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By the same author. 
 
 THE 
 
 VERBALIST: 
 
 A MANUAL 
 
 DEVOTED 
 
 TO BRIEF DISCUSSIONS OF THE RIGHT AND 
 THE WRONG USE OF WORDS, 
 
 AND 
 
 TO SOME OTHER MATTERS OF INTEREST TO THOSE WHO 
 WOri.li SPEAK AND WRITE WITH PKOPRIETY. 
 
 l8mo, cloth. $1.00. 
 
THE 
 
 ORTHOEPIST 
 
 A PRONOUNCING MANUAL, 
 
 CONTAINING 
 
 ABOUT THREE THOUSAND FIVE HUNDRED WORDS, 
 
 INCLtDING 
 
 A CONSIDKRABLE NrMIJER OF THE NAMES OF FOREIGN 
 
 AUTHORS, ARTISTS, ETC., THAT ARE OFTEN 
 
 >HSrR()NOUNCED. 
 
 TWELFTH EDITfoX, lif.VISJJ) .l.\l> ENLARGED. 
 
 BY 
 
 ALFRED A Y R E S 
 
 is.j'^1^/''' 
 
 NEW YORK : 
 D . A P P L E T O N & C O M P A N Y, 
 
 I, 3, Axu 5 BOND STREET. 
 1882. 
 
COPYRIGHT BY 
 
 D. APPLETON & COMPANY. 
 
 tea « 
 

 
 PEEFATOEY ISTOTE. 
 
 
 This little book has been made for the use 
 ot those who aim to have their practice in 
 speaking English conform to the most ap- 
 proved orthoepical usage. 
 
 This aim has always been esteemed a worthy 
 ambition, and will continue to be so esteemed 
 as long as the manner in which one speaks his 
 mother-tongue is looked upon as showing more 
 clearly tlian any other one thing what his cul- 
 ture is, and what his associations are and have 
 been. 
 
 There are very many cultured people who 
 
 would be amazed if their mispronunciations 
 
 were to be pointed out to them. Xot long 
 
 since the writer met at the dinner-table of a 
 
 friend a liberally educated member of one of 
 
 the learned professions, who descanted at con- 
 1 
 
 o J o o 1. 5 
 
si(J/^^ai)]G' Jengfh en the im^^ortance of speaking 
 one's vernacular according to the best usage, 
 maintaining tliat correctness in this particular 
 is worth all the other joolite accomplishments, 
 that it is the surest criterion by which to judge 
 a stranger's social status, etc. And yet the 
 gentleman, much as he seemed to pnde liim- 
 self on his critical knowledge of English, mis- 
 pronounced several words in daily use. 
 
 It is not expected that any one who has 
 given sjDCcial attention to the subject of Eng- 
 lish orthoe2")y will agree with the author in 
 every particular; but those who look at all 
 carefully at what he has done, will see that he 
 has taken some pains, and, further, that on a 
 few jDoints he hazards an impression of his 
 own. Instance what he savs about the slurrino^ 
 of the pronouns, and about the sound of the 
 vowels, especially o, when standing under a 
 rhythmical accent. 
 
 The object in view has been as much to 
 awaken an interest in the subject-matter as to 
 teach. 
 
The pronunciation of the foreign names 
 that will be found in their alphabetical places, 
 and which are frecpiently mispronounced, will 
 not, it is thought, make the book less acceptable 
 to any, while it will, perhaps, make it more 
 acceptable to some. 
 
 Those who discover that the same things 
 are said in a plurality of places, will kindly 
 remember that repetition is the only sure road 
 to mental acquirement. 
 
 Suggestions and criticisms are solicited, 
 with the view of profiting by them in future 
 editions. 
 
 A. A. 
 
 New York, October^ ISSO. 
 
KEY TO THE PRONUNCIATION. 
 
 a, long as in hfile, gray, fate. 
 
 a, short " pad, fat, have, ran. 
 
 ^, long 'before r " fare, pair, bear. 
 
 ii, Italian " liir, father, ciihn. 
 
 a, intermediate " fast, grasp, branch. 
 
 a, Jyroad " fall, walk, haul. 
 
 a, oljscure " liar, hesitancy. 
 
 e, long " mete, seal, eve. 
 
 g, sliort " men, m6t, sSll, f&rry. 
 
 6, like a " heir, there, where. 
 
 e, like a " obey, prey, eight. 
 
 e " her, herd, fern, verge. 
 
 e, obscure " brier, fuel, celery. 
 
 I, long " pine, Ice, fire, file. 
 
 1, sltort " miss, pin, fill, miri'or. 
 
 i, like long e '' mien, machine, police. 
 
 i, short and obtuse " sir, fir, tlilrsty, bird. 
 
 i, obscure " ruin, elixir, ability. 
 
 6, long " note, foal, old. 
 
 6, short " not, 5dd, resdlve. 
 
 6, like short u " son, done, other, won. 
 
 o, like long oo " move, prove, do. 
 
6, like short oo as in bosom, wolf, woman. 
 
 6, 6?wwZ, like a " n6r, f6rm, sort, stork. 
 
 o, obscure " major, confess, felony. 
 
 00, lo7ig " m(jon, food, booty. 
 
 do, aliort '' wool, foot, good. 
 
 u, long " tube, tune, use, Itiie. 
 
 ti, short " tiib, but, us, hurry. 
 
 u, like long oo " rule, true, rumor. 
 
 ii, like short 00 . . " btill, ptish, piit. 
 
 ii, sliort and ohtuse " f<ir, ilrge, concllr. 
 
 u, obscure " sulphur, deputy. 
 
 y, long " style, lyre, fly. 
 
 7, short " sylvan, cyst, lyric. 
 
 y, short and obtuse " myrrh, myrtle. 
 
 oi or oy (unmarked).., . " oil, join, moist, oyster 
 
 ou or ow (unmarked) " out, hound, owl. 
 
 f, soft^ like s sharp " cede, cite, mercy. 
 
 -e, hard^ like Tc " -eall, €on€ur, su-ecess. 
 
 Ch, soft^ like sh " chaise, marchioness. 
 
 €h, hard^ like h " -chorus, e^ho, disti-eh. 
 
 g, hard " get, tiger, begin. 
 
 g, soft^ like j " gem, engine, elegy. 
 
 §, soft^ like z •. . " ha§, amu§e, ro§eate. 
 
 th, soft^flat^ or vocal " tiiis, tiie, smootii. 
 
 5, like gz '' c^ist, e.:^ert, auxiliary. 
 
 The letter g^ when used in representing the pronunci- 
 ation of French words, simply indicates that the 
 preceding consonant has a nasal utterance. 
 
VOWELS ALIKE U SOUND. 
 
 a in fate, like e in thev. 
 k in fair, like e in there, 
 a in fall, like 6 in form. 
 a in liar, like e in brier, i in ruin, o in major, 
 and u in sulpliur. 
 
 e in mete, like i in machine, 
 e in her, like i in sir, o in worm, A in filr, 
 and y in myrrh. 
 
 T in pine, like y in style. 
 1 in pin, like y in sylvan. 
 
 6 in not, like a in what. 
 o in move, like oo 
 o in wolf, like do 
 
 n moon, and u in rule, 
 in wool, and Q in piish. 
 
 ii in tiib, like 6 in son. 
 
THE ORTHOEPIST 
 
 A. 
 
 This vowel is pronounced d as a letter, but q 
 as a Avord. In the languages of Continental Eu- 
 rope it usually has a sound like a in far ov father, 
 or — especially in French — like a in ant, branch, 
 grass, etc. 
 
 Aaron — 4r'uii. 
 
 ab-do'men ; al)-cl5iu'i-nal. 
 
 ^b'ject ; ^b'ject-ness. 
 
 ^b'so-liite, not -Int. 
 
 ab-s6ru-to-ry. 
 
 The dictionaries say that the penultimate o 
 in such words as declamatory, migratory, in* 
 ventory, matrimony, dedicatory, derogatory, 
 natatory, category, parsimony, piscatory, i^os- 
 tulatory, prefatory, preservatory, territory, etc., 
 etc., is or should be pronounced like short {ti) or 
 obscure {11)11; that is, like o in major, actor, fac- 
 tor, etc. Is this true? The penultimate o of 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
10 
 
 these words falls, without an exception, under a 
 rhythmical accent, which naturally does and 
 should bring out, in no small degree, the quality 
 of the vowel, though not in the same degree that 
 it is brought out when standing under a primary 
 accent. And yet it would be as much in har- 
 mony with the spirit of the language to say^^re- 
 servatd7'i/y making the o as long as the penulti- 
 mate o in protozoic^ as it is to slur it to the 
 extent we naturally do in syllables where it has 
 no accent whatever, as, for example, in protector, 
 protect or sliip, rector, rectorship), rectory, etc. It 
 is safe to assert that it is only those specially 
 schooled to slur this o who pronounce it accord- 
 ing to the dictionary marking. There are many 
 who say matrimony, and a few who say inven- 
 tory ; but there are probably none, in this coun- 
 try at least, who are consistent and uniformly 
 suppress this o in the whole long list of words 
 in which it is found. To do so is to take some- 
 thing from whatever of sonorousness the lan- 
 guage naturally has, as all languages are sonorous 
 in proportion to their wealth in vowel-sounds. 
 See antinomy. 
 
 ab-s5lve', or ab-$5lve'. 
 ab-s6rb', not -zorb', 
 ab-ste'mi-ous. 
 ^b'stract-ly. 
 ab-strnse', 7iot -strus'. 
 ^c-a-dc'mi-an. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
11 
 
 ^c'cSnt, noun, 
 
 ac-cent', verb ; ac-ceut'ed. 
 
 ^c'cess, or ac-cess'. 
 
 The first marking is preferred by the later 
 orthoej^ists, and is sanctioned by our most care- 
 ful speakers. 
 
 ac-ces'so-ry, or itc'ces-so-ry. 
 
 Ease of utterance has shifted the accent from 
 the first to the second syllable, where it will re- 
 main. 
 
 ac-cli'mate ; ac-cli'ma-tize. 
 
 ac-c5st', not -kawst'. 
 
 The of this word, though so marked, is not 
 really as short as the o in not. Short o is slightly 
 prolonged when followed by ff, ft, ss, st, or th, 
 as in off, soft, cross, cost, broth; also, in many 
 words Avhere it is followed by 7i or final 7i(/, as in 
 g(j)ie, begone, long, prong, song, strong, thong, 
 throng, wrong. The extreme short sound, in these 
 words, is as much to be avoided as the full broad 
 sound of a, as in haul, which in this country is so 
 frequently heard. 
 
 ac-cou'tre, not -cow'-, 
 ac-crue', not -crii'. 
 
 • •• 7 
 
 XI preceded by r or the sound of sh in the 
 same syllable often becomes oo, as in rude, ru- 
 mor, rule, ruby, sure, issue. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
12 
 
 dg'e-tate. 
 ^c'me, or lic'me. 
 a'corn, not a'com. 
 acoustics. See Supplement, 
 acquiesce — iik-we-es'. 
 a-cr5ss', not a-krawst'. 
 
 • 7 • 
 
 a-cr6s'tic, not a-kraws'tic. See accost. 
 
 ^c'tor, not ^c'tor. 
 
 M-a-m^n-te'an. 
 
 M-ap-ta'tion. 
 
 ad-dress', hotli tlie noun and tlie verb, 
 
 ad-diice'. 
 
 When, in the same syllable, long u is pre- 
 ceded by one of the consonants d, t, I, n, s, or 
 thy it is not easy to introduce the sound of y ; 
 hence careless speakers omit it, pronouncing 
 duti/y dooty ; tu7ie, toon ; lute, loot ; nuiscmce, 
 noosance, etc. And yet to make the ii in these 
 words as clear and perfect as in rmite, cube, etc., 
 is over-nice, and consequently smacks of pedan- 
 try. The two extremes should be avoided with 
 equal care. 
 
 a-dept', not M'e^^t. 
 
 ad-lie'sive, not -zive. 
 
 M'i-pose, or itd-i-p6se', not -poz. 
 
 ^ — . _ — - --^ ■-■ - ■-.---■ — • 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
13 
 
 M'mi-ra-ble ; ^d'mi-ra-bly. 
 
 M'mi-ral-ty, not ad-mi-r^l'ty. 
 A-do'nis. 
 
 a-dtilt', not M'ult. 
 
 ad-vance', not ad-viince', nor ad-v^nce'. 
 
 • 7 • 7 • 
 
 The fifth sound of a, called the intermediate, 
 is found chiefly in monosyllables and dissyllables. 
 At the beginning of this century these words 
 were generally pronounced with the full Italian 
 cf, which by the exquisites was not unfrequently 
 exaggerated. This Walker undertook to change, 
 and to that end marked the a of words of this class 
 like the a in man, fat, at, etc. The innovation, 
 however, met with only partial success. Web- 
 ster and Worcester both opposed it. Now there 
 is a general disposition to unite in some inter- 
 mediate sound between the broad a in father, 
 which is rarely, and the short a in at, which is 
 frequently, heard in this country. Some of the 
 words in which a now receives this intermediate 
 sound are : advantage, after, aghast, alas, amass, 
 alabaster, Alexander, answer, ant, asp, ass, bask, 
 basket, blanch, blast, branch, brass, cask, casket^ 
 cast, castle, chaff, chance, chant, clasp, class^ 
 contrast, craft, dance, draft, draught, enchant, 
 enhance, example, fast, flask, gantlet, gasp, 
 ghastly, glance, glass, graft, grant, grasp, grass, 
 has}), lance, lass, last, mask, mass, mast, mastiff, 
 nasty, pant, pass, p>^^^j jxtstor, 2^^(stu?'e, p>laster, 
 prance, quaff, raft, rafter, rasp, sample, shaft, 
 slander, slant, staff] task, trance, vast, tcaft. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
14 
 
 adventure — ad- vent 'y iir. 
 
 M'verse, not M- verse', nor ^d-vurse'. 
 
 M'ver-ti§e, or iid-ver-tige'. 
 
 ad-vcr'tise-ment. 
 
 The vowel e before r in a. monosyllable or an 
 accented syllable in which the r is not followed 
 by a vowel or by another r, and in derivatives 
 of such words — especially when the syllable re- 
 tains its accent, as in herd^ defer, deferring, err, 
 concern, maternal — has an intermediate sound 
 between u in surge and e in ferry. The uncul- 
 tured are wont to give the e in such words the 
 full sound of XL in surge, as murcy for mercy, 
 f urn for fern, etc. This intermediate sound is 
 quite distinct from both H and e. It is less gut- 
 tural than the former and less palatal than the 
 latter. It is heard in ermine, verge, prefer, ear- 
 nest, birth, mirth, bird, myrtle, virgin, thirsty, 
 learn, discern, fertile, fervent, fervid, j^erch, per- 
 fect, perfidy, perfume, p^er jure, permeate, serpent, 
 service, terse, verb, verdant, verdict, vermin, ver- 
 nal, verse, versify, her, herb, hermit, hearse, cer- 
 tain, dervis,germ, merchant, mercury, merge, mer- 
 maid, nerve, adversity, etc. Also heard in some 
 unaccented syllables, as in adverb, adverse, etc. 
 
 ^E-ne'id. 
 
 a'er-ate ; a'er-at-ed. 
 aerie — e're, or a're. 
 a'er-o-lite. 
 
 Bee Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
15 
 
 a'er-o-naut. 
 
 affaire d'amour (Fr.) — af far' da'mor . 
 
 affluxion — af-fltik'sliun. 
 
 aforesaid — a-for'sed. 
 
 again — a-gen' ; against — a-genst'. 
 
 The usual sound of the diphthong ai is that 
 of long a. The principal exceptions are in said, 
 saith, again, and against, where it has the sound 
 of short e ; in plaid and raillery, where it has 
 the sound of short a; in aisle, where it has the 
 sound of long i ; and in final unaccented sylla- 
 bles, as in fountain^ curtain, etc., where it has 
 the sound of short or obscure ^. 
 
 a-gape', or a-gape'. 
 
 a'ged, not ajd, except in compound 
 words. 
 
 ao^-srr^n'dize-ment, or ^o^'orran-dize-ment. 
 
 agile — ^j'il, not ^j'il, nor a'jil. 
 
 ^g-ri-cult'u-rist, not -n-ral-ist. 
 
 aiVment, not -munt. 
 
 In pronouncing such terminal, unaccented 
 syllables as ment, cent, ance, ence, stant, ent, al, 
 less, ness, etc., it is as important to avoid making 
 the quality of the vowel too apparent as it is to 
 avoid saying munt, sunt, unce, stunt, unt, ul, luss, 
 nuss, etc. If the one is slovenly and vulgar, the 
 other is pedantic and affected. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
16 
 
 ^I'a-bas-ter, not al-a-b^s'ter. 
 
 al-bi'no. 
 
 al-bii'inen, 7iot ^rbii-men. 
 
 • .7 
 
 ^rco-ntn, not al-co'ran. 
 
 alcove, or al-cov^e'. 
 
 Al-ex-^n'drine. 
 
 ^I'ge-bra, not -bra. 
 
 ^rge-bra-ist, or ^1-ge-bra'ist. 
 
 The second is the marking both of Webster 
 and Worcester in all except their later unabridged 
 editions, which accent the first syllable. 
 
 a'li-^s, or ^l'i4s, not a-li'as. 
 
 • 7 • ' 
 
 alien — al'yen, not a'li-en. 
 
 al-le'giance, or al-le'gi-ance. 
 
 Webster's dictionary always has made this 
 a word of four syllables, the later unabridged 
 editions excejjted. 
 
 ^rie-fifo-rist. 
 
 allegro — al-le'gro, or al-la'gro. 
 al-l5p'a-tliy ; al-l5p'a-tMst. 
 al-liide', oiot -liicl. See adduce. 
 
 • 7 •• 
 
 al-ly' ; pi., al-lie§'. 
 
 This noun is frequently pronounced ally, in 
 accordance with the general custom of changing 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
17 
 
 the accent of words used both as nouns and 
 verbs. But Walker shows that this is a violation 
 of a stronger analogy, since "it is a universal 
 rule to pronounce y like e in a final unaccented 
 syllable." Therefore this accentuation is errone- 
 ous, and it is altogether unauthorized. 
 
 almond — ii'mund. 
 
 alms — amz, not almz, nor ^mz. 
 
 al-pac'a, not ^1-a-p^k'a. 
 
 alpine — ^Vpin, or (better ?) -pin. 
 
 al'so, not 5rs6. 
 
 ^1-ter-ca'tion, not al-, hut al- m in alum. 
 
 • • 7 ••7 
 
 al-ter'nate, noun and adj,^ not al-. 
 ^rter-nate, or al-ter'nate, verh, 
 al-ter'na-tive, not al-. 
 a-lii'mi-ntim, not a-ln'-. 
 al-ve'o-lar, or ^l^^e-o-lar. 
 
