Re: european roots, etc.

----- Original Message -----
From: "Nik Taylor" <fortytwo@...>
To: <CONLANG@...>
Sent: 01 April 2001 19:27
Subject: Re: european roots, etc.


> Yoon Ha Lee wrote:
> > 'Sokay, it's enlightening.  I wish American English dictionaries would
> > use the IPA (now that I've learned most of the symbols I run across
> > frequently).  I've never figured out where they get their various
systems.
>
> Actually, I think their system is better than using IPA for describing
> English, because IPA would imply an exact pronunciation.  The systems
> used in dictionaries allows one to describe sounds relative to other
> words, the exact value would therefore be determined by the reader's
> dialect.
The problem is that, not being familiar with the dialect of the authors, or
those dialects normally described within those dictionaries, the definitions
are useless for me.

Indeed, the USA system tends to be useless for EFL students as well, and for
similar reasons. The system only works for those who live with the dialect
being described. And in that case, it tends to be redundant anyway.

--
Fabian
I should find a souvenir
Just to prove the world was here

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