About prononciation of 'a'

Question

Hi everybody,I've noticed in some occasions, the article A is pronounced ei instead of a. Is there a particular reason to pronouncing that way. For example in the sentence 'What is the name of that thing you need to play violin? it's called a bow'.Is that a way of making clear that the letter a is no part of the following word?

David4eng · Accepted Answer

* a particular reason to pronounce that (and like) way

CalifJim · Answer

David4engI've noticed in some occasions, the article A is pronounced ei instead of a. Is there a particular reason to pronouncing that way.

True. Some people do sometimes pronounce 'a' as /ei/. There is absolutely no reason ever to pronounce it that way. I don't recommend it.

That pronunciation is associated in the minds of native speakers with various different things, and I can't speak for everyone on this. For me it has two associations in particular. First, it seems to me the pronunciation of a child who is just learning to read. The child has not yet learned how to combine words into thoughts as he reads, so he conceives of reading as the reading of each word as a separate entity without regard to its context. Second, it seems to me an affectation in the speech of adults. I have heard it in the mouths of anchor men who read the news on television. I don't understand their motivation at all. Maybe they believe it's necessary to use that pronunciation in order to be clearly understood, even though that is clearly not true. In fact, it can even be a distraction to hear such an odd pronunciation.

The only legitimate reason for using the /ei/ pronunciation might be to emphasize its meaning as "one".

-- Did you say you wanted two teaspoons of sugar in this coffee?
-- No! I said a teaspoon. (where a is pronounced /ei/ to emphasize "one, not two")

Others may have other impressions.

CJ

David4eng · Answer

Thank you very much on that point!
Now I'm thinking of it, If I want to talk about people;
'Have you met That girl yet?'
'My friend same she's Harmony'
'Ok so I guess you mean she's good at singing'
'No, that's also a /ei/ name, maybe not her name actually'.

So could it be a way of avoiding the confusing between a and her?

Note: as you can see, I often talk about music ^^

CalifJim · Answer

David4engSo could it be a way of avoiding the confusing between a and her?

Yes. /ei/ is occasionally used for any kind of emphasis or contrast.

CJ

About prononciation of 'a'

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