 • • • 7 , • • 
 
 al-ve'o-late, or ^I've-o-late. 
 al'ways, not al^vl^z, nor 5rwuz. 
 amateur — a'ma-tur'. 
 
 There have been as many ways set down for 
 pronouncing this word in English as there have 
 been English dictionary-makers. The fact is, 
 the exact sound of the last syllable can not be 
 represented by any characters we have at com- 
 mand. This word is semi- Anglicized. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
18 
 
 In pronouncing French, it is of the first im^ 
 portance to bear in mind that it is a compara- 
 tively imaccented languaf/e ; that the difference 
 in the quantity of the syllables is due rather to 
 a prolongation of the vowel-sounds of the long 
 syllables than to their receiving a greater stress 
 of voice. 
 
 ^m'ber-gris. 
 
 There is a class of words, mostly of French 
 and Italian origin, in which ^ retains the long 
 sound of 6/ as, ambergris, antique, homhazine, 
 capuchin, cajyrice, critique, gabardine, haber- 
 dine, quarantine, ravine, routine, fascine, fa- 
 tigue, intrigue, machine, magazine, marine, 
 2yalanquin, pique, police, tambourine, tontine, 
 oblique, etc. Brazil, chagrin, and invalid for- 
 merly belonged in this list ; now, however, they 
 are generally, if not universally, pronounced 
 with the i short. 
 
 ambrosia — ara-bro'zlie-a, or am-bro'zlia. 
 ameliorate — a-mel'yo-rate. 
 a-me'na-ble, not a-men'-. 
 amende honorable (Frencli) — a'm5ugd' 
 
 6n'6'ra-br. 
 a-men'i-ty, not a-me'ni-. 
 amour (Anglicized Frencli) — a-mor'. 
 amour propre (Fr.) — a'mor' priipr'. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
19 
 
 an-ces'tral. 
 
 • • 
 
 Ease of utterance has transferred this accent 
 from the lirst to the second syllable. 
 
 anchor — an2:'kur. 
 
 an-clioVy. 
 
 ancient — an'slient, not ^n'-. 
 
 andiron — iind'i-urn. 
 
 anew — a-nii' 7iot a-nu'. 
 
 angel — an'Jel, not an'jl, nor ^n'jul. 
 
 angular — ^ng'gu-lar. 
 
 an-nrhi-late, not an-ni'late. 
 
 annunciate — an-nun'slie-at. 
 
 an-6tli'er, not a-nutli'-. 
 
 an'swer. See advance. 
 
 ^n-te-pe-nult'. 
 
 There is no authority for saying dn-te-pe' nUlt / 
 still, that is what the recognized pronunciation 
 of this word will be sooner or later, probably. 
 We already have authority for saying i^e'niUtf 
 instead of pe-ntilt' . 
 
 ^n'ti, not ^n'ti, 
 
 d.n'ti-mo-ny. 
 
 an-tin'o-my. 
 
 The penultimate o of these two words, it will 
 be seen, is marked in both cases alike, i. e., 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
20 
 
 according to the dictionaries. "Who will contend 
 that the sound of the vowel is, or should be, the 
 same in both words? In the first word it is the 
 vowel of a long syllable ; in the second, of a 
 short one. See absolutory. 
 
 an-tip'o-deg, not ^n'ti-podz. 
 
 anxiety — ang-zi'e-ty. 
 
 anxious — d.ngk'slius. 
 
 a'pex, not ^p'ex. 
 
 Apli-ro-di'te. 
 
 a-p5d'o-sis. 
 
 apologue — iip'o-l5g. 
 
 apostle — a-p5s'sl. 
 
 ^p-o-the'o-sis, not [ip-o-tlie-6'sis. 
 
 ^p-pa-ra'tus, or ^p-pa-ra'tus. 
 
 ap-par'cnt, not ap-par'ent. 
 
 appreciation — ap-pre-slie-a'slmn. 
 
 ap-pren'tice, not ap-prin'tis. 
 
 ^p'pro-ba-tive. 
 
 a'pri-c6t, not ^p'ri-c5t. 
 
 apron — a'purn, or a'prun. 
 
 h, propos (Fr.) — a pro'po'. 
 
 ^p'ti-tude, not -tnd. 
 
 The u of altitude^ amplitude^ assiduity. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
21 
 
 assume, attitude, astute, attribute (the noun), 
 etc., has its long sound slightly abridged. The 
 careless generally pronounce it ii. See adduce. 
 
 aquiline — ^k'we-lm, or -lin. 
 aqueduct — ^k'we-dukt. 
 Ar'ab, not A'r^b. 
 Ar'a-bic, not A-ra'bic. 
 archangel — ark-an'jel. 
 
 When arch, signifying chief, begins a word 
 from the Greek and is followed by a vowel, it 
 is pronounced ark/ as in archangel, architect, 
 archive, archipelago, archiepiscopal, archaeology, 
 etc. ; but when arch is prefixed to an English 
 word, it is pronounced so as to rhyme with 
 march / as, archbishop, archduke, arclifiend. 
 
 ar-€lii-di-^c'o-nal. 
 
 • • • • 
 
 arctic — ark'tik, not ar'tik. 
 ard'u-ofts, not ar'dous. 
 are — ar, not ar. 
 a're-a, not a-re'ii. 
 a-re'o-la, not ^-re-o'la. 
 
 • • 7 • 
 
 ar'2:and. 
 ar'gen-tine. 
 A-ri-M'ue. 
 A-ri'on. 
 
 • • 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
OQ 
 
 a-iis'to-cr^t, or ^r'is-to-cr^t. 
 Arkansas. See Supplement, 
 ar-ma'da, or ar-ma'da. 
 ar'mis-tice. 
 a-ro'ma-tize. 
 
 • • 
 
 arquebuse — ar'kwe-bus, not -bus. 
 
 ar-rear' ; ^j>?., ar-rear§'. 
 
 ar'se-nic. 
 
 Ar'te-mis. 
 
 Asia — a'slie-a, not a'zba, nor a'zhe-a. 
 
 Asiatic — a-slie-^t'ic, not -zlie-, 
 
 as-pir'ant. 
 
 ^'sets, not as-sets'. 
 
 associate — as-so'slie-at, not as-s6'shat. 
 
 association — as-so-slie-a'shun, not -se-. 
 
 assure — a-sbur' not -shur'. 
 
 as-sur'ance. 
 
 • • • • 
 
 as-tr5g'ra-phy ; ^s-tro-l5g'ic. 
 
 ^tb-e-ne'um. 
 
 fctro-n5m'ic. 
 
 • « 
 
 ate, not et ; ^V>?J9. of to eat. 
 
 k toute force (Fr.)— a' tot' fors'. 
 
 ^ tout prix (Fr.) — i\! to' pre'. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
23 
 
 attache (Fr.)— a't^'sha'. 
 
 Aubert — 6 'bar'. 
 
 au-da'cious, not -d^sli'us. 
 
 au fait (Fr.)— o fa. 
 
 Au-ge'an. 
 
 aunt, not ^nt. 
 
 au-re'o-la, not au-re-ola. 
 
 ail revoir (Fr.) — 6' ruv'war'. 
 
 au'rist. 
 
 aii-ro'ra bo-re-a'lis. 
 
 •• • 
 
 aus-cul-ta'tion. 
 
 auxiliary — awg-zil'ya-re. 
 
 a-vaunt', or a-vaunt'. 
 
 ^v'e-nue, not -nn. 
 
 aw'fiil, not aw'fl. 
 
 awk'ward, not awk'ard. 
 
 a- wry', not aw-ry'. 
 
 axiom — d.x'e-urQ, or &s>'jum, 
 
 axle — d,k'sl. 
 
 ay, or aye (meaning yes)^i, 
 
 aye (meaning always) — a. 
 
 ^z'ote, or a-z6te'. 
 
 azure — a'zhur, or ^zh'ur. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
24 
 
 B. 
 
 This consonant, preceded by m or followed 
 by t in the same syllable, is generally silent ; as, 
 lamb, limb, comb, dumb, climb, bomb, tomb, 
 doubt, debt, subtle, etc. Succumb is said to be 
 one of the exceptions ; in this country, however, 
 it is generally pronounced without the b. 
 
 bade — hM, not bad. 
 bagatelle (Fr.) — ba'ga'tel'. 
 badinacfe — ba'di'nazli'. 
 balm — bam, not b^m. 
 Balmoral — b^l-m5r'al. 
 
 • 
 
 Balzac — b^iVz^k', not bal'-. 
 banquet — bd,ng'kwet. 
 Ba-r^b'bas, not bar'a-bas. 
 barouclie — ba-rosli', not -rocli'. 
 b^r'rel, 7iot -ril. 
 ba-salt', not -zalt'. 
 bas-bleu — ba'-bltili'. 
 
 Those who do not know the French pronun- 
 ciation well are advised to use the English word 
 blue-stocking, as good English is always better 
 than bad French. 
 
 ba-shaw'. 
 
 • •• 
 
 bd,ss' re-lief, not ba-. 
 
 Beo Key to Pronunciation, p, 6. 
 
25 
 
 B^s'tile'. 
 
 batli, not bitth ; 2^K batlig. 
 Beatrice Cenci (Italian) — ba-ii-tre'clia 
 clien'clie. 
 
 beau moiide (Fr.) — bo' mauiul'. 
 beaux-esprits (Fr.) — bo'-zas'pre'. 
 be-caiise', not be-c5z'. 
 bedizen — be-di'zn, or be-diz'n. 
 Be-el'ze-biib, not berze-btib. 
 bedstead — bed'sted, 7iot -stid. 
 Beethoven — ba'to-fen. 
 been — bin. 
 
 Pronounced hen in England by many care- 
 ful speakers ; their highest authority, however, 
 marks it hm. 
 
 be-g5ne', not -gawn. See accost. 
 
 be-balf, not -li^f. 
 
 be'lie-m5tL 
 
 belioove. 
 
 Whether written with one o or with two, 
 this word is pronounced be-hobve'y and not be- 
 hove'. 
 
 bel-esprit (Fr.) — bel'-as'pre'. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
26 
 
 bellows — bel'lus. 
 
 Smart says ; " Though generally considered 
 as a plural, some authors join helloics to a verb 
 singular ; and this will justify the pronunciation 
 bel'lus:' Walker remarks: "The last syllable 
 of this word, like that of gallows^ is corrupted 
 beyond recovery into lus:"* 
 
 be-neadi', not -neatli'. 
 be-queatli', iiot -queatli'. 
 Berano'er — ba'r5no''z]ia', 
 Ber'lin, not bMiu'. 
 
 The latter pronunciation is neither English 
 nor German, since the Germans say bdr-len'. 
 
 bestial — best'yal. 
 
 bestrew — be-stru', or -stro'. See strew. 
 
 be-tr5tli', not -trotli'. 
 
 be-tr6tli'al, not -trotli'-. 
 
 be-tr5tli'ment, not -trotii'-. 
 
 bev'el, not bev'l. 
 
 bib-li-5g'ra-pliy. 
 
 bi-fiir'cate. 
 
 bi-fiir'cat-ed, Qiot -Id, noj^ -tid. 
 
 Making id or iid out of terminal ed is one of 
 the most objectionable, as well as one of the most 
 common, of faults. The mangling of the terminal 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6w 
 
27 
 
 vowels is more offensive to a cultured ear than, 
 the misplacing of an accent. 
 
 billet-doux (Fr.) — be'ya'do'. 
 
 The plural {billets-doux) is pronounced, in 
 French, precisely like the singular. 
 
 bi-cn'ni-al, not bi-. 
 
 Bingen — bing'en, not biu'jen. 
 
 bi-no'mi-al, not bi-. 
 
 . • 7 . 
 
 bi-5g'ra-pliy, not bi-. 
 bi§'muth. 
 Bis'marck, not biz'-. 
 
 At the end of a syllable, s, in German, has 
 invariably its sharp, hissing sound. 
 
 bi-tii'meu, not bit'u-men. 
 blackguard — blitg'gard. 
 bl^s'phe-mous, not bMs-plie'mous. 
 bla'tant, not bla'-. 
 blase (Fr.)— bla'za'. 
 bleat — blet. 
 bless 'ed, adj. 
 
 There are some participial adjectives, and 
 some adjectives not derived from verbs, in which 
 the e of the last syllable is commonly sounded ; 
 as, aged, beloved, blessed, cursed, deuced, wicked, 
 winged, etc. The pulpit affectation that sounds 
 
 Soc Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
28 
 
 the ed of the imperfect tense and the participles, 
 when reading the Bible, is going out of fashion. 
 
 blitiie. 
 
 Bliimentlial — bln'mon-tal. 
 
 • • • 
 
 blue, or blue. 
 
 Smart is the only orthoepist who gives the u 
 of this word the sound of long oo. 
 
 Boccaccio — bo-ka'cho. 
 
 bold'est, not -ist, nor -ust. 
 
 bombast — btim'biist. 
 
 This is the accentuation of Walker, Webster, 
 Cull, and Richardson ; it is permitted by Worces- 
 ter, and is the general pronunciation in this coun- 
 try. 
 
 Boileau — bwa'lo '. 
 
 bombazine — bimi-ba-zhie', not b5m-. 
 
 Boleyn — bobrin. 
 
 Bolinofbroke — b5rino:-brdbk. 
 
 bom-bj'^'i-nous. 
 
 Bounat — bun 'na'. 
 
 b5n'net, not btin'-. 
 
 bobdi, not booth. 
 
 Borgliese — bor-gii'za. 
 
 Bouguereau — ^bo 'ger 'o '. 
 
 Bee Key to Prouunciation, p. 6. 
 
29 
 
 Boulancrer — bo'l5n2:'zlia'. 
 bouquet (Fr.) — bo'ka'. 
 bourn, or bourne — born. 
 
 The authority for pronouncing this word 
 boom is very slight. 
 
 bowsprit — bo'spiit, not bow'-. 
 Bra'min, not bra'-, 
 bra-va'do, or bra-vii'do. 
 bra'vo, not bra'-, 
 breeclies — bricli'ez. 
 breecliino; — bricli'ins:. 
 bretii'ren, not bretii'er-Sn. 
 breviary — brev'ya-re, or bre'vi-a-re, 
 brew — bru, not bru. 
 brewer — bru ' er. 
 
 • • • 
 
 brig'and, not bri-g^nd'. 
 brig'an-tine, oiot -tin, nor -ten. 
 bristle — bris'sl. 
 bro'gan, or bro-g^n'. 
 bro'mine, or -min. 
 bro'mide, or -mid. 
 br5n-€lii'tis. 
 br5tii'el. 
 
 Bee Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
30 
 
 Brou2:ham — l.)roo 'am. 
 
 bruit — brut. 
 
 bruise. 
 
 Buddlia — bud 'a, or biid'a. 
 
 buoy — bwoy, or bwoy.' 
 
 bureau — bii'ro. 
 
 Bur'gim-dy. 
 
 bur-lesque'. 
 
 busli'el, not blisli'l. 
 
 business — biz'nes, not -ntis. See ailment. 
 
 C. 
 
 This letter is hard, and sounds like /t, before 
 a, o, and u ; soft, and sounds like 5, before f, ?, 
 and ?/, except in sceptic and scirrhus, and their 
 derivatives, in which it is hard, like k. 
 
 When ce or ci are preceded by the accent, 
 and are followed by a vowel in the next syllable, 
 the c combines with the e or ^ to form the sound 
 sh, as in ocean, social, teiiacious, etc. Sometimes 
 the c alone has this sound, or rather the e or i is 
 used twice. First it combines with the c to 
 make the sound sh, then it takes on its usual 
 sound, as in sociology — so-she-ol'o-gij. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
31 
 
 In discern, suffice, sice, and sacrifice, and their 
 derivatives, c has the sound of z. It is silent in 
 czar, victuals, indict, and their derivatives, and 
 also in terminal scle, as in muscle, etc. 
 
 cabaret — ka'b^'ra'. See amateur. 
 
 cabriolet — ka'bre'o'la'. 
 
 cachet — ka'slia'. 
 
 Cadi — ka'cli. 
 
 cafe (Fr.)— ka'fa'. 
 
 Cairo — iu Egypt, ki'ro ; in tlie United 
 
 States, ka'ro. 
 caisson — ka'son. 
 
 This word is generally marked by orthoepists 
 kd-sobn' or kd'sobn; but it has become thoroughly 
 Anglicized, and should be pronounced according 
 to English analogy. The above marking is be- 
 lieved to conform to good usage. 
 
 ca-Msli', not -lash', 
 cal-cin'a-ble. 
 cal-cine', or c^l'cine. 
 
 The dictionary authority for the second mark- 
 ing is very slight. The preference shown for it 
 in this country is due to its having been so 
 marked in the earlier editions of Webster. The 
 last edition only permits it. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
32 
 
 cardron, not ciH'-. 
 
 • • • 7 
 
 calf — caf, 7iot c^f. 
 
 ca'lipL, not ca'-. 
 
 c^l-is-tlien'ics. 
 
 calk — kawk, not kawlk. 
 
 cal-lig'ra-pliy. 
 
 Cal-li'o-pe. 
 
 calm, palm, psalm, alm§. 
 
 calyx, or c^l'yx. 
 
 ca-mel'o-pard. 
 
 c^m'plior, not -fir. 
 
 Canaanite — ca'nan-ite. 
 
 canaille — c^'nie'. 
 
 The last syllable is very like a running- 
 together of long i and long e. 
 
 c^n'cel, not c^n'sl. 
 
 ca-nine', not ca'nine. 
 
 caoutchouc — kob 'ckdbk. 
 
 C^p-u-gliin'. 
 
 car'bine. 
 
 carbonaceous — kar-bo-na'slius. 
 
 ca'ret, not cd,r'-. 
 
 careme (Fr.) — ka'ram'« 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
33 
 
 c^r'i-cat-ure, not -ca-ture, nor -ca-chur. 
 c^r'i-cat-iL-rist. 
 
 Worcester's and Webster's marking of these 
 words is -ca-tur-. 
 
 car'mine. 
 
 carte de visite (Fr.) — kart de ve'zet'. 
 
 car'tel' (Fr.), not car'tel, nor car-tel'. 
 
 carte blanclie (Fr.) — kart bl5ngsh. 
 
 car'tridge, not k^t-. 
 
 Car-tlia-Mn'i-an. 
 
 ca§e'ment, not -miiiit. 
 
 caseous — ka'se-iis, ka'slie-iis, or ka'sMs. 
 
 c^s'si-mere, not k^z'-. 
 
 cassino (game) — kas-se'no. 
 
 castle — kas'l, not kas'tl. 
 
 casual — k^zh'u-al. 
 
 casuistry — k^zli'u-is-tiy. 
 
 catalogue — k^t'a-l5g, not -log. 
 
 c^tcli, not kStcli. 
 
 catechumen — kitt-e-ku'men, 
 
 caviar (Fr.) — ka've'ar.' 
 
