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Believer Posted 20 years ago
Speech & Pronunciation

the pronunciation of the word "the"

0I know that the word "the" is being pronounced differently based on the initial sounds of words. I know that some words take on different articles because 1) the sound "h" is not pronounced and 2) the letter "u" is being pronounced like "you."02br
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01u00Is it safe02u00 to say that we can pronounce the word "the" in front of 01u00any words with initial vowel sounds besides the ones mentioned above02u00 with the "Di" sound and not with the "Thu" of the "Thus" sound"? 02br
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00Are all these being pronounced with the "Di" sound?02br
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001) the umbrella 2) the ink 3) the hour 4) the apple02br
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005) the end 6) the above-mentioned document0-
  

Top answer

0 The 01i 00th02i 00 of 01i 00the02i 00 is always pronounced the same, so I don't know what you mean by D vs. 02br 02br 00 CJ0-

— CalifJim

  • 0 The 01i 00th02i 00 of 01i 00the02i 00 is always pronounced the same, so I don't know what you mean by D vs.
  • 02br 02br 00 CJ0-
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37 Answers
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0 The 01i00th02i00 of 01i00the02i00 is always pronounced the same, so I don't know what you mean by D vs. TH.02br
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00 All six of your examples would require the same pronunciation of "the" -- the pronunciation in which the "e" is pronounced as in "we" or "he".02br
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00 CJ0-
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0 i would like to point out that the th is always pronounced as TH, it's about placing ur tougue between your teeth ( like biting ur tongue without really biting it, lol), and blowing air out .02br
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00if u say THe is Pronounced like De or DI, then i think ur probablly talking about the African American pronounication or othewise the mispronunication that ESL speakers alwa
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CalifJim is incorrect http://www.revver.com/video/154554/language-man-explains-the-pronunciation-of-the/
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AnonymousCalifJim is incorrect http://www.revver.com/video/154554/language-man-explains-the-pronunciation-of-the/

Hi,

I've just watched the video you posted and couldn't find anything that contradicts what CJ wrote in his post
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I agree with Jim, and that's the way I pronounce "the". Thuh car, Thee eagle.
However, I read somewhere that it's not always so, and something is changing. Do some people always say "thuh", even before vowel sounds? I have never heard something like that. I don't know if it's just because I never noticed it, but if that actually happens, it would sound odd to me. Anyone know anything about th
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The word 'the' has the voiced /th/ sound. Before consonants the vowel has a schwa sound so 'the' sounds like th?, Before vowel sounds the vowel has an /iy/ sound like the.

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Where do you live? Here in Oregon it seems to be very common to use "thuh" before vowel sounds. Teevision news readers, who in most areas are expected to be exemplars of correct, or at least locally accepted, pronunciation, here routinely say "thuh officers of thuh organization held thuh election." Brrr!!!

I was not raised here and it strikes my ear as discordant and backwoodsy. I pre
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Actually you are all correct. It depends on what part of the country you are from as to what dialect you speak. This is how it works in any language and not just English. "The" can be pronounced as "thE" with the E making the sound of the letter itself as if you were saying the alphabet. "The" has a tendency to also be pronounced as "thuh" where the "e" is pronounced as "uh." You will someti
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This is incorrect. According to the British, the word, "the" certainly has two pronunciation, it has nothing to do with ESL speakers!
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You're right. "The" would be pronounced "thee" in those examples. The other responders didn't understand your use of "Di" (and neither do I - probably a typo).
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