Commonly mispronounced words

[Perry Winkle]

Originally Posted by monster

Yeeeees. OK then, to spell it out it has one short and one long syllable which one could describe as 1.5 if one were being silly. And pronounciations vary with accent, particularly when those accents cross oceans.

What do you mean by real vowels? If you mean that two vowels together count as one, then I'd agree it's a good indicator. Which would give "nuclear" two syllables. And "clear" one....... Those in favor of "Squirrel" having one vowel should take note

The length of syllables is independent from the number of syllables.

Yes, pronunciations vary by accent, even by individual (cf. this).

By real vowel I mean a vowel that is in the RP English phonemic inventory (what else would make sense since we can't hear each-other on the intarwebs?). Two vowels together count as one if they're a dipthong, tripthong, or denote vowel length. I can see why you might think the [ea] in "nuclear" is the dipthong /ea/ and thus a single vowel, but it isn't. The [ea] in "nuclear" isn't the same as the [ea] in near, and clear. In words like near and clear the [ea] is the dipthong /ea/. However, in the case of "nuclear" the [ea] is two separate phonemes.

I've never heard the "clear" part of "nuclear" pronounced the same as the word "clear". So, if you have the means, post some samples of your pronunciation of some words with [ea] in similar environments. (Make sure to pronounce them as you would in conversation. Also, try to them in a sentence. Don't try to pronounce things slower/faster, extra clearly, or with special diction. That distorts what is produced and heard.)

Squirrel is really tricky. I'm not touching it with a ten-foot pole.

I am not a phonologist, I just play one on TV.