 Cay-enue', not ki-eu'. 
 
 Cecil — ses'il. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
34 
 
 cSl'i-ba-cy. 
 
 This is the marking of all the orthoepists 
 except Webster, who gives the preference to 
 se-lib'a-se. 
 
 cel'lar, not sul'ler. 
 
 cellular — ceryu-lar. 
 
 cem'ent, or ce-mSnt' {jiouri). 
 
 Smart says ce-mhit', and thinks this accentu- 
 ation will finally prevail. 
 
 cem'e-ter-y, not cSm'e-tiy. 
 
 cen-trif 'u-£fal, not cen-tri-fu'o^al. 
 
 cen-trip'e-tal, not cen-tri-pe'tal. 
 
 ce-pli^Vic, not cephal-ic. 
 
 ce'rate, not cer'-. 
 
 cere'ment, not cc're-. 
 
 " But tell 
 Why thy canonized hones, hears'd in death, 
 Have burst their cerements ! " — Hamlet. 
 
 Not "canoniz'd bones, hearsed in death," as 
 it is generally read. 
 
 cer'tain, not cert n. 
 ce-rn'le-an, not ce-rii'-. 
 glia-grm'. See ambergris, 
 chal'dron, or chardron. 
 
 • • • / • 
 
 8eo Key to Pi-onunciation, p. 6. 
 
35 
 
 €L^l-ced'o-uy. 
 
 Cliam — k^m. 
 
 cham'ber, not clictm'-. 
 
 cliamois — sll^m^va'. 
 
 clian'cer-y, not clian'-, nor cliiin'-. See 
 advance. 
 
 €lia'5s, not -us. 
 
 cliaj)eau — s]id'})6'. 
 
 gha-rade'. 
 
 cliaro^e d'affaires — sliar'zlia' daf'far'. 
 
 chasten — clias'sn, not cMs'n. 
 
 cliits'tige-ment, not ch^s-tiz'-. 
 
 cli4teau en Espagne — sha'to' 5n'as']_)^ii'c 
 
 Cherubini — ka-ru-be'ne. 
 
 chestnut — clies'nut. 
 
 chew — chii, not chii. 
 
 yhi-ca'ner-y, not chi-. 
 
 chick'en, not chick'n. 
 
 chil'dren, not chiVdiini. 
 
 chimpanzee — chim-pjln'ze, or -p^in-ze'. 
 
 Smart accents the last syllable. 
 
 Chi-ne§e', not -nese'. 
 
 €hi-r5p'o-dist. 
 
 ' — ■ ■ ■ ■ - ■ . — - — 
 
 See Key to Proniinciatioo, p. 6. 
 
36 
 
 cln§'el, not cliiz'l. 
 ^hiv'al-ric, or (;lii-viirric. 
 ^liiv'al-rotis, not clii-viirrous. 
 ^'liiv'al-ry, not cliiv'- (aiiticjuated). 
 elilo'ride, or ride. 
 
 According to Smart and Cull, chemical terms 
 ending in ide should have the i long ; all other 
 authorities, however, mark it short. 
 
 Cliopin — sho'p^ng', not cho'piu. 
 
 €liorer-ic. 
 
 €lio'rist, not ^Lor'- (antiquated). 
 
 €li5r'is-tor. 
 
 christen — kris'sn. 
 
 christening — kiis 'sn-ing. 
 
 Christianity — krist-yd,n'e-ty, or kris-te 
 
 ^n'e-ty. 
 Chiistmas — kris'mas, not kiist'-. 
 €hr5n'o-l5;2:-ic. 
 cic'a-trice, not -trice, 
 cicerone — Pis-e-ro'ne (Anglicized). 
 
 The maker of this little book would take 
 occasion to say here that, in his judgment, it is 
 always well to nuike one's pronunciation, when 
 S2:)eaking English, as Englis-i as permissible. 
 
 8eo Key to Pronuucintion, p. 6. 
 
37 
 
 cLoose — clinz, not chuz. 
 
 cil iary — sil'y a-ry. 
 
 Cir'ce. 
 
 Cincinnati— sin-sin-na'ti, not -n^t'ta. 
 
 cTr'cum-stance — ance ^6' in instance. 
 
 cis-^rpme, or (better ?) -pin. 
 
 cit'a-del, not -diil. 
 
 cifc'rate, not ci'trate. 
 
 • 7 • 
 
 civ'il, not civ'l, nor civ'ul. 
 
 cMn-des'tine. 
 
 clapboard — klitb 'bord. 
 
 cMr'i-on. 
 
 clem'en-cy, not -un-. 
 
 clew — kill, not klu. 
 
 clerk. 
 
 In England pronounced kldrk ; in America, 
 except on the stage, klerk. 
 
 cl5tli. 
 
 Before tJi, st, and ss, the letter o is frequently 
 sounded aw in this country, as in cloth, hroth^ 
 lost, cost, moss, dross, etc., which is accounted 
 inelegant ; it is not more objectionable, however, 
 than a palpahle. effort to make the vowel short. 
 See accost. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
38 
 
 fio-ad-Jii'tor. 
 
 co-M'ju-tant. 
 
 c5cli'i-neal, or (according to Smart) 
 
 c5cli-i-near, not kocli'-. 
 c6ck'a-trice, not -tris. 
 coffee — k5f' fe, not kauf fe. See accost. 
 
 .7 •• • 
 
 cocoa — ko'ko. 
 
 c5f 'fin, not kauf'n. See accost. 
 
 coexist — ko-e2:z-ist'. 
 
 c52:^ni-zance. 
 
 There is good authority for pronouncing this 
 word cbn'i-zdnce j but this pronunciation finds 
 little favor in America. 
 
 cognac — kon'yiik', not ko'ni-^k. 
 
 c5g-no^nien. 
 
 Colbert (Fr.)— kiirbaf'. 
 
 Coleridge — kol'rij. 
 
 c5l-os-se'um. 
 
 c5rum-ba-ry. 
 
 column — k5rum, not -yum, nor -ytim. 
 
 col-la'tion, not ko-la'tion. 
 
 • • 7 • 
 
 com'bat, or com'bat. 
 
 • 7 • 
 
 The question here is whether the o shall have 
 the sound of o in cotne or of o mfrorti. Walker, 
 
 Sec Key to Pi-onunciation, p. 6. 
 
39 
 
 Worcester, Smart, and others prefer the o in 
 come ; Webster and others, and popular usage, 
 the o in from. The stage has always followed 
 Walker, making the 6 very short ; but, though 
 this may perhaps be considered the more elegant 
 mode of pronouncing the word at present, the 
 longer o will doubtless eventually prevail. 
 
 com'bat-ant, or c5m'-. 
 
 com'bat-ive-ness, or com-Mt'-. 
 
 Ease of utterance has put the accent on the 
 second syllable of this word, where, despite the 
 dictionaries, it is pretty sure to remain. 
 
 Comedie Frangaise — kom'a'cle' fr5ng'- 
 
 saz . 
 
 comely — ktimly, not koiii'-. 
 
 comme il faut (Fr.) — kiim el fo. 
 
 com-mencVa-ble ; in verse., often c5m'-. 
 
 "'Tis sweet and commendable in thy nature, 
 Hamlet." 
 
 " Silence is only com??i6Wf?able 
 In a neat's foot dried and a maid not vendable.'' 
 
 commensurable — kom-men'sliu-ra-ble. 
 
 c5m'ment, verh and noun, 
 
 com-mi§'er-ate, 
 
 c5m'mon-wealtli, or c5m-mon-wealtli'. 
 
 c5m'mu-nigm ; corn'mu-nist. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6, 
 
40 
 
 c5m'23a-ra-ble. 
 
 eom-p^r'a-tive. 
 
 com-pa'tri-ot, not -p^t'-. 
 
 corn-peer'. 
 
 com-peired, participial adjective, 
 
 " Finding ourselves too slow of sail, we put on 
 a compelled valor." — Hamlet. 
 
 com-pen'sate, or c5m 'pen-sate. See con- 
 summate. 
 
 complaisance^— k5m'pla-z^nce^ 
 
 AYorcester accents the last syllable of this 
 semi- Anglicized French word ; Webster the first, 
 placing a secondary accent on the last. In French, 
 whatever difference there is in the quantity of 
 the three syllables is due to the vowel-sound of 
 the last syllable being somewhat drawn out. 
 
 c5m'plai-§ant'. 
 
 com'plex, not com-plex'. 
 
 c5m'pro-mi§e. 
 
 comptroller — kon-troVer. 
 
 c5m'rade, or com'rade, or -rM. 
 
 The authorities are divided on this word 
 somewhat as they are on combat, which see. 
 The last marking of the second syllable, though 
 not sanctioned by the dictionaries, certainly is by 
 etymology and good use. 
 
 See Key to Pronuuciation, p. 6. 
 
41 
 
 con amore (It.) — k5n a-mo'ra. 
 concave — kong'kav, not -kav. 
 con-cen'trate, 6>r c6n'cen-trate. See con- 
 
 summate. 
 concli — k5ngk. 
 con-cise', not -cize'. 
 con-elude', not -cliid'. See aptitude, 
 con-clii'sive, not -ziv. 
 concord — k5ng'k6rd. 
 Concord (town) — k5ng'kurd. 
 concourse — k5ng'k6rs. 
 con-cu'bi-nage. 
 con-dolence, 7wt c5n'do-. 
 conduit — k5n'dit, or ktin'dit. 
 con-fess'or, or c5n'fess-or. 
 
 The latter accentuation is becoming anti- 
 quated. 
 
 c5n'fi-diint'. 
 
 con-fis'cate. See consummate. 
 c5n'flu-ent, not con-flii'-. 
 congenial — kon-jen'yal. 
 
 There is abundant authority for making this 
 a word of four syllables ; but, fortunately, few- 
 people follow it. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
42 
 
 congeniality — kon-Jen-y^l'i-ty, or -ni4l'" 
 
 Congo — k5ng'go. 
 
 cono^re2:ate — k5n'2:re-2:ate, or k5n2^'-. 
 
 con2:ress — k5n2:'o:res. 
 
 con2:ressional — kon-o-rcsli'im-al. 
 
 con-Jure', to solemnly enjoin^ to adjure 
 
 con'jure, to influence hy magic. 
 
 "What is he whose grief 
 Bears such an emphasis ? whose plirase of sorrow 
 Conjures the wand'ring stars, and makes them 
 
 stand 
 Like wonder- wounded hearers ? " 
 
 Which word does Hamlet use here ? From 
 time immemorial the stage has said that he uses 
 the second. In other words, according to the 
 stage, Hamlet accuses Laertes of playing hocus- 
 pocus with the stars. 
 
 connaisseur (Fr.) — con'a'sur'. 
 
 The orthography of this word is made to 
 conform to that of the modern French, because 
 ai represents the sound of the syllable, and oi 
 does not. The sound of the last syllable can 
 only be approximated with English characters. 
 The lir of /wr, however, somewhat prolonged, is 
 very near it. 
 
 conquer — k5ng'ker. 
 conquest — k5ng'kwest. 
 
 See Koy to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
43 
 
 conscientious — k5n-slie-Sn'slitis. 
 
 c5n-ser-va'tor, or c5n'ser-va-tor. 
 
 con-sid'er-a-ble, not -sicl'ra-ble. 
 
 con-siscn'or, or con-sio;n-6r'. 
 
 con-sis'to-ry, or con'sis-to-ry. 
 
 c6n-s5ls. 
 
 The important point in pronouncing this word 
 is to make the o of botli syllables short. As for 
 the accent, it seems to be quite immaterial where 
 it is placed. 
 
 con-spir'a-cy, not -spf-. 
 c5n'strue. 
 
 • « 
 
 con-siime'. 
 
 c5n 'sum-mate, or con-siim'mate, verb. 
 
 Those who prefer, in common with nearly- 
 all the orthoepists, to accent the second syllable 
 of such three-syllabled verbs as contemplate^ 
 compensate, confiscate, constellate, demonstrate, 
 despumate, expurgate, and extirpate, will perhaps 
 think it well to except consummate in order to 
 distinguish it from the adjective. 
 
 con-tem'plate, or c5n'tem-plate. 
 c5n'tents, or con-tents'. 
 
 7 • 
 
 The penultimate accent of this word is not only 
 well-nigh universal in this country, but is sanc- 
 tioned by Webster, Worcester, Clarke, and others. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
44 
 
 contour — k5ii'tobr'. 
 c5n'trast, noun. 
 eon-trast', verb. 
 con-trib'ute, not c5u'tri-bute. 
 c6n'tro-vert, not c5n-tro-vert'. 
 
 • 7 • 
 
 c5n'tu-me-ly, not con-tu'me-ly. 
 conversant. See Supplement. 
 c6n-ver-sa'tion, not -za'-. 
 con-verse', verb ; c5n' verse, noiui, 
 c5n'vex, not con-vex^ 
 con-voy', verh ; c5n'voy, noun, 
 cdbp'er, or cobp'er. 
 
 Smart says : " Cooper and its compounds are 
 doubtful (with respect to the sound of oo) except 
 in common speech, which, in London at least, 
 invariably shortens them." 
 
 Common speech means uncultured, non-pains- 
 taking speech, wdiich certainly is not a desirable 
 model to copy after. The lower orders, the 
 world over, are slipshod in their articulation. 
 The most sonorous vowel-sounds in the German 
 language are never, by any chance, made by the 
 common people, simply because they require a 
 little greater effort than approximate sounds that 
 suffice. Cooper for cooper — like hoop for hoop, 
 root for root, sfYon for soon, soot for soot, roof 
 for roof, liobf for hoof, nriint for won't, htun for 
 
 See Key to Pronuncialion, p. 6. 
 
45 
 
 home, lial for whole, etc. — is probably one of 
 those corruptions which it is wisdom to avoid. 
 
 c5r'al, not co'ral. 
 
 cordial — korcVyal, or kor'cle-al. 
 
 c6rd-i^ri-ty, or c6r-di.-iiri-ty. 
 
 corkscrew — kork'skru. 
 
 Corot — ko'ro'. 
 
 co-ro'nal, or c6r'o-nal. 
 
 Preference is given here to the first marking, 
 because it more fully brings out the vowel-sounds 
 and conforms to the primitive coro'na. 
 
 corps d'armee (Fr.) — kor dar'ma'. 
 
 corps diplomati(|ue (Fr.)-^kor de'plo'- 
 ma'teek'. 
 
 c5r'ri-d6r. 
 
 cor-ro'sive, not -ziv. 
 
 cortege (Fr.) — kor'tazh'. 
 
 corvette (Fr.) — kor 'vet'. 
 
 co§-m5g'ra-pby. 
 
 cos-tiirae', or c5s'tume. 
 
 coterie (Fr.) — ko'te-re'. 
 
 comi'sel, not couii'sl. 
 
 coup d'etat (Fr.) — ko da'ta' 
 
 coupe (Fr.) — ko'pa'. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
46 
 
 courier — ko're-er. 
 
 coTirrier (Fr.) — ko're'a'. 
 
 Courbet — kor'ba'. 
 
 courteous — kur'te-iis. 
 
 courtier — kort'yer. 
 
 cov'er-let, not -lid. 
 
 cov'et-ous, not -e-clitis (antiquated), 
 
 cow'ard-ice, not -ice. 
 
 cr^n'ber-ry, 7iot cr^m'-. 
 
 creature — kret'yur. 
 
 creek, not krik. 
 
 cre'ole. 
 
 cre'o-sote. 
 
 crem'a-to-ry. 
 
 crew — kru. 
 
 Cromwell — kriim'well, or kr5m'-. 
 
 cru'ci-fix. 
 
 • • • 
 
 crude. 
 
 • • 
 
 The vowel u preceded by r in the same sylla- 
 ble has the sound of oo. 
 
 cru'el, not -il, nor -til. 
 
 cu'cum-ber, not kow'- (anti(iuated). 
 
 cuirass — kwe 'riis'. 
 
 See Key t<> Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
47 
 
 cuirassier — k we 'ras-ser'. 
 
 cuisine (Fr.) — kwe'zen'. 
 
 cii'li-na-iy, not kul'i-. 
 
 cu'po-la, not cii'pa-lo. 
 
 Curagoa — ^ku-ra-s6'. 
 
 cu-ra'tor. 
 
 ciir'so-ry, not -zo-. 
 
 cur-tail'. 
 
 curtain — kur'tin, not kiir'tn. 
 
 cy-clo-pe'an. 
 
 cy-lin'dric. 
 
 cynosure — sl'no-sliur, or -shur. 
 
 czarowitz — ziir'o-vitz, not -witz. 
 
 Czerny — cliar'ne. 
 
 D. 
 
 This consonant is silent only in the words 
 Wednesday, handkerchief, and handsome. 
 
 daguerreotype — da-ger'o-tip. 
 dahlia — dal'ya, or darya. 
 d^n'de-li-on, not d^n'de-lin. 
 
 Worcester accents the penult of this word. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
48 
 
 Danish, not Diin'isli. 
 da'ta, or da'-, 
 da 'turn, or da'-, 
 daub, not d5b. 
 daunt, not dawnt. 
 deaf — def. 
 
 Webster alone of all the ortlioepists pro- 
 nounced this word def—SL pronunciation which 
 now is considered very inelegant. 
 
 debenture — de-bent'yur. 
 
 de bonne grace (Fr.) — de bon gras. 
 
 debris (Fr.) — da'bre'. 
 
 debut (Fr.)— da'bii'. 
 
 As the sound of the French u can not be 
 represented in English, even aiDproxiniately, or 
 made by English organs of speech without much 
 practice, the safer plan is to Anglicize both syl- 
 lables of this word, and call it simply de-bu', or 
 to avoid using it at all. 
 
 debutant, debutante (Fr.)— da'bu't5ng', 
 da'bu't5ni>:t'. 
 
 As in the case of delmt, we would recommend 
 that these words be Anglicized in sound, and 
 both pronounced deb-u-td/W. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
49 
 
 dec'ade, 7iot de-kad'. 
 
 de-ca'dence. 
 
 decalogue — dek'a-l5g, not -log. 
 
 de'cent, not de 'stint. 
 
 de-ci'sive, not -ziv. 
 
 dec-li-na'tion. 
 
 de-cli'voiis. 
 
 de-co'rous. 
 
 The authority is small, and is becoming less, 
 for saying dtc'o-rotts, which is really as incorrect 
 as it would be to say son'o-rotis. ' 
 
 de-crep'it, not -id. 
 de-dec'o-rous. 
 de-diice', 7iot -dus'. 
 de-ffl'cate. 
 
 def-al-ca'tiou, or de-M-ca'tion, 
 def i-cit, not de-fig'it. 
 de-file^ 
 Sheridan said dtf'i-le. 
 
 de-fin 'i-tive. 
 
 degage (Fr.) — dil'ga'zlia'. 
 deglutition — d eg-lu-tisli 'iin. 
 degoiit (Fr.)— da'go'. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
50 
 
 Delaroclie — de la rush', 
 de-lude', not -lud'. 
 de-lii'sion, not -In'-, 
 dem-o-ni'a-cal. 
 
