always taken that for granted not only because of
_juice_, but also because of the Swedish (probable)
loanword _sluss_ [sl8s:], where /8/ is the standard
19th century rendering of /u:/ and /s:/ probably is
meant to render a voiceless final [s] rather than a
voiced [z] which would be a short /s/ -- Swedish
having no /z/ or [z], though nowadays some have [z]
as a marginal xenophone.

--

/BP 8^)>
--
Benct Philip Jonsson -- melroch at melroch dot se

         Solitudinem faciunt pacem appellant!
                                             (Tacitus)

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