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Anonymous Posted 10 years ago
Speech & Pronunciation

AmE and BrE pronunciation of word 'chair'

What is the difference in the AmE and BrE pronunciation of the word 'chair' in the link below please?
http://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/chair_1?q=chair

Although the phonetic transcriptions are different it sounds the same to me.
  

Top answer

The AmE is rhotic—the final /r/ is pronounced. In BrE it is very faint or absent. This difference affects the preceding vowel sound(s) slightly.

— Mister Micawber

  • The AmE is rhotic—the final /r/ is pronounced.
  • In BrE it is very faint or absent.
  • This difference affects the preceding vowel sound(s) slightly.
  • To me, those differences are accurately transcribed in the phonetics indicated.
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2 Answers
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The AmE is rhotic—the final /r/ is pronounced. In BrE it is very faint or absent. This difference affects the preceding vowel sound(s) slightly. To me, those differences are accurately transcribed in the phonetics indicated.
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Mister MicawberTo me, those differences are accurately transcribed in the phonetics indicated.
I hear simple schwa (?) for both after the phoneme /e/ without the final /r/ being pronounced in BrE.
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