 • • • 
 
 de-m5n'stra-ble. 
 
 de-m5u'strate, or dem'on-strate. See 
 consummate. 
 
 de-m5n'stra-tive. 
 
 denouement (Fr.) — da'no'm5ng'. 
 
 denunciate — de-nun 'she-at. 
 
 depot — de'po. 
 
 This word is so thoroughly Anglicized that it 
 is in doubtful taste to pronounce it a la fran- 
 ^aise ; but, Anglicized, if we give the vowels 
 their long sound, the syllables still have nearly 
 the same quantity. 
 
 dep-ri-va'tion. 
 der'e-lict. 
 
 dernier (Fr.) — darn'ya'. 
 de-ri'sive, not -ziv. 
 Descartes — da'kilrt'. 
 desliabille (Fr.) — da'za'be'ya. 
 de-sic'cate, or des'ic-cate. 
 Desn^offe — da'cruf'. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
51 
 
 de-§ign', or de-sign'. 
 
 The second pronunciation is seldom heard, 
 and is certainly not euphonious, though the 
 weight of authority is in its favor. 
 
 des'iof-nate, not dez^-. 
 
 de-sist^, not -zist'. 
 
 des'o-late, not dez'-. 
 
 des-pe-ra'do, or -ril'-. 
 
 des'pi-ca-ble, not des-pic'a-ble. 
 
 de§-§ert'. 
 
 des'tine, not -tin. 
 
 desuetude — des'we-tiid, 
 
 des'ul-to-iy. 
 
 de-tail', verh. 
 
 de'tail, or de-tail', noun. 
 
 Preference is given to the first marking by 
 the later English authorities, and in the last edi- 
 tion of Webster. 
 
 det-es-ta'tion. 
 detour (Fr.)— diVtor/ 
 de trop (Fr.) — de tro. 
 de-vils'tate, or dev'as-tate. 
 
 • 7 • 
 
 dev-as-ta'tion. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p, 6. 
 
52 
 
 devoir (Fr.) — duv-war'. 
 dew — dii, not dn. 
 diaeresis — di-er'e-sis. 
 dialogue — di'a-l5o:, not -laws:, 
 di'a-mond. 
 
 • • 
 
 di-^s'to-le. 
 di'a-tribe. 
 
 This word is pronounced dV a-trl-be by Smart, 
 and cVi-dt' re-be by several orthoepists. 
 
 di'et-a-ry. 
 
 dif-fii'sive, not -ziv. 
 
 di2^-i-ta'lis. 
 
 di2:ressioii — de-2:resli'uii. 
 
 di-late', not di-late'. 
 
 di-lem'ma, not di-. 
 
 di-lii'tioii, not -In'-. 
 
 din'ar-^liy. 
 
 di-5g'e-§iin, or di-o-^e'§an. 
 
 di-o-ra'ma, or -ra'-. 
 
 dipli-tliG'ri-a — dip- or dif-. 
 
 dipli'tli5ng — dip'- or dif'-. 
 
 Worcester and Smart prefer tlie former, "Web- 
 ster the latter. 
 
 Sec Key to Pronunoiation, p. 6. 
 
53 
 
 diplo'-m^te. 
 
 dip-lo-iMt'ic, not di-plo-. 
 di-pl6'ma-tist, not di-plo'-, nor dip'lo- 
 di-rect'ly, not di-. 
 dis — dis, or diz. 
 
 " When the accent, either primary or secon- 
 dary, is on this inseparable preposition, the s is 
 always sharp and hissing ; but when the accent 
 is on the second syllable, the s will be either 
 hissing or buzzing, according to the nature of 
 the consecutive letter. That is, if a sharp mute, 
 as 7>, t, k, or c hard, succeed, the preceding s must- 
 be pronounced sharp and hissing, as dispose^ 
 distaste, etc. ; but if a flat mute, as d, d, or (/ hard, 
 or a vowel or a liquid, begin the next syllable, 
 the foregoing s must be sounded like z, as dis- 
 burse, disdain, etc. ; but if the secondary accent 
 be on this inseparable preposition, as in dis- 
 helief, etc., the s retains its pure hissing sound." 
 — Walker. 
 
 In accordance with Walker, Smart says : " As 
 to the pronunciation of this prefix, the s is un- 
 vocal [i. e., sharp or hissing] if the accent, 
 primary or secondary, is on the syllable ; but if 
 the next syllable be accented and begin with a 
 real vowel (not ii) or a vocal consonant [i. e., 
 flat mute], the s is sounded z, unless the word is 
 connected with a principal word in which the s 
 is unvocal ; for in such case the derivative fol- 
 lows the primitive." 
 
 See Key to Prouuuciation, p. 6. 
 
54 
 
 di§-a'ble, or clis-a'ble. 
 
 cli§-arm', not clis-. 
 
 clis-as-ter, not dis-. 
 
 di§-b^nd', or dis-. 
 
 di§-burse', or dis-. 
 
 dis-card', not dis'ciird. 
 
 discern — diz-zern'. 
 
 discernment — diz-zern'ment. 
 
 dis'ci-pline, not di-cip'lin. 
 
 disclosure — dis-klo'zliur, 
 
 dis-count', or dis'count, verh. 
 
 Webster stands almost alone in accenting the 
 first syllable of this word. 
 
 discoui-teous — dis-kiir'te-tis. 
 dis-crep'an-cy, or dis'cre-p^n-cy. 
 di§-dain, not dis-. 
 di§-ea§e', not dis-. 
 dis-fr[in'clii§e, not -cliiz. 
 di§-g6rge', or dis-. 
 di§-grace', or dis-. 
 dis-o;uise', or dis-. 
 di§-gust', or dis-. 
 dishabille — dis-a-bil'. 
 
 Bee Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
55 
 
 dishevelled — di-sliev'ld. 
 
 di§-li5n'est, not dis-. 
 
 di§-li5n'or, not dis-. 
 
 dis-in'ter-est-ed, or dis-. 
 
 di§-join, or dis-. 
 
 di§-junc'tive, or dis-, 
 
 di§-like'j or dis-. 
 
 di§-lodge, or dis-. 
 
 di§-loy'al, (9y' dis-. 
 
 di§-may', or dis-. 
 
 di§-miss', or dis-. 
 
 di§-mount', 6>r dis-. 
 
 di§-6r'der, or dis-. 
 
 di§-6wn', ?2.(9i5 dis-. 
 
 dis-po§-§ess', or dis-pos-sess'. 
 
 dispossession— dis-poz-zesli'un, or -sesh'-. 
 
 dis'pu-ta-ble, not dis-pu'ta-ble. 
 
 dis'pu-t^nt, not dis-pii'tant. 
 
 Disraeli — diz-ra'el-e. 
 
 dig-robe', or dis-. 
 
 dis-sem'ble, not diz-zem'ble. 
 
 dissociate — dis-so'she-at. 
 
 dis'so-liite, not -Int. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
56 
 
 di§-§5lve', oiot dis-s5lve'. 
 
 dis-syl-Mb'ic. 
 
 dis-sylla-ble, or dis'syl-la-ble. 
 
 disticli — dis'tik. 
 
 distingue — des't^ng'ga'. 
 
 distinguish — dis-ting'gwisli. 
 
 dis'trict, not des'-. 
 
 di-v^n'. 
 
 di'verse-ly. 
 
 di-vert', not di-. 
 
 di-vest', 7iot di-. 
 
 docile — d5s'il, oiot do'sil, 7wr do'sil (anti- 
 quated). 
 
 d5c'Li-ment. 
 
 does — dtiz. 
 
 d5g, not daug, nor the other extreme^ dug. 
 See accost. 
 
 dolce — dol'dia. 
 
 d5ro-ro1is. 
 
 d5m'i-ne, not do'mi-ne. 
 
 d5n'a-tive. 
 
 donkey — d5ng'ke, not dting'ke. 
 
 D5r'ic, not Do'ric. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
57 
 
 dost — dust, not dost. 
 
 doth — diith, not doth. 
 
 double-entendre — dob'bl-5n<2:'t5n2:'di. 
 
 dra'nia, or dr^m'a. 
 
 And then there is an abundance of unheeded 
 authority for saying drd'md. 
 
 draught — draft. 
 
 dromedaiy— di'iiine-da-iy, not di'5m'-. 
 
 dr5ss. See accost. 
 
 droiio^ht — dro^^i:. 
 
 Druid, not Druid. 
 
 du'bi-otis, not du'% 
 
 diic'tile, not -til. 
 
 du'el, not dul. 
 
 duke, not duk. 
 
 duly. See adduce. 
 
 dy'nas-ty. 
 
 Smart and some others say dm'as-te; and 
 this pronunciation is very common, though by 
 many considered vulgar. 
 
 dy's'en-tery, not diz'-.. 
 
 dys-pep'sy. 
 
 Worcester and half a dozen other orthoepists 
 accent the first syllable. 
 
 See Key to Proniuiuation, p. 6. 
 
58 
 
 E. 
 
 This vowel, the most frequent in the lan- 
 guage, has two principal sounds : long as in eve, 
 short as in e?id. 
 
 In the languages of continental Europe it 
 generally has the sound of a in /ate or e in 77iefy 
 according to position. In French, when un- 
 marked, it is silent in many jiositions, and in 
 many others has a peculiar and unrepresentable 
 sound, which when distinct approaches that of 
 short u in sum, and when c^lurred that of obscure 
 e in over. 
 
 east'ward, not east'arcl. 
 
 eau de vie (Fr.) — o de ve. 
 
 eclat (Fr.) — a'kla'. 
 
 ec-o-n5in'ie, or e-co-ii5m'ic. 
 
 ec-o-u5m'i-eal, or e-co-n5m'i-cal. 
 
 The first is the marking of a large majority of 
 the orthoepists. 
 
 ec-u-men'i-cal. 
 E'deu. 
 
 Most words ending in en drop the e in y>to- 
 nunciation, as dozen (doz'n), so/ten (sof'n), o/teti 
 (of'n), etc. The e in such words is sounded 
 more frequently by unschooled pedants than by 
 the careless. Some of the words in which the e 
 should be sounded are aspen^ chicken, hyphen, 
 kitchen, lichen, and marten. The e is also sound- 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
59 
 
 ed when preceded by /, rn^ 7i, or r, as in icoolen, 
 onie7i, linerij siren, barren ; but fallen, stolen, 
 and sicollen drop the e. As for Eden, sloven, 
 sudden, heathen, bounden, and mitten, some 
 speakers suj^press and some sound the e. 
 
 e'dile. 
 e'en — eu. 
 ef 'fort, or effort, 
 ef-front'er-y, not -fr5nt'-, 
 ef-f ii'sive, not -ziv. 
 e'go-ti§m, or eg'o-ti§m. 
 egregious — e-gre' j iis. 
 either — e'tlier, or i'tiier. 
 
 Smart says that between e'ther and I'ther 
 there is little in point of good usage to choose. 
 The last edition of Webster's dictionary says 
 that analogy, as well as the best and most gen- 
 eral usage, is decidedly in favor of e'ther. See 
 neither. 
 
 eleemosynary — C3l-e-m5z'e-na-re. 
 e-le'gi-^c, or el-e-gi'ac. 
 
 There is abundant authority for the second 
 marking, but for the most part, in this country, 
 the word is made to conform to the rule that 
 words ending in ia, iac, ial, ian, eons, and ious 
 have the accent on the preceding syllable ; as 
 denio7iiac, regcdia, melodious, etc. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
60 
 
 el-e-pli^u'tine, not -tin. 
 eleve (Fr.) — a'lav'. 
 eleven — e-lev'n. 
 el'i-gi-ble, not e-lig'i-ble. 
 elite (Fr.)— a^et'. * 
 E-liz'a-betli-an. 
 
 This is the dictionary pronunciation of this 
 word ; ease of utterance, however, generally puts 
 the accent on the penult. 
 
 Ellen— ell'en, not ell'n, nor ell'un. 
 
 elm, not ertim. 
 
 el-o-cu'tion, not el-e-. 
 
 el'o-quence, not -kwimce. 
 
 e-Ki'ci-date, not -Iti'-. See aj^titude. 
 
 e-lu'sive, not -ziv. 
 
 elysian — e-lizli'e-an, not e-liz'e-an. 
 
 elysium — e-lizli'e-um, not e-liz'e-iim. 
 
 emaciate — e-ma'she-at. 
 
 em-biilm', not -bflm'. 
 
 embrasure — em-bra'zlmr. 
 
 em-en-da'tion, not e-men-. 
 
 e'mir. 
 
 emollient — e-m5ryent. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
61 
 
 em-pir'ic, or em'pi-ric. 
 
 The time was when the weight of authority 
 was in favor of the second marking ; not so now. 
 
 em'press, not -pris. See ailment. 
 
 em-py-e'ma. 
 
 en-ee-pli^ric. 
 
 en-cy-clo-ped'ic. 
 
 en-cy-clo-pe'dist. 
 
 e-ner'vate. 
 
 The only antliority for saying en'er-vate is 
 popular usage ; all the orthoepists say e-ner'vdte. 
 
 enfrancliise — en-fr^n'chiz, not -cliiz. 
 
 en'gine, not -jin. 
 
 Eiio:lisli — insr'sflisli. 
 
 e-nisr'ma. 
 
 en-isr-mat'ic or e-iii2!:-mtlt'ic. 
 
 Though the weight of authority is against us, 
 we nevertheless give the first place to Walker's 
 marking of this word. 
 
 enimi (Fr.) — 5n'we'. 
 ensemble (Fr.) — 6ng's6ng'bl. 
 ensure — en-sliur', not -sliur'. 
 
 • • • / 
 
 en-tliii'§i-^§m, not -tlin'-. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
62 
 
 entree (Fr.) — 5ng'tra'. 
 
 enunciate — e-ntin'she-at. 
 
 en-verop, verh, 
 
 envelope, noun — 5ng'vG-l6p, or (better) 
 
 en've-lop. 
 enveloppe (Fr.) — 5ng'vG-ltip'. 
 en-vi'ron§, or en'vi-r5n§. 
 
 The first accentuation is certainly much to be 
 preferred. 
 
 ep'aii-let. 
 Ep-i-cu-re'an. 
 
 Webster alone of all the orthoepists j^ave this 
 word the antepenultimate accent ; and though in 
 the last edition of his dictionary tlie preference is 
 given to this accentuation, we are distinctly told 
 in the " Principles of Pronunciation," in the first 
 part of the volume, that Epicurean is one of a list 
 of words ending in an which accent the penult. 
 
 epilogue — ep'i-l5g, not -log. 
 epistle — e-pis'l. 
 ep'i-t^pli, not -taf. 
 ^p'oeli, not e'p5€li. 
 
 The latter is a Websterian pronunciation, 
 which is not even permitted in the late editions. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
63 
 
 equable — ek'wa-bl, or e'kwa-bl. 
 
 Preference is given here to Smart's marking^ 
 though he stands quite alone. 
 
 equation — e-qua'sliun, not -zliuu. 
 
 e-qua-to'ri-al. 
 
 equeny — ek'we-re. 
 
 e'qui-n5Xj not ek'-. 
 
 equipage — ek'we-paj. 
 
 equitable — ek' vve-ta-bl. 
 
 equivoke — ek'we-vok. 
 
 ere — ^r ; ere lono; — ar l5ng:. 
 
 err — er. 
 
 Sr'rand, not ^r'liud, nor ^r'ant. 
 
 • 7 7 • 
 
 erudite — er'yu-dite, not er'u-. 
 
 The latter pronunciation is neither euphonious 
 nor easy of utterance. See pp. 202, 207. 
 
 erudition — er-yu-disli'un, not er-u-. 
 
 erysipelas — er-e-sip'e-las, not ir-. 
 
 es-ca-pade'. 
 
 espionage — es'pe-o-n^zli'. 
 
 etli-n5g'ra-pliy. 
 
 etui (Fr.) — a'twe^ 
 
 Eu-ro-pe'an, not Eu-ro'pe-an. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
64 
 
 Eii-ter'pe. 
 
 etagere (Fr.) — d'ta'zliar'. 
 
 ev-an-^Tfel'i-cal, or e-vau-. 
 
 The first marking is that of Walker and 
 Smart ; the second, that of Webster and Worces- 
 ter. Preference is given here to tlie first, because 
 it is thought to be more euphonious and more in 
 accordance with good usage. 
 
 e-va'sive, not -ziv. 
 
 evening — e'vn-ing, not ev'ning. 
 
 ev'er-y, not ev're. 
 
 ev'i-dent, not -climt. 
 
 evil — e'vl. 
 
 ewe — yii, or yu. 
 
 The first is the pronunciation set down by 
 nearly all the orthoepists ; the second is that of 
 the last edition of Webster. 
 
 ex. 
 
 The letter x in this prefix, ii^hen follov^ed by 
 an accented voicel, usually has the sound gz (x) ; 
 sometimes, also, in the derivatives of such words, 
 even though x stands under the accent, as excdta'- 
 tion, ex'emplari/. 
 
 When the accented vowel is preceded by /i, 
 universal custom drops the h if the sound of (/z 
 is given to the x. The h can be more easily 
 aspirated when the x is pronounced as ks ; but 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
65 
 
 the writer inclines to the opinion that the h is 
 nearly always (from necessity) dropped in both 
 cases — a point which the orthoepists seem to 
 have overlooked. 
 
 e^-^ct', e:?^-itct'ly, e^-^ct'or. 
 
 exaggerate — egz4j 'er-at. 
 
 e54g-gGr-a'tion. 
 
 ex-alt' ex-al-ta'tion. 
 
 e:5-^m'ine, e^-^m-i-na'tion. 
 
 e^-am'ple. 
 
 e^-^s'per-ate, e^-^s-per-a'tion. 
 
 ex-ci§e', noun and verb ; ex-cl§8'man. 
 
 ex-clu'sive, not -klu'ziv. 
 
 excruciate — eks-krn'slie-at. See accrue. 
 
 • • • • 
 
 Sx'cre-tive, or ex-cre'tive, adj. 
 
 The first marking is Webster's and Worces- 
 ter's ; the second, Smart's. 
 
 ex-cur'sion, not -zlitiu. 
 
 . • 7 
 
 e5-ec'ii-tive. 
 ex-ec'u-tor, ex-ec'u-trix. 
 exemplary. See Supplement, 
 exempt — egz-emt'. 
 
 The letter p is silent or very indistinct when 
 it occurs between ni and t in the same syllable, 
 as in tempt, exempt, etc. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
6Q 
 
 e^-^^rt', e:j^-er'tion. 
 
 exhale — eks-hale'. 
 
 exliaust — esrz-aiist', o?' eks-liaust'. 
 
 exliaustible— escz-ausfi-bl, or eks-liaust'-. 
 
 exliaustion— egz-aust'yun, o?' eks-liaust'-. 
 
 exhibit — eo-z-ib'it, o?' eks-hib'it. 
 
 exhibition — eks-he-bish'uu. 
 
 exhilarate — eo:z-il'a-rat, or eks-hil'a-rat. 
 
 exhort — eo-z-ort', o?' eks-hort'. 
 
 ex-hor-ta'tion, not e2fz-or-. 
 
 exhorter — e^^z-or'ter, or eks-hor'ter. 
 
 ex-hume', Webster. 
 
 e^-hume', Worcester. 
 
 ex'i-geu-cy, 7iot ex-ig'en-cy. 
 
 exile, noun — eks'il, ?wf egz-il'. 
 
 exile, verb — eks'il, or 0Q:z-ir. 
 
 The first marking is Webster's and Smart's ; 
 tlie second, Walker's and Worcester's. 
 
 e:^-ist', e$-ist'ence. 
 Sx'it, 7iot eorz'it. 
 ex-5n'Gr-ate, ex-6ii-er-a'tion. 
 ex'o-ra-ble. 
 
 • • 
 
 e^-or'bi-taut. 
 
 bee Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
67 
 
 e^-or'di-um. 
 
 ex-5t'ic. 
 
 ex-pa'tri-ate, ex-pa-tri-a'tion. 
 
 Webster said eks-pat'-. 
 
 Sx'pert, or ex-pert', noun, 
 
 Sx'ple-tive. 
 
 Sx'pli-ca-ble, not ex-plic'-. 
 
 Sx'pli-ca-tive. 
 
 ex-ploit'. 
 
 ex-pl6'sive, not -ziv. 
 
 ex-p6'nent, not -niint. 
 
 expose (Fr.) — eks'po'za'. 
 
 ex-piir'gate; or ex'pur-gate. 
 
 ex'qui-§ite, adj. and noun^ not eks-qinz'it. 
 
 ex't^nt', not ex'tant. 
 
 As the syllables of this vrord are properly 
 about equal in quantity, it is thought to be mis- 
 leading to put a mark of accentuation over the 
 first one only. 
 
 ex-tSm'po-re, not -tem'por. 
 extinguisli — eks-ting'gwisli» 
 ex-tir'pate, or ex'tir-pate* 
 ex'tra, not Sks'tre. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 5 
 
68 
 
 extraordinary — ex-tror'di-na-ry. 
 exuberant — eo;z-yii'ber-ant. 
 e^-iule'. 
 ex-u-da'tion. 
 Gx-tilt', ex-idt'ant. 
 ex-ul-ta'tion. 
 eyre — ar. 
 
 eyry — dr'e, o?' a're, or e're, or i're. 
 Good authority for every one of them. Choose! 
 
 F. 
 
 This letter has always the same sound except 
 in the prei)osition of and its compounds, where it 
 has the sound of v. It is never silent. 
 
 In German, v has the sound of /*. 
 
 fagade (Fr.) — fa'sild'. 
 
 facial — fa'slial. 
 
 facile — fils'il. 
 
 fiic-sim'i-le. 
 
 failure — faryur. 
 
 fait accompli (Fr.) — fa'ta'c5ng'ple'. 
 
 falchion — faurduin, o?' -sliun. 
 
 falcon — faw'kn, not fiil'kn. 
 
 See Koy to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
GO 
 
 fa-mil-i-ilr'i-ty, -ye-^r'e-te, or -yilr'e-te. 
 
 far'o, not fa'ro. 
 
 fascia — Msli'e-a. 
 
 faubourg (Fr.) — fo'bor' ; Anglicized, 
 
 foboro;. 
 fau'cet, not f^s'-. 
 fault, not f5lt. 
 
 • • 7 
 
 Faure— for. 
 
 fa'vor-ite, not -it. 
 
 feb'ri-fiio'e. 
 
 fe'brile, or feb'rile. 
 
 Feb'ru-a-ry, not -rii-. 
 
 fee 'unci, not fe'cund. 
 
 fSc'un-date, or fe-cun'date. 
 
 fec-un-da'tion. 
 
 fem'i-nine, not -nin. 
 
 fem'o-ral. 
 
 feoff— fef. 
 
 ferrule, a metal ring — fer'ril, or fer'rul. 
 
 fer'tile, not -til. 
 
 ferule — fer'ril, or fer'rul. 
 
 fi-del'i-ty, not fi-. 
 
 filet de bceuf (Fr.)— fe'la' de bef. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
'0 
 
 figure — fig'yur, not ftg'er. 
 
 filial — fil'yal, not firi-al. 
 
 film, not firum. 
 
 fi-nale, not fe-Ml', nor fi-nal'. 
 
 fi-n^nce', not fi'nance ; ])l.^ fi-n^n'ce§. 
 
 fin-an-cier'. 
 
 This much-used word is rarely pronounced 
 correctly. 
 
 finesse (Fr,) — fe'nes'. 
 
 fiord (Swedish) — fe-6rd'. 
 
 first, not fiirst. 
 
 fissure — fisli'yur. 
 
 flaccid — fl^k'sid, not fl^s'id. 
 
 flageolet — fl^j'o-let. 
 
 flambeau — fl^m'bo'. 
 
 flat iron — fl^t 'i-u rn. 
 
 flaunt — flant, not flawnt. 
 
 fleur de lis (Fr.) — flaur do le. 
 
 The sound of the diphthong eii in French is 
 very like the sound of w in iirge initiated with 
 the long sound of a — i. e., with long a barely 
 touched before sounding the U. 
 
 flew — flu, not flu. 
 flexion — flek'sliun. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
71 
 
 fl5r'id, fio-ri(l'i-ty. 
 fl5r'in, not flo'rin. 
 flo'rist, not fl5r'ist. 
 fliie, not flu. See adduce, 
 flii'id, not fluid, 
 flute, not flut. 
 
 7 •• 
 
 fo'li-o, (97^ forio. 
 forbade — for-bM'. 
 forecastle — for'kas-sl. 
 f ore'fa-tiier, not for-fa'tlier (antiquated), 
 forehead — f5r'ed. 
 For'hed nowadays is hardly permissible. 
 
 foresaid — fore'sed, 7iot -sad. 
 f5r'est, not -ist. 
 forge, not forj. 
 for'ger, for'ger-y. 
 for-get', not -git', 
 for'mi-da-ble, not for-mid'a-ble. 
 
 • 7 • • 
 
 fort'niglit. 
 
 In the early editions of Webster's dictionary 
 this word was marked fort'nit, which possibly 
 accounts for this pronunciation being so common 
 with us. In England it is the universal custom 
 to sound the ^ long. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
72 
 
 f oratress, not fort 'res. 
 
 fortune — fort'yuii. 
 
 fr^g'men-ta-ry, 7iot frag-ment'a-iy. 
 
 franchise — fr^n'cliiz, not -cliiz. 
 
 fr^nk-in'cense, or fr^nk'in-cense. 
 
 The first marking is Webster's ; the second, 
 that of nearly all the other orthoepists. Ease of 
 utterance, as well as the etymology of the word, 
 will probably make Webster's marking generally 
 preferred. 
 
 fra-ter'nize, or fra'ter-nize. 
 
 fr^t'ri-cide, not fra'-. 
 
 fre-quent', verb ; not fre'qnent. 
 
 The latter was the marking in the early edi- 
 tions of Webster. 
 
 Frere — frar. 
 
 Freycine t — f ra'se 'na'. 
 
 fricandeau (Fr.) — fre'k5ng'do'. 
 
 fricassee (Fr.) — fre'ka'sa'. 
 
 This word may properly be treated as Angli- 
 cized — fric-as-see'. 
 
 frontier — fr5n'ter. 
 
 Webster marked this word/)"o;i-?<5r', but this 
 accentuation has been abandoned in the new 
 editions. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
'3 
 
 fr5nt'is-piece, not frtint'- 
 fr5st. See accost. 
 Fr oude — f rob cl . 
 fru'2:al. See accrue, 
 fii'el, not fii'l, nor fu^iil. 
 furcrum. 
 
 f lirsome, not fool'-, 
 furniture — fiir'nit-yur. 
 fii'tile, not -til. 
 future — f lit 'yur. 
 
 This consonant has two sounds, one hard and 
 one soft. It is hard before a, o, and w, except 
 in gaol, which is usually written as well as pro- 
 nounced Ja^7. 
 
 Before e, ^, and y it is sometimes hard and 
 sometimes soft. It is generally soft in words 
 from the Latin, Greek, and French, as in gentle^ 
 geology, giant, gymnast, etc., and hard in words 
 from the Saxon. These last are much in the 
 minority. Some of them are gear, get, gewgaio, 
 eager, gift, gig, gild, gird, girl, rugged, foggy , 
 muggy, scraggy, etc. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
74 
 
 The g of ng is often pronounced as though 
 doubled ; as in England^ younger (ing'gland, 
 young'ger). Before the verbal suffixes ed, est, 
 ing, er, it loses this double effect ; as in wing'ed, 
 bring'est, sing'ing, hang'er. See JST. 
 
 g^b-ar-dine'. 
 
 Gade, N. W.— ga'de. 
 
 Gaelic — galik, 
 
 gain'say'. 
 
 'gainst — ^genst. 
 
 g^ri-ot. 
 
 g^riant, hrave, daring j fine. 
 
 gal-l^nt', jpolite and attentive to ladies, 
 
 gallows — ^g^rius. See bellows. 
 
 galsorae — gawrsum. 
 
 ganglion — g^ng'gli-on. 
 
 gangrene — g^ng'gren, 
 
 Ganz — gants. 
 
 gaol — jail. 
 
 gape— gap, or gap. 
 
 The latter is the marking of Smart and sev- 
 eral others, and is frequently followed in Eng- 
 land. 
 
 garden — giir'dn, or gar'den. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
75 
 
 Garibaldi — ga-re-b^l'di. 
 
 g^r'isli, usually written g^ir'ish. 
 
 g^r'm-lous, not g^r'yu-, nor -yu-. 
 
 g^s, not g^z. 
 
 g^§'e-ous, not g^s'-. 
 
 ga§-5m'e-ter. 
 
 gasp, not g^sp. 
 
 g^tli'er, not getli'-. 
 
 gaunt — gant, not gawnt. 
 
 gauntlet — gantlet, not gawnt'-. 
 
 Gautier, Theopliile — ta'c-fel' got'ya'. 
 
 gen-e-^l'o-gy, or ge-ne-^rp-gy. 
 
 gen'er-al-ly, not gen'rul-ly. 
 
 genial — ^jen'yal, or je'ni-al. 
 
 genius — jen'yus, or je'ne-us. 
 
 Genoa — jen'o-a, not je-no'a. 
 
 gen'tle-men, not -mtin. 
 
 gents. 
 
 Supposed to be an abbreviation of gentlemen. 
 Pronounced — except by the very lowest orders — > 
 the most nauseating of vulgarisms. 
 
 genuine — jen'yu-in, not -in. 
 ge-5g'ra-pliy, not j5g'ra-fe. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
76 
 
 ge-5m'e-try. 
 
 Gerome — zha'rom'. 
 
 Gertrude — ^ger'trucl, not -trud. 
 
 ger'und, not je'rimd. 
 
 gesture — jest'yur. 
 
 get, not git. 
 
 ghoul (Turk.) — gobl. 
 
 In the digraph gh at the beginning of a word, 
 the h is silent, as in ghost, ghastly, etc. ; at the 
 end of a word both letters are usually silent, as in 
 high, sigh, neigh, hough, through, borough, etc. 
 In some words this digraph has the sound of f, 
 as in enough, tough, cough, laugh ^ in some the 
 sound of k, as in hough and lough. 
 
 giaour (Turk.) — jowr. 
 
 gib'bous, not jib'-. 
 
 gi-gan-te'au. 
 
 Gil Bias (Sp.) — liel bias, not zliel bla. 
 
 gi-riiffe', not gi-. 
 
 gird, girl, glrtli. 
 
 The sound of i before r, resembling u in 
 surge, is precisely like the sound of e in ermine. 
 See advertisement. 
 
 glacial — gla'slic-al. 
 glacier — gMs'e-er. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
77 
 
 glance, gMnd, glass, glM. 
 
 Glau'ber, not gl5l)'er. 
 
 glisten — glis'n, 
 
 gliie, not glu. 
 
 G5d, not gaud ; g5d'like, not gaud like. 
 
 golden — gold'n, not gol'den. 
 
 g5n'do-la, not gon-do'la. 
 
 gone — g5n, not gaun. 
 
 gob§e'ber-ry, not gobs'-. 
 
 gorgeous — gor'jus, not gor'je-tis. 
 
 g5s'pel, not gaus'-. 
 
 Gounod — o-o'no'. 
 
 gourd — gord. 
 
 gouvernante (Fr. )— ^go'var'naunt'. 
 
 gov-er-n^nte'. 
 
 gov'ern-ment, not gtiv'er-mtint. 
 
 gov'ern-or. 
 
 Graefe — gra'fe, not graf. 
 
 gramme (Fr.) — gram. 
 
 gr^n'a-ry, not gra'na-re (antiquated). 
 
 gra'tis, or gr^t'is. 
 
 grease, noun — gres. 
 
 grease, verh — grez, not gres. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
78 
 
 greag'y. 
 
 grew — gru, not gru. 
 
 gridiron — gricVi-urn. 
 
 griev'otis, not grev'i-tis. 
 
 gri-mace', not grim 'ace. 
 
 2:ri-m^rkin, oiot -maul'-. 
 
 gri'my, not grim'y. 
 
 grisette (Fr.) — gre'zet'. 
 
 groat — grant. 
 
 grovel — gr5v'l. 
 
 grn'el, not grii'-. See accnie. 
 
 guano (Sp.) — gwa'no. 
 
 guardian — gard'e-an, or gard'yan. 
 
 The second marking is Smart's ; the first, 
 Worcester's and AYebster's. 
 
 gu-ber-na-to'ri-al, not gtib-. 
 guillotine — gil-lo-ten'. 
 guipure (Fr.) — ge'pur'. 
 Guizot (Fr.) — ge'zo'. 
 
 The office of the u here is simply to make the 
 fj hard. 
 
 gum-arabic — gum-ilr'a-bik, not -a-ra'bik. 
 Gumbert — ixoom'bert. 
 
 See Key to Promuiciation, p. 6. 
 
79 
 
 gtim§, 7iot g<3b mz. 
 guii'st5ck, not -stauk. 
 gtit'ta-per'clia, not -ka. 
 gyin-iia'§i-um. 
 gypsum — Jip'sum. 
 gyve — jiv, not giv. 
 
 H. 
 
 This letter is merely an aspiration. It is 
 silent in heir, heii'ess, lierh, herbage, honest, honor, 
 hour, hostler, and their derivatives. It is also 
 marked as silent by most orthoepists in hospital, 
 humor, and humble, and their derivatives. By 
 some it is thought that there is an increasing 
 tendency to sound the h in these words ; this is 
 undoubtedly true with regard to hospital. II is 
 silent after initial g, as in ghost, ghastly, etc. ; 
 after r, as in rhetoric, rhyme, etc. ; and also 
 when preceded by a vowel in the same syllable, 
 as in oh, Jehovah, etc. 
 
 The French talk about their aspirated A's, but 
 they never aspirate any. 
 
 In German the effect of h in many cases is 
 simply to prolong the sound of the preceding 
 vowel ; and in all the continental languages it 
 has no effect after t. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
80 
 
 Haeckel — Leck'el. 
 
 halcyon — li^l'se-im, or Mrslie-un. 
 
 half, not hiilf. 
 
 halibut — h5re-but. 
 
 halve, not hiilve. 
 
 handkerchief — h^ng'ker-chif ; pl.^ -cliifs. 
 
 handsome — h^n'sum. 
 
 h^r'ass, not ha-riis'. 
 
 ha'rem. 
 
 haricot (Fr.) — a're'ko'. 
 
 harlequin — hiir'le-kwin, or -kin. 
 
 Nearly all tlie orthoOpists pronounce the last 
 syllable of this word Av;?. Why? Because the 
 word comes to us through the French, in which 
 the u is silent ? Inasmuch as in every other re- 
 spect the word has been thoroughly Anglicized, 
 it would seem that the pronunciation of this 
 syllable should be Anglicized also. 
 
 har-m5n'i-ca. 
 
 Il^r'ri-et, not har'-. 
 
 hasten — has'n, not has'ten. 
 
 haunch — hiinch, not haunch. 
 
 Hause — how'ze. 
 
 haunt — hiint, not hawnt. 
 
 See Key to Prouuaciation, p. 6. 
 
81 
 
 he, pronoun — lie. 
 
 When emphatic, this is pronounced as marked: 
 otherwise the h is but slightly aspirated, and the 
 vowel becomes obscure. See him. 
 
 "A man he was to all the country dear." 
 
 — Goldsmith. 
 
 " He who goes to bed, and goes to bed sober. 
 Falls as the leaves do, and dies in October ; 
 But he who goes to bed, and goes to bed mellow, 
 Lives as he ouorht to do, and dies an honest f el- 
 low." 
 
 heard — herd, not herd (antiquated), 
 hearth — harth, not herth, except in verse. 
 heaven — he v 'n. 
 Hebrew — he'bru, not -bru. 
 He^e. 
 
 he-gi'ra, or heg'i-ra. 
 height — hit. 
 Heine, not hine. 
 Final e in German is never silent. 
 heinous — ha'nus. 
 Helen, not Hel'un. 
 Hellenic — hel-le'nik. Smart ; hel-len'ik, 
 
 AVebster ; hel'le-nik, Worcester. 
 h6lm, 7iot hel'imi. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
82 
 
 Hemans — hem'anz, not lie'manz. 
 lier — lier. 
 
 So pronounced when emphatic ; otherwise the 
 h is but slightly aspirated and the vowel becomes 
 obscure. See him. 
 
 he-r^rdic. 
 
 • • 
 
 herb — erb. 
 Smart says lierh. 
 
 herbaceous — her-ba'shus. 
 
 herbage — er'baj, or her'baj. 
 
 her-biv'or-oHs. 
 
 hereof —her-5v', or -5ff'. 
 
 herewith — her-Avith', or -witli'. 
 
 her'o-ine, not he'ro-in, nor he'ro-in. 
 
 her'o-ism. 
 
 het'er-o-d6x. 
 
 het-er-5p'a-thy. 
 
 Heyse — hi'ze. 
 
 hi-a'tus. 
 
 hi'ber-nate. 
 
 hiccougli — hik'kup. 
 
 hi-er-o-glyph'ic, not hi-ro-. 
 
 Bee Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
83 
 
 him, "pronoun — liiin. 
 
 When not emphatic, tlie li is but slightly 
 aspirated, and the vowel becomes very obscure. 
 In ordinary conversation initial A is frequently 
 dropped entirely, in the pronouns, by those whose 
 articulation is least faulty. There are not a few, 
 however, who, when they appear in public and 
 are " on their mettle," studiously avoid slurring 
 the pronouns, and consequently are careful to 
 aspirate the h distinctly in Ids^ her, he, and him, 
 no matter whether the thou^-ht demands that the 
 pronoun should be emphasized or not ; but in 
 their endeavor to be nicely correct, they shnply 
 succeed in being pedantically wrong. This error 
 seriously mars the delivery of many actors and 
 public reader.-?, making their elocution stilted and 
 unnatural. ]VIany of them slur my, not unfre- 
 quently making it me, in fact, when the y should 
 retain its long sound ; but they seem to think it 
 would be a heinous offence to treat the other 
 pronouns in a like manner. Pronouns in which 
 the letters should have their full value are met 
 with only at considerable intervals. 
 
 Ilin-dob', or Hin'dob. 
 
 Lip-po-p5t'a-mus. 
 
 liir-siite'. 
 
 \nBj 2^i'onoun — liiz. See liim. 
 
 " The bosom of his Father and his God." — Gra>/. 
 
 " JIls was a life, of toil and penury, while 
 mme is a life of ease and plenty." 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
84 
 
 Ms'to-ry, not liis'tiy. 
 Mtii'er-most. 
 
 The in most is always long. 
 Ii5riy-li5ck5 not -liauk. 
 li5ro-caiist, not lio'lo-. 
 li5m'age, not 6m'-. 
 homely, not liiimly. 
 homestead — home'stecl, not -stid. 
 li6-moe-5p'a-{]iy, not lio'moe-o-p^tli-y. 
 li6-mo-ge'ne-oiis. 
 
 Smart says hom-o-. 
 
 honest — 5n'est, not -ist, nor -list. 
 
 "Honest, honest lago," is preferable to "hon- 
 ust, hoYiust lago," some of om* accidental Othellos 
 to the contrary notwithstanding. 
 
 honi soit qui mal y pense (Fr.) — 6-ue 
 
 swa ke m^l e p5ngss. 
 \\ooi. See cooper, 
 ho-ri'zon, not h5r'i-zon. 
 h5r'o-scope, not ho'ro-scope. 
 hors de combat (Fr.) — or de kawng'ba'. 
 horse-rM'ish, not -red'ish. 
 h5s'pi-ta-ble, not hos-pit'a-ble. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
85 
 
 li6s'pi-tal, not 5s'pi-tal (antiquated). 
 
 hostler — 5s'ler. 
 
 hound — hownd, not ho^yn. 
 
 housewife — hous'wif, or htiz'zif. 
 
 As applied to a little workbag used by women, 
 the word has the latter pronunciation ; but it 
 seems to be now seldom used in this sense. 
 
 h5v'el, not h5v'l. 
 
 hov'er, not h5v'-. 
 
 humble — iiin'bl, or htim'bl. 
 
 humor — yii'miir, or hu'mur. 
 
 Smart pronounces this word liu'mur when it 
 means moisture, as in a man's body, and yu'mur 
 in the other senses. 
 
 humorist — yu'mor-ist. 
 
 him'dred, not hun'durd (antiquated). 
 
 hungry — ^hting'gre, not hung'ger-e. 
 
 hy-dr5m'e-ter. 
 
 hy-dr5p'a-thy, not hi'dro-pitth-e. 
 
 hy'gi-ene. 
 
 hy-me-ne'al. 
 
 hy-per'bo-le, not hi'per-bol. 
 
 hyp-o-€h5n'dri4c, not hi'po-. 
 
 hypocrisy — he-p5k're-se, not hi-p5k'-. 
 
 » » 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
86 
 
 li}^p-o-crit^i-cal, not hi-po-. 
 
 hyp-o-g^s'tric. 
 
 liypothenuse — lii-p5tli'e-nus, not -iiuz. 
 
 This word is very frequently — j^erliaps most 
 commonly among mathematicians — pronounced 
 Titp-bt'e-nuse ; but Smart is the only orthoepist 
 who sanctions that pronunciation. 
 
 Ly-jDo-tliet'ic, not liip-o-. 
 
 I. 
 
 This vowel has two principal sounds, a long 
 and a short, as in dine and din. It also has three 
 secondary sounds, heard in marine, fii\ and ruin 
 respectively. 
 
 I. 
 
 This pronoun, in common with all the other 
 pronouns of the language, and a long list of the 
 particles, is touched more or less lightly when it 
 is not emphatic. Unemphatic, it becomes i in- 
 stead of 7. 
 
 i-de'a, not i'cle-a. 
 
 id-i-o-syn'cra-sy, not icl-i-os-m'cra-sy. 
 i'clol, not i'cll. 
 ig-no-ra'mus, or -ra'mus. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
87 
 
 il-lu'sive, not -ziv. 
 
 il-lus'trate, not il'lns-trate. 
 
 il-liis'trat-ed, not il'lus-trat-ed. 
 
 im'age-iy, or im'a-ger-y. 
 
 The latter is preferred by Walker, Smart, 
 Worcester, and others ; but usage is decidedly 
 in favor of the former. 
 
 imbecile — im'be-cil, im-bes'il, or im-be- 
 
 sel'. 
 
 The first mode given here of pronouncing this 
 word is the most correct, the second the most 
 unusual, and the third the most fashionable. 
 
 im-briie'. See accrue. 
 
 im-me'di-ate, not im-me'jet. 
 
 im'mi-nent. See ailment. 
 
 impart iali ty — im-par-sli e-^l'i-t e. 
 
 im-pec'ca-ble. 
 
 im-per'fect. See advertisement. 
 
 im'pi-otis-ly, not im-pi'-. 
 
 im-pla'ca-ble, not im-pMk'-. 
 
 im-por-time', not im-p6r'-. 
 
 im-pro-vi§e', not im'pro-Yi§e 
 
 Worcester says im-iyro-vez' , but this pronun- 
 ciation is rarely heard. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
88 
 
 in-au'gu-rate, not in-au'ger-ate. 
 in-ci'sive, not -ziv. 
 in-ci'sor. 
 
 incisure — in-sizh'ur. 
 in-clSm'en-cy, not -lin-. 
 in-clude', not -kind', 
 in-clu'sive, not -ziv. 
 iii-c62:'ni-to, not in-c5n'-. 
 in-com-men'su-ra-ble (-sliu-). 
 in-c5m'pa-ra-ble, not -kom-par'-. 
 incongruent — in-k5Dg'gru-ent. 
 incongruity — In-kon-gru'i-ty. 
 incon2:ruous — in-k5no^'o;rn.ous. 
 in-con-ven'ient. 
 Walker and Smart say m-hoii-ve'ne-ent. 
 
 in-crease', vei'h ; in'crease, noun. 
 
 For the noun the ultimate accent is becoming 
 antiquated. 
 
 incursion — in-kur'sliun, not -zLun. 
 in-de'cent. See ailment, 
 in-de-co'rotis. 
 
 This pronunciation is not only more so?«orous 
 than in-dec'o-7'ot(S, but it now has the balance of 
 authority in its favor. See decorous. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
89 
 
 indenture — in-dent'yur. 
 Indian. 
 
 This word is generally pronounced in'di-an^ 
 though the orthoepists, for the most part, would 
 have us say incVyan, 
 
 in'di-ca-to-ry, not in-dic'-. 
 indiscernible — in-diz-zern'i-ble. 
 in-dis'pu-ta-ble, 7iot in-dis-pu'ta-ble. 
 indocile — in-d5sll. 
 in'dus-tiy, not in-dtis'-. 
 inequitable — in-ek'we-ta-ble. 
 inertia — in-er'slie-a. 
 inexhaustible — in-eo;z-aust'i-ble. 
 in-Sx'o-ra-ble, not in-ex-6'-. 
 in-ex'pi-a-ble. 
 
 in-Sx'pli-ca-ble, not -ex-plik'-. 
 in-ex'tri-ca-ble. 
 in'fan-tile, or in 'fan -tile, 
 in'fan-tine, or in'fan-tine. 
 in-fec'und. 
 in'fi-del, not in'fi-dl. 
 Ingelow — in' j e-l6. 
 in-gen'iotis, or in-ge'ni-otis. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
90 
 
 in-ge-nu'i-ty, not -n(5b'-. 
 
 in-gen'u-otis. 
 
 ingratiate — in-gra'slie-at, not in-gra'shat. 
 
 in-li5s'pi-ta-ble, not in-lios-pit'a-ble. 
 
 iii-im'i-cal. 
 
 • • • 
 
 Smart says m-e-tni' cal. 
 
 initiate — in-isli'e-at. 
 in 'most, not in'mtist. 
 in-nate'. 
 
 This is the marking of nearly all the ortho6- 
 pists except Webster, who says m'liate. 
 
 in'no-cent, not -stint. See ailment, 
 innoxious — in-n5k'slms. 
 
 • « 
 
 inofficial — in -of -fish 'al, not -o-fisli'-. 
 
 in-5p-por-tiine', not in-5p'por-tiine. 
 
 in-qni'iy, not in'qui-ry. 
 
 insatiable — in-sa'slie-a-bl, not -sha-bL 
 
 in-sa-ti'e-ty. 
 
 in-scru'ta-ble. 
 
 • • • • 
 
 in'sects, not -seks. 
 in-sidl-otis, not -yu-tis. 
 insition — m-sisli'un, or -sizli'-. 
 in-stead', not -stid'. 
 
 See Key to Pi-onunciation, p. 6. 
 
91 
 
 in'step, not -stip. 
 in'stinct, noun; iii-stinct', 
 in-sti-tu'tion, not -tu'-. 
 iu'stru-ment, not -munt. 
 insurance — in-sliur'ans. 
 
 • • • 
 
 insure — in-shur'. 
 
 • • • 
 
 in'te-o-ral. 
 
 in'ter-est, verh, not in-ter-est'. 
 
 in'ter-est, noun, not in'trest. 
 
 in'ter-est-ed, not in-ter-est'ecl. 
 
 in'ter-est-ing, not in-ter-est 'ing. 
 
 In the dictionaries some stress on the third 
 syllable, in the verb and its derivatives, is indi- 
 cated by marking the e as distinct — est / and that 
 was formerly the prevalent pronunciation. But 
 the most careful speakers now generally make the 
 third syllable as obscure in the verb and partici- 
 ples as they do in the noun. 
 
 in'ter-im. 
 
 in-ter-l6c'u-tor, not in-ter-lo-cu'tor. 
 
 international — in-ter-nitsli'un-al. 
 
 • • • 
 
 in-ter'po-late. 
 in'ter-stice, or in-ter^stice. 
 
 The authorities here are about equally divided. 
 Smart accents the second syllable. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
92 
 
 in-tes'tine, not -tine. 
 
 in-tngiie', 7ioun and verb^ not in'tngue. 
 
 iu-tro-diice', not -dus'. See aptitude. 
 
 in-triide'. See accrue. 
 
 iii-tru'sion. 
 
 • • • ^ • 
 
 in-tni'sive, not -ziv. 
 
 in-tu'i-tive. See adduce. 
 
 inure — in-yur'. 
 
 in'va-lid. See ambero-ris. 
 
 inveigle — in-ve'gl, not -va'gl. 
 
 in\^en-to-iy, not in-ven'to-ry. 
 
 Iphigenia — if-i-je-ni'a. 
 
 i-r^s'ci-ble. 
 
 i'o-dide, or -dide. See cliloride. 
 
 i'o-dine, or -dine. 
 
 . 7 
 
 Iowa — i'o-wa. 
 iron — i'urn. 
 irony, adj. — i'urn-e. 
 irony, 7ioun — i'mn-e. 
 irrational — ir-r^sh'un-al. 
 ir-ref'ra-c:a-ble. 
 
 Tliere is authority for saying ir-re-fviig'a-hlf 
 which certainly is much easier of utterance. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
93 
 
 ir-re-fut'a-ble, ov ir-ref u-ta-ble. 
 
 Here, though the first marking is that of the 
 majority of the orthoepists, and though it has 
 the advantage of being the easier of utterance, 
 the second marking may possibly be considered 
 the more elegant. 
 
 ir-re-me'di-a-ble. 
 ir-rep'a-ra-ble, not ir-re-par'a-bl. 
 ir-res'pi-ra-ble. 
 
 ir-rev'o-ca-ble, not ir-re-v6'ka-bl. 
 isinglass — i'zing-glas. 
 isochronous — i-s5k'ro-nus. 
 i§'o-late, or is'o-late, not i'so-lat. 
 
 The first marking is Walker's, Worcester's, 
 and Smart's ; the second, Webster's. 
 
 i-s5m'er-i§m. 
 
 issue — isli'sliu. 
 
 istlimus — is'mus, or ist'mus. 
 
 Italian — i-tttryan, not i-. 
 
 i-t^l'ie, not i-. 
 
 i-tin'er-ant. 
 
 i'vo-iy, not iv'iy. 
 
 Ixion — iks-i'on. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
94 
 
 J. 
 
 This consonant has always the same sound, 
 and is never silent. 
 
 In words in which d precedes a letter having 
 or embodying the sound of y in an unaccented 
 syllable, the sound of ,/ is often substituted for 
 the combined sounds of d and y — as sdl'jer instead 
 of sold'yer, and onoj'ii-lat instead of mod'u-lat — 
 just as ch is substituted for the combined sounds 
 of t and y in question, nature, etc. It is doubtless 
 possible to preserve the pure sounds of d and y 
 where they appear in these connections, but it is 
 well-nigh certain that the most careful speakers 
 generally fail to do it. 
 
 Ja'cob, not ja'coj). 
 j^g-u-ar', not j^g'war, nor ja'gar. 
 jiU'ap, not J^rup (antiquated), 
 jan'ty, not jaun'ty. 
 J^n'u-a-ry, not jen'-. 
 J^2^-an-e§e', not -ese'. 
 j^S'mine, or j^s'mine. 
 jaundice — jan'dis. 
 jaunt — jant. 
 javelin — j^iv'lin. 
 ier-e-mi'ade. 
 Je-ru'sa-lem, not -za-. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
95 
 
 Jew — ju, or jii. 
 
 jewel — ju'el, not ju'l. 
 
 Jew'el-ler. 
 
 jo-cose'. 
 
 j5e'imd. 
 
 join. 
 
 Until toward the close of the last century the 
 diphthong oi was very generally pronounced like 
 long i, asjme instead of join, rile instead of roily 
 etc.; but now this pronunciation is confined to 
 persons of the most limited culture. 
 
 joist, not jist. 
 
 jostle — j5s'sl. 
 
 joust — jiist. 
 
 j6Vi-al, not jov'yal. 
 
 jowl — jol, not jowl. 
 
 Ju-da'ic. 
 
 judg'meut, not -miint. 
 
 jii'gu-lar, not jug'-. 
 
 JuVia, not \vlY-. 
 
 Ju'pi-ter, not jn'bi-. 
 
 ju-ris-c6n'sult. 
 
 ju'rist, not ju'-. 
 
 ju've-nile, not -nil (antiquated). 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
96 
 
 K. 
 
 This letter before all the vowels has one uni- 
 form sound. Before n in the same syllable it is 
 silent, as in kneel, knit, know, etc.; it is likewise 
 silent after c, as in back, crack, haddock, etc. 
 
 kau2:aroo — Mno-.o-a-rob '. 
 
 keelson — kerson, or kel'-. 
 
 ket'tle, not kit'tl. 
 
 kliau (Turk.) — kawn, or k^n. 
 
 kiln — kil, not kiln. 
 
 kind. 
 
 When a, i, or i is preceded in the same sylla- 
 ble by the sound of g or k, many speakers, espe- 
 cially in England and our Southern States, intro- 
 duce a slight sound of e, as in car, card, kind, 
 garden, guard, guide, girl, sky, etc. If not car- 
 ried too far, this can hardly be considered objec- 
 tionable, as it effectually corrects a certain gut- 
 tural utterance of these words that the best usage 
 is careful to avoid. 
 
 kirscliwasser (Ger.) — kersli'vas-ser. 
 kitcli'en, not kitcli'n. 
 knout — nowt. 
 
 knowledge — n5l'ej ; no'lej is veiy anti- 
 quated. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
97 
 
 L. 
 
 This liquid consonant always has the same 
 sound. In many words it is silent, as in balm, 
 calm, half, calf, almond, palmer, walk, couldy 
 should, etc. 
 
 . la'bel, not la'bl. 
 la'bor-er, not la'brur. 
 labyriutli — Mb'o-rintli. 
 M^li'iy-mose, not -moz. 
 Mc'o-ni§m, not \£iQO-. 
 Mm'ent-a-ble, 7iot la-meiit'a-bl. 
 Mn'daii (an as in haul). 
 Lano-e, G. — lansf'e. 
 lang syne — lang sin, not -zin. 
 language — Mng'gwaj. 
 lano-uicl — Mno;'o;wid. 
 languor — litng'gwor. 
 La-5c'o-5n. 
 la-pel', not Mp'el. 
 Itir'um. 
 la-iyn'ge-al. 
 la'tent, not Mt'-. 
 Ititb, or lath, not Mtb. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
98 
 
 L^t'in, not Mt'n. 
 Mt'tice, 7iot Mt'tus. 
 laud'a-num, oiot l5d'-. 
 
 • • • 7 
 
 laugli — laf, not Mf. 
 launcli — lauch, not launch, 
 laundress — lan'dres, not laun'=„ 
 
 • 7 •• 
 
 laundry — lan'dre, not laun'-. 
 laurel — lau'rel, or l5r'-. 
 
 • • • 7 
 
 la'va, or la'va. 
 leaped — lept, or lept. 
 learn'ed, adj. See blessed, 
 leeward — le'ward, or lu'ard. 
 
 • 7 • 
 
 le'gend, or leg'end. 
 
 leg'en-da-ry. 
 
 legislative — 1 e j 'is-la-tiv. 
 
 legislator — lej'is-la-tur, not -la'tor. 
 
 legislature — lej'is-lat-yur. 
 
 For an obvious reason these three words are 
 much mispronounced. There is small authority 
 for the penultimate accent which case of utter- 
 ance generally gives them, and none for the ante- 
 penultimate (le-gls'la-tive, etc.) which some affect. 
 
 Leipsic, in Saxony — lip'sik. 
 Leipsic, in tlie United States — lep'sik. 
 
 See Key to Pronuncintion, p. 6. 
 
99 
 
 leisure — le'zlmr. 
 
 This is the only way of pronouncing this word 
 that nowadays is admissible in this country. In 
 England, however, Itzh'tir is common, although 
 not sanctioned by any modern orthoepist. 
 
 lensrth, 11 ot lentil. 
 
 le'ni-ent, not leii'-. 
 
 l6n'i-tive, not le'ni-, 
 
 lep'er, not le'per. 
 
 Leroiix — le-rob'. 
 
 les'sor, or les-sor'. 
 
 le-thar'gic, not letli'ar% 
 
 Le'tlie, Le-tlie'an. 
 
 lettuce — let'tis. 
 
 lev-ee', a gathering of gueds. 
 
 levee — lev'e, a hanh along a river, 
 
 lev 'el, not lev'l. 
 
 le'ver, not lev'er. 
 
 Lever, Charles — le'ver, not lev^er. 
 
 lev^er-age, not le'ver-. 
 liaison (Fr.) — le-a'zawng'. 
 irbel, not li'bl. 
 lib'er-tine, not -tin. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
100 
 
 licentiate — li-sen'slie-at. 
 
 It will be observed that in this word the last 
 vowel, which is two removes from the accented 
 syllable, is left to take care of itself. This, it 
 may be seen, has been the usual practice in the 
 cases of all vowels similarly situated, especially 
 when they were in the penult. This vowel is 
 marked long (a) by Smart, and obscure («) by 
 Worcester. Smart says, then, that this a is like 
 a in /ate / Worcester, that it is like a in sedative. 
 Now, it is neither the one nor the other, but 
 something between the two, .which something it 
 is safe to leave every one to find out for himself; 
 and whether the speaker brings out the quality 
 of the vowel a little more or a little less than he 
 perhaps should, may be set down as one of the 
 least of sins against good usage. 
 
 lichen — li'ken, o?' licli'en. 
 
 The few English orthoq^ists who have given 
 the pronunciation of this word are divided in 
 relation to it ; but as a Greek and Latin word, it 
 is pronounced ll'/coi / the French keep the ch 
 hard, pronouncing it It ken ; and the pronuncia- 
 tion of 111 ken appears to be supported by the best 
 usage among American botanists. — VTorcester, 
 
 lic'or-ice, not -er-isL. 
 lien — le'en, or li'en. 
 
 In the early editions of Webster's dictionary 
 this word was marked Itn. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
ioi 
 
 > ' > , 
 
 lieutenant — lii-ten'ant, Icf-, or lev-. 
 
 It is not easy to see why our orthoepists 
 should differ so widely in their modes of pro- 
 nouncing the first syllable of this word, since 
 none of them appear to have made any effort to 
 imitate its pronunciation in French. Preference 
 is given here to the first marking — which is 
 Webster's — because it comes nearest to what the 
 orthograjjhy demands. 
 
 lilac, not li'l5lv, 7ior la'lok. 
 
 lin'sey-wool'sey, oiot -ze. 
 
 listen — lis'n. 
 
 Ii-tli5g'i'a-plier, li-tli5g'ra-pliy. 
 
 litigious — li-tij 'tis. 
 
 livelono; — Iiv'l5n2:, 7iot livlSno;. 
 
 liv'er-y, not liv'-. 
 
 loath, adj. — loth, not loth, nor l5th. 
 
 loathe, verh — lotii. 
 
 loathsome — lotli'sum. 
 
 lo-ca'tion, not lo-. 
 
 logomachy — lo-g5m'a-ke. 
 
 l5ng '-lived, not -11 vd. 
 
 loth, not l5th. 
 
 louis d'or (Fr.) — lo'e dor, not dor. 
 
 low, verh — lo. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
1 0^ 
 
 lu'cid, not In'-. 
 
 lu'ci-fer, not lii'-. 
 
 lu'cre, not lii'-. 
 
 Lu'cy, not In'-. 
 
 lu'di-crous, not lii'-. 
 
 luke'warm, not luk'-. 
 
 lute, Qiot lilt. 
 
 Lu'ther-an, oiot In'-. 
 
 luxuriance — liigz-yn'ri-ans. See eXc 
 
 luxuriant — lu2:z-yii'ri-ant. 
 
 luxurious — Itigz-yu'ri-tis. 
 
 luxury — luk'sliu-re. 
 
 ly-ce'um, not li'ce-uiu. 
 
 Lyonnaise (Fr.) — le'un'naz'. 
 
 M. 
 
 This letter has always one sound, except in ac- 
 cowpt^ accomptant^ and comptroller^ pronounced 
 and usually written account, accountant^ and con- 
 troller. It is silent when it precedes n in the same 
 syllabic, as in mnemonics. 
 
 Macliiavelian — mttk-e-a-veryan. 
 m^c'ro-c5§m, or ma'cro-c5§ni. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
103 
 
 mM'am. 
 
 Not unfreqnently good taste is offended by 
 the retention of the French word rtiadaine in 
 translations. This is especially true of transla- 
 tions for the stage. Few things are more un- 
 pleasant to a cultured ear than the unnecessary 
 mixing of languages. 
 
 luadame (Fr.) — ina'dam'. 
 Madeira — ma-de'ra, or -da'-. 
 
 mademoiselle (Fr.) — mMm'wa'zer, not 
 
 m^d-iim-wii-zelj nor m^m-zel', wliicli 
 
 is exceedingly vulgar. 
 
 In this word an EnHishman encounters his 
 greatest difficulty in the proper utterance of the 
 last syllable, to which the Frenchman gives a 
 very clear dental utterance, while the Englishman 
 is wont to let the sound come from his throat. 
 
 ma foi (Fr.) — ma fwa. 
 ma'gi, not m^lg'i. 
 mamesia — mao:-ne'zlie-a. 
 mag-nif'i-ceut, not -simt. See ailment, 
 mag-no'li-a, not -norya. 
 main'ten-ance, not man-tan'ans. 
 mal k propos (Fr.) — jnal a pr6'])6'. 
 ma-la 'ri- a, not ma-lit'-. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
104 
 
 ' m^l-e-fiic'tor. 
 mall, a ])nljliG tvalh — mill, 
 ra^m'mil-la-ry, not mam-mira-re. 
 m^n-da-rin', 7iot m^n'da-rin. 
 ma'neg, not manz. 
 mango — m^ng'go. 
 ma-ni'a-cal. 
 
 • • • 
 
 manoeuvre — ma-nu'ver, not ma-nu'-. 
 m^u^or, not ma'nor. 
 m^n'or-liouse, not ma'nor-. 
 m^n's^rd' roof, 
 mansuetiide — m^n'swe-tiid. 
 mantua-maker — m^n'tu-mak'er. 
 ma-r^§'mus, Qiot -r^s'-. 
 marchande de modes (Fr.) — mar'- 
 sliangd' de mod'. 
 
 The letter o in French generally has the sound 
 of in son, icon, done, or of o in or, nor, for, ex- 
 cept when under the circumflex accent (o). Hence 
 we should say, for example, Mf a la mud, not mod. 
 
 marcliioness — ^mar'shun-es. 
 m^r'i-gold, not ma're-. 
 m^r'i-tal, not mar'-. 
 
 ►■ ■ ■ — — , 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
105 
 
 m^r'i-time. 
 mar'ket, not -kit. 
 mar'vel, not miirVl. 
 m^s'cu-line, not -lin. 
 mask, not m^sk. 
 massacre — inas'sa-kor. 
 mas'ter, not m^s'-. 
 m^t'in, not ma'tin. 
 ma'trix, not m^t'-. 
 ma'tron, not m^t'-. 
 m^t'ron-al, or ma'tron-al. 
 ma'tron-ly, not m^t'-. 
 m^t'tress, 7iot m^t-tr^ss'. 
 maii-so-le'um. 
 
 • • • • 
 
 mauvais gout (Fr.) — mo'va' gob. 
 
 mauvaise honte (Fr.) — mo'va' zaungt, 
 
 may'or-al-ty. 
 
 mayonnaise (Fr.) — ma'yon'az'. 
 
 measure — mezli'ur, 7iot mazh'-. 
 
 mechanist — mek'an-ist. 
 
 me-dic'i-nal. 
 
 medicine — med'e-sin, not med'sn. 
 
 mediocre — ^me 'de-o-ker. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
ion 
 
 m eerschaiim ( G er. ) — i nfir slio wm. 
 
 The an has the sound of ov:) in o?r/, and there 
 is little if any difference in the quantity of the 
 syllables, as is generally the case with compound 
 words. 
 
 Meissonier — ma'son'ya'. 
 meliorate — meryor-at. 
 mero-clriim'a, or -dra-ma. 
 
 The second marking is supported by abundant 
 authority, but few, if any, seem to heed it. 
 
 Mel-p5m'e-ne. 
 
 memoir — mem'wor, or me'mwor. 
 
 mem'o-iy, not mem'iy. 
 
 menagerie (Fr.) — ma'nazli 'e-re'. 
 
 menageiy — ^me-n^zli'e-re. 
 men-in-gi'tis, not me-nin'gi-tis. 
 
 mer 'can -tile, not -til, nor -tel. 
 
 The second, however, is sanctioned by Smart. 
 See advertisement. 
 
 mesmerism — mes'mer-izm, or mez'-. 
 
 The dictionaries tell ns to sound the first .s of 
 this word and of its derivatives like z, which is 
 contrary to the prevailing custom, etymologically 
 incorrect, and not euphonious. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
107 
 
 messieurs — mas'yur'. 
 
 The English orthoepists have marked this 
 word in no less than ten different ways, agreeing 
 in only one thing — that the final s should be 
 sounded. Now, this s is absolutely silent ; so is 
 one of the other eses. The first syllable is per- 
 fectly represented by iiids, and the second syl- 
 lable is veivj nearly represented by yu]'. If, in 
 j^ronouncing this syllable, tlie speaker imagines 
 a long e between the y and the t^, and then, hav- 
 ing prepared the organs of speech to sound it, 
 goes directly to the '0.^ he will perhaps get the 
 sound of the syllable somewhat more perfectly. 
 The sound of the r is very short and obscure. 
 See monsieur. 
 
 met-a-mor'pliose, not -plioze. 
 
 me-te-5r'o-lite. 
 
 met-ro-p5l 'i-taii. 
 
 mi-^§'mti. 
 
 mi'cro-scope, not mic'ro-. 
 
 mi-cro-sc5p'ic, not -scop'ic. 
 
 mid'wife-iy, or inicV-wife-ry. 
 
 Milan. 
 
 We Anglicize the orthography of this proper 
 name : why should we not do likewise with the 
 orthoepy? Bryce, Earnshaw, and Thomas say 
 MU'an, while Wright says Mi-ldn'. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
108 
 
 milch, adj.^ not milks. 
 
 millionaire — mil-yuu-ar'. 
 
 min-er-^ro-gy, not -^ro-g}^ 
 
 Millet, E.— mel'la'. 
 
 miniature — min'i-at-yur. 
 
 Min'o-taur. 
 
 mi'ntis, not min'us. 
 
 mi-niite', or mi-niite^, adj, 
 
 minute, noun — min'it. 
 
 mir'a-cle, not mer'-. 
 
 mi-r^c'u-loiis, not mi-. 
 
 mirage (Fi\) — me'razli'. 
 
 mis'an-thrope, not miz'-. 
 
 miscliievous — mis'clie-viis, not mis-che'-. 
 
 mis'cliie v-ous-ness. 
 
 mis-c5n'strue, not mis-con-strue'. 
 
 " Do not, great sir, misconstrue bis intent." 
 
 — Dryden. 
 
 misfortune — mis-fort 'yun. 
 misogyny — me-s5j'e-ne. 
 mistletoe — miz'zl-to. 
 mit'ten, not mit'n. 
 mnemonics — nc-m5n 'iks. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
109 
 mobile — mo-bel', or mo'bil. 
 
 The first is the pronunciation of Walker and 
 Worcester, and is always heard in the name 
 Mobile ; the second, that of Webster. Smart 
 says mob'il. 
 
 m5ck, not mauk. See accost. 
 m5d'el, not m5d'l. 
 m5d'est, not -ist, nor -iist. 
 moisten — mois'n, not -ten. 
 mo-lec'u-lar. 
 m5re-cide. 
 Moliere — ^mol'yar'. 
 M5n'a-c6, not Mo-nii'co. 
 
 . 7 • 
 
 m5n'ad, or mo'nad ; mo-nM'ic. 
 m5n'as-ter-y, not -te-ry. 
 monc^rel — miin sr'sirel. 
 m5n-o-c5t-y-le'dou. 
 mo-n5g'a-my. 
 m5n'o-o:r^m, not mo'no-. 
 m5n'o-gr^pli, 7iot mo'no-. 
 m5n'o-l52:ue, 7iot mo'no-loi]^. 
 m5n-o-ma'ni-ci. 
 
 • • 
 
 m5n-o-ma'ni-^c. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
110 
 
 in5n-o-syl-litb'ic. 
 monsieur (Fr.) — mtis'yur'. 
 
 This marking perfectly represents the pro- 
 nunciation of the first syllable of this word, the 
 o being like the o in son. The second syllable is 
 like the second syllable of the plural. The r in 
 both cases is really a silent letter, but with its 
 aid the pronunciation of the syllable is better 
 represented to the English eye than it could be 
 without it. It is marked obscure in order that it 
 may be merely ?iit and not dwelt upon. Care 
 should be taken to give the syllables the same 
 quantity. See messieurs. 
 
 morale (Fr.) — mo'riir. 
 
 morceau ; j)^'j morceanx (Fr.) — mor'so'. 
 
 m5r'i-bund, not mo'ri-. 
 
 Morplieiis — mor'fiis, or mor'fo-tis. 
 
 morpliine — mor'fiD, not mor-feu'. 
 
 mor'sel, not mor'sl. 
 
 mor'tal, not mor'tl. 
 
 Mosentlial, J. — mo'zen-tal. 
 
 M5§'lem, not M5s'-. 
 
 motion-less, not -liis. See ailment. 
 
 mountain — moun'tin, not -ting, nor -tn. 
 
 moimtainous — moun'tin-iis. 
 
 mtil-ti-pli-ca'tion, not -pi-. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
Ill 
 
 miirti-tdde, not -tiid. See adduce. 
 
 mu-ni^'i-pal, not mu-ni-cip'al. 
 
 miir'der-er, not miir'drer. 
 
 mus-co-va'do. 
 
 mu-se'am, not mu'se-um. 
 
 111 iisli 'room, not -re Jon. 
 
 miis-tiiglie', or -tasli'. 
 
 my — mi, or mi, never me. 
 
 When, from being used in contradistinction 
 to another personal pronoun, ray is emphatic, the 
 y has its full, open, long-* sound. Thus we would 
 say, " Is this my ink or yours ? " But when there 
 is no such emphasis — and there is but rarely — the 
 y has the sound of obscure ^, as in mi-nute' and 
 miraculous, which is very nearly the sound of y 
 in many, only, etc. " My \mi\ ink is as bad as 
 my \mi\ pen.'''' These rules, however, are and 
 should be departed from in certain cases where 
 we would express respect or emotion. " My \^)n%\ 
 brother shall know of this." " Sir, this lady is 
 my \jyii\ wife." "Ay, madam, she was my \^)n~t\ 
 motlier ! " Say mi in these sentences, and they 
 become commonplace ; you take all the soul out 
 of them. 
 
 myself — mi-self'. 
 
 myrmidou — miir'me-don, not mir'-. 
 
 mythology — me-tlibl'o-je, not mi-tli5r-. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
112 
 
 N. 
 
 This letter has two sounds : one simple, as in 
 man, ten, not y' the other compound, as in thank, 
 banquet, anxious, pronounced thangk, hang'quet, 
 angk'shus. The sound of ??</ is really a distinct 
 and simple alphabetical element, unlike that of 
 either constituent of the digraph. When final 
 after I or m, n is silent, as in kiln, condemn, 
 solemn, hymn, limn, autumn, etc. 
 
 naiad — na'yad. 
 
 naive (Fr.) — na'ev^ 
 
 naivete (Fr.) — na'ev'ta'. 
 
 naively — na-ev'le. 
 
 nape, not nitp. 
 
 n^s'cent, not na'sent. 
 
 national — niisli'un-al, not na'sliun-al. 
 
 The first marking is that of all the orthoepists 
 except Webster, and his mode of pronouncing 
 the word is not even permitted in the new edi- 
 tions of his dictionary. 
 
 nationality — n^isli-im-^re-te. 
 
 nature — nat'yur. 
 
 nausea — naw'slie-a, not naw'se-a. 
 
 nauseous — naw'slius, not naw'se-tis. 
 
 na-vic'u-lar. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
113 
 
 near 'est, not -ist. 
 
 nec-ro-l5g'ic. 
 
 ne-cr5ro-gy. 
 
 nSc'tar-ine, not -ine, nor -en. 
 
 ne'er — nar, not ner. 
 
 neglige (Fr.) — na'gle'zlia'. 
 
 neither — ne'tlier, or ni'tiier. 
 
 There is very little dictionary authority for 
 saying m'ther, but of late years this mode of pro- 
 nouncing the word seems to be preferred by some 
 of our most careful speakers. See either. 
 
 Nem'e-sis. 
 
 nepliew — nev'yu, or nef yu. 
 
 " This word is uniformly pronounced ntv'vu 
 by the English orthoepists ; but in the United 
 States it is often pronounced nef'fii. Smart re- 
 marks that ''p with A, in almost all cases, is pro- 
 nounced^/*. In Stephen, this sound is vocalized, 
 that is, converted into v ; and likewise in nephew, 
 almost the only word in which the combination 
 occurs that is not immediately referable to a 
 Greek oris^in.' " — ^Yorcester. 
 
 The latest editions of Webster give nef'yn, 
 remarking that the English dictionaries uniformly 
 mark it nev'yii. The latter, in our estimation, is 
 the most euphonious pronunciation of the word. 
 
 nep'o-ti§ra. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
114 
 
 nestle — nes'l. 
 
 netii'er-most. 
 
 neii-riirgi-a. 
 
 neu'ter, iieu'tral, not nu'-. 
 
 new — nil, not nu. 
 
 New Orleans — nii or-lenz'. 
 
 This, in the opinion of the writer, is the better 
 mode of pronouncing the name of the American 
 city. Besides harmonizing with the spirit of the 
 English language, it is easier of utterance and 
 more euphonious than or'le-anz, which is a mon- 
 grel pronunciation at the best. 
 
 news — niiz, not niiz. 
 
 newspaper — niiz'pa-per, 7iot nuz'-. 
 
 niaiserie (Fr.) — ne-a'ze-re'. 
 
 ni'ce-ty, not nis'te. 
 
 niche, not nisli. 
 
 nick'el, not nickl. 
 
 nic'o-tine, not -ten. 
 
 noblesse oblige (Fr.) — no'bles' o'blezh'. 
 
 n5m'ad, not no'm^d. 
 
 • 7 
 
 no-mM'ic. 
 
 no'men-clat-ure, or no-men-clat'ure. 
 
 n5m'i-na-tive, not n5m'na-tive. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
115 
 
 none — nun, not noii. 
 
 nook, or nook. 
 
 n5t'a-l)le, industrious^ careful, hvsiJhig, 
 
 not'a-ble, remarlcable, memorahle. 
 
 notliing — nuth'ing, not n5tli'-. 
 
 Notre Dame (Fr.) — no'tre cl^m. 
 
 n5v'el, not n5v'l. 
 
 n5v'el-ty, not n5v'l-ty. 
 
 novitiate — no-visli'e-at. 
 
 noxious — nok'shus. 
 
 nu'di-tv, not nu'-. 
 
 nuisance — nii'sans. See adduce. 
 
 nuncio — nim'sLe-o. 
 
 nuptial — niip'slial, not -chal. 
 
 nu'tri-ment, not nu'tri-munt. 
 
 o. 
 
 This vowel has seven sounds, as in note^ not 
 wn, 77iove, wolf, 7}0)\ and )najor. 
 
 6'a-sis ; ^7/., 6'a-se§. 
 Webster permits o-Ci'sis. 
 
 oath — otli ; ^>/., 6atli§. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
 o 
 
IIG 
 
 5b'(lu-rate, or ob-dii'rate. 
 obeisance — o-lxi'sance, oi' o-be'-. 
 
 The weight of authority is in favor of the 
 first marking ; usage — in this country at least — 
 would seem to favor the second. Walker em- 
 phatically preferred the first, for the reason that 
 ei when under the accent is most frequently pro- 
 nounced like long a, and the corresponding ey 
 always, except in key. 
 
 ob'e-lisk, not 6'be-. 
 
 o-bese', not -bez'. 
 
 o'bit, or 5b'it. 
 
 obligatory. See Siip[)lcnient. 
 
 oblige — o-blij'. 
 
 " When Lord Chesterfield wrote his Letters 
 to his son, the word oblige was, by many polite 
 speakers, pronounced as if written obleege — as if 
 to give a hint of their knowledge of the French 
 language; nay, Pope has rhymed it to this sound: 
 
 'Dreading even fools, by flatterers besieged, 
 And so obliging that he ne'er oHiged."^ 
 
 But it was so far from having generally obtained, 
 that Lord Chesterfield strictly enjoins his son to 
 avoid this pronunciation as affected. In a few 
 years, however, it became so general that none 
 but the lowest vulgar ever pronounced it in the 
 English manner ; but upon the publication of 
 this nobleman's Letters, which was about twenty 
 years after he wrote them, his authority had so 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
117 
 
 much influence with tlie polite worki as to bid 
 fair for restoring^ the i in this word to its oriorinal 
 rights ; and we not unfrequently hear it now 
 pronounced with the broad English i in those 
 circles where, a few years ago, it would have 
 been an infallible mark of vulgarity." — Walker. 
 " Smart says : ' The word oblige, which was 
 formerly classed with marine, etc., is now pro- 
 nounced regularly.' John Kemble is said to 
 have corrected the Prince of Wales (George IV) 
 for adhering to the former pronunciation, by 
 saying, ' It will become your royal mouth better 
 to say oblige.'' " — Worcester. 
 
 ob-lique', or ob-liqiie'. 
 obnoxious — ob-n5k'slius. 
 9b-scen'i-ty, not ob-sce'ni-ty. 
 6b'se-quie§, not ob-se'qiiie§, 
 5b'so-lete, not 5b-so-lete'. 
 ob-triide', not -tnicle'. See accrue, 
 ob-tiise', not -tnse'. 
 
 • 7 •• 
 
 ob-tru'sive, not -ziv. 
 5b'verse, noun. 
 
 ob-verse', adj. , 
 
 oc-ca'§ion, not 6-ca'§ion. 
 oc-ciilt' not 5c'cult. 
 
 • 7 • 
 
 oceanic — 6-slie-^n'ic. 
 
 See Key to Prommciation, p. 6. 
 
118 
 oc-ta'vo, or oc-ta'v6. 
 
 There is no dictionary authority for the sec- 
 ond marking, and yet that is the pronunciation 
 that seems to be j^referred by our most careful 
 speakers — for the reason, doubtless, that they 
 think it the more euphonious. 
 
 oc-t5g'e-na-ry. 
 
 5c'tii-ple, not oc-tii'ple. 
 
 o-cle'on. 
 
 o'cli-otis. 
 
 The best usage now makes this a word of 
 three syllables. 
 
 5f' fice, not au'fiis. 
 
 official — of-fisli'al, not o-fisli'al. 
 
 officious — of-fisli'us, not o-fish'us. 
 
 5ft en — 5f' n, not 5f'teD. 
 
 6'o;le, not 5o;'le. 
 
 olden — old'n, not old'en. 
 
 o-le-o-mar'ga-rine, not -ja-. 
 
 The letter q is ahvays hard before a, except 
 in gaol, now disused in this country. 
 
 O'lib'a-ntim. 
 
 ombre (Fr.)-— awng'br, not om'br. 
 
 5m'i-nous, not 6'mi-nous. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
119 
 
 omniscience — om-nisli'ens. 
 
 5n'er-ous, not o'ner-ous. 
 
 only, not un'ly. 
 
 o'nyx, not 5n'yx. 
 
 opal, not o'p^l. 
 
 ophthalmy — 5f'tlial-my, or 5p'tlial-my, 
 
 not oph-tli^rmy. 
 
 opinion — o-pin'yun. 
 
 Some of the orthoepists caution us not to let 
 unaccented o in such words as opinion^ ohserve^ 
 oppose^ command, conceal, condition, contain, 
 content, 2')0ssess, police, etc., degenerate into short 
 or obscure u. While it is well to heed their ad- 
 vice, it is also well to remember that to make 
 these o's too long is, perhaps, more objectionable 
 than to make them too short. How unpleasant, 
 for example, to hear pedantic ignorance say p)d- 
 lice and po-sess / An endeavor to avoid sound- 
 ing the o like short or obscure ic should be made 
 with nice discrimination, as bv makino; it too 
 long one's utterance becomes pedantic, which of 
 all elocutionary faults is the worst. 
 
 5p-o-derdoc, or o-po-clel'doc, 7iot -dil'- 
 
 op-p6'nent, not op'po-nent. 
 
 The latter, though often heard from tolerably 
 correct speakers, is unauthorized. 
 
 5p-por-tune', 7iot 5p'por-tune. 
 
 Ste Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
120 
 
 orange — or euj, not 5r'mj. 
 
 o-r^no-'-ou-tiiuo:'. 
 
 or'^Los-tra, or or-elies'trii. 
 
 Among the ortboepists who accent the second 
 syUable of this word are Walker and Smart ; 
 but that pronunciation is rarely used by careful 
 speakers. 
 
 6r'€lios-tra], or or-elies'tral. 
 6r'de-al, not or-de'al. 
 
 The latter is not even permitted by any of 
 the orthoepists. 
 
 6r'di-na-ry, not 6rd'na-ry. 
 orgies — or'jiz, not -jez. 
 or'i-fice, not 6'ri-. 
 oriflamme — or'i-iliim, not 6'ri-. 
 o-rig'i-nal, not -o-nal. 
 Orion — o-ri'un. 
 
 • 
 
 orison — br'e-zun. 
 
 or'nate, not or-nate'. 
 
 6'ro-tund, not 5r'o-. 
 
 The ultimate accentuation, o-ro-ttind', is be- 
 coming antiquated. 
 
 Or])liean — or-fe'an, or 6r'fo-an. 
 
 L . . 7 • 
 
 Bee Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
121 
 
 Orplieus — or'fiis, or or'fe-iis. 
 
 The first is the classic, the second the popular 
 pronunciation. 
 
 6r'tlio-e-pist, or or-tli6'e-pist. 
 or'tho-e-py, or or-tho'e-py. 
 
 One may say or-tho'e-jv/ on the authority of 
 Wright, Clarke, and Knowles, and of Fulton and 
 Knight ; and this is the pronunciation the writer 
 would recommend, on account of its being so 
 much the easier of utterance, if he had the cour- 
 age to do so in the face of such weighty authori- 
 ties as Walker, Worcester, Webster, and Smart. 
 
 ostler — 5s'ler. 
 otiiim — o'sliG-um. 
 outre (Fr.) — o'tra^ 
 6-ver-se'er, or -seer'. 
 oVert, not o-vert'. 
 
 .7 • 
 
 5x'ide. 
 
 6'yer, not oi'er. 
 
 P. 
 
 This letter has but one sound. It is silent 
 when initial before n, s, or t, as in 2^^^€umatics, 
 psalm, 2^t(0'7nif/a?i. It is also silent or very in- 
 distinct when between m and t in the same syl- 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
122 
 
 Jable, as in tempt, exemi^t, etc.; but when pre- 
 ceded by m in the same syllable and followed by 
 t or k in the next syllable, it is more properly 
 sounded, as in temptation, e?cemption, sumptuous^ 
 bumjykin, piimpkin, etc. In raspberry, receipt, 
 semptress, and corps it is also mute. 
 
 pa-cif-i-ca'tion, or ptlc-i-fi-ca'tiou. 
 
 pa-cif'i-ca-tor, or p^g-i-fi-ca'tor. 
 
 The first marking is Webster's and Smart's ; 
 the second. Walker's and Worcester's. 
 
 pageant — p^j'ent. 
 Pa'jent is growing obsolete. 
 
 pageantry — pitj 'ent-re. 
 pill 'ace, not p^l'as. 
 
 The latter smacks of pedantry. 
 
 pa-la' ver, not pa-lav 'er. 
 
 P^res-tine, not -ten. 
 
 pal'frey, or p^Vfrey (Smart). 
 
 palm — pam, not piim. 
 
 panegyric — piln-e-jirik. 
 
 Smart, Walker, Sheridan, and others pt-o. 
 nounce this word pan-e-jer'ik. AVorcester re- 
 marks : "Though Smart pronounces squirrel and 
 panec/yi'ic, squer'rel and pxhi-e-jtr'ik, yet he says, 
 * The irregular sound of i and y in squirrel and 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation v 6. 
 
123 
 
 panegyric we may hope in time to hear re- 
 claimed ; a correspondent reformation having 
 taken place in spirit and miracle, which were 
 once pronounced sptr'it and nttr'a-cle.'' " 
 
 pilu'el, not piki'l. 
 
 panorama— pan-o-ra 'mi, or -rii'ma. 
 
 Pitn-tlie'on, or Piin'tlie-on. 
 
 " Hail, learning's Pantheon ! Ilail, the sacred ark 
 Where all the world of science does embark." 
 
 — Cowley. 
 
 " Mark how the dread Pantheon stands, 
 Amid the toys of modern hands, 
 How simply, how severely great ! " 
 
 — Akenside. 
 
 p^n'to-mime, not -mine, 
 papier mache (Fr.) — pap'ya' ma'slia'. 
 pa-r^b'o-la, not p^r-a-bo'la. 
 par'cel, not -siil. 
 parenchyma — pa-ren'ke-ma. 
 ptlr-e-g6r'ic, not -gaur'ic, 
 par'ent. 
 p4r'ent-age. 
 Smart says pa' rent-age. 
 
 par-lie li-on. 
 Pa'ri-ah,.?Z(9^ pa'-. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
124 
 
 pa-ri'e-tal. 
 
 Parisian — pa-ilzli'an, not pa-nz'e-an. 
 
 Par-me-§^n'. 
 
 pitr'ol (legal word). 
 
 pa-role' (military word). 
 
 partiality — par-slie-^l'e-ty, not par-slijir-. 
 
 par'ti-ci-ple, not part'si-pl. 
 
 part'ner, not pilrd'-. 
 
 par'tridge, not p^t'-. 
 
 p^t'ent, or pa'-. 
 
 p^t-en-tee', or pa-ten-. 
 
 According to nearly all the authorities, the a 
 of these two words should have its short sound. 
 
 patli, not p^th. 
 
 pa'tli5s, 7iot patli'os. 
 
 p^t'ri-mo-ny, not pa'tri-. 
 
 pa'tri-ot, not })iit'ri-. 
 
 pa'tri-ot-i§ni. 
 
 pa'tron, not p^lt'-. 
 
 p^t'ron-age. 
 
 pd,t'ron-al. 
 
 Smart says pd'tron-al^ but the balance of 
 authority is decidedly in favor of making the a 
 short. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
125 
 
 pa'tron-ess, not pdt'ron-. 
 p^t'ron-ize. 
 peculiar — pe-kiil 'y ar. 
 Smart says pe-hule-ar. 
 
 peculiarity — pe-kiil-y^r'i-ty. 
 
 There is abundant authority for saying^>e-A'w^ 
 ye-iXr'c-ty. 
 
 pecuniary — pe-kiin'ya-re. 
 
 ^^eclagogue — pecVa-g5g, not -gog. 
 
 pe'clal, adj.; pedal, noun. 
 
 pecVes-tal, not pe-des'-. 
 
 Peo-'a-stis, not Pe-i>:^s'us. 
 
 pel-lu'cid, not -In'-. 
 
 pe-na'te§ (Lat.). 
 
 pen'cil, not pen'sl. 
 
 Pe-nel'o-pe. 
 
 penitentiary — pen-i-tSn'sha-ry. 
 
 pe'ntilt, or pe-ntilt'. 
 
 pe-nii'ri-oiis, not -nn'-. See adduce. 
 
 pe'o-ny, not pi'ny. 
 
 peremptory. See Supplement. 
 
 Walker, Perry, and Jameson permitted pc- 
 reni'to-ry. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
126 
 
 per'fect, adj. See advertisemente 
 per'fect, or per-fecl/, verh. 
 
 The latter pronunciation is probably the more 
 common, being in accordance with the general 
 rule of change of accent in a word used both as a 
 noun or adjective and a verb, as con'cluct^ con- 
 duct' ; but the weight of authority is in favor of 
 the former. 
 
 pcr'fiime, or per-fiime', noun. 
 
 The ultimate accentuation of this noun, al- 
 though there is good authority for it, is little 
 used in this country by careful speakers. 
 
 per-fiime', verh. 
 per'il, not -til. 
 pe-ri-5dlc, not per-i-. 
 per'mit, or per-mit', noun, 
 Persia — per'she-a, not -zhe-. 
 Persian — per'slian, not -zlian. 
 per-sist', not -zist'. 
 per-spi-ra'tion, 7iot pres-pi-. 
 per-STia'sive, not -ziv. 
 pe-ru§e'. See accrue, 
 pestle — pes'l. 
 Petrucliio — pe-tru'ke-6. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
127 
 
 pet'al, or pe'tal. 
 
 phaeton — fa'e-ton, not fa'toii, nor fe'ton. 
 
 pb^ranx, or pha'Mnx. 
 
 "The pronunciation phdl'anx is the more 
 general ; but phCillanx is the more analogical." 
 — Walker. 
 
 Is Walker correct in saying that it is more 
 analogical to make the a long ? Plia^ followed 
 by a consonant, and under an accent — primary or 
 secondary — is almost always, if not always, short. 
 This marking is supported by Smart and by 
 Wright, and by Avell-nigh universal usage. 
 
 pharmaceutic — far-ma-su'tik, not -ku'-. 
 
 phaiTQacopoeia — far-ma-ko-pe'ya. 
 
 phil-an-thi'5p'ic, not phi-Ian-. 
 
 phil-o-h')g'ic. 
 
 phil-o-§5ph'ic, or -s5ph'-. 
 
 ph5n'ics, not pho'nics. 
 
 ph5s'pho-riis. 
 
 phren-o-l5g'ic. 
 
 phy§-i-5g'no-my, not -5n'o-my. 
 
 "There is a prevailing mispronunciation of 
 this word, by leaving out the g, as if the word 
 were French. If this arises from ignorance of 
 the common rules of spelling, it may be observed 
 that g is always pronounced before n w^hen it is 
 
 , - 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, \). 6. 
 
128 
 
 not in the same syllable ; as, slfj-nify^ inclig-nity, 
 etc. ; but if affectation be the cause of this error, 
 Dr. Young's ' Love of Fame ' will be the best 
 cure for it." — Walker. 
 
 pianoforte (It.) — pe-a'no-for'ta. 
 
 pi-ii'iiist. 
 
 picture — pikt'yur. 
 
 piebald — pi 'bald. 
 
 pied, adj. — ^pid. 
 
 " Meadows trim with daisies pied, 
 Shallow brooks, and rivers wide." 
 
 — JSIllton. 
 pi'et-i§m. 
 
 pigeon — pidj'on, not -in. 
 
 pin'cers, not pin'clierz. 
 
 pincli'beck, not -back. 
 
 pi'o-ny, or pe'o-ny, not pi'ne. 
 
 piquant — pik ' ant. 
 
 pig'mire, or pis'niire. 
 
 pla'ca-ble, not pMk'a-ble. 
 
 pla'card. 
 
 The dictionaries tell us to pronounce this 
 word, both the noun and the verb, 2)]a-kard'. 
 Why ? Because it comes to us from the French ? 
 A very poor reason, since in French it is \\vo- 
 nounced^J/(i^'^'rtr', which is as unlike ^^/^/-Mn/' as 
 
 Sco Key to Prouunciation, p. 6. 
 
129 
 
 it is unlike the pronunciation that harmonizes 
 with the language into which it is adopted, 
 namely, pla'hdrd. In language, as in everything 
 else, that which is neither " fish, flesh, nor fowl " 
 is distasteful. Mongrel pronunciations ai-e as 
 unpleasant to the ear as orthographical mon- 
 strosities are to the eye. 
 
 plagiary — pla'je-re, or pla'je-a-re. 
 
 That pronunciation which makes the smaller 
 number of syllables of such words as plafjiary^ 
 genial, cordial, bestial, ameliorate, etc., is the 
 easier of utterance, and for that reason is gen- 
 erally — and the writer thinks;^ justly — considered 
 the more desirable. 
 
 plait — plat, not plet. 
 
 plateau (Fr.) — pla'to'. 
 
 pMt'i-na, or pla-fi'na. 
 
 pMt'i-ntim, or pla-ti'num. 
 
 plebeian — ple-be'yan, not ple'be-au. 
 
 plebeianism — ple-be'yan-izm. 
 
 Pleiades — ple'ya-dez. 
 
 Pleiads — pie 'y adz. 
 
 pleu'a-ry, or ple'na-ry. 
 
 " Some very respectable speakers make the 
 vowel e in the first syllable of this word long ; 
 but analogy and the best usage seem to shorten 
 the e, as they do the a in granary. Nor do I see 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
130 
 
 any reason that the e should not be short in this 
 word as well as in plenitude!''' — ^Valker. 
 
 We have Walker, Worcester, and seven other 
 orthoepists for the first marking ; Smart, Web- 
 ster, and three others for the second. 
 
 pleuipotentiaiy — plcn-i-po-teii'slii-a-ro. 
 
 pletli'o-ra. 
 
 ple-tli5r'ic, or pletli'o-nc. 
 
 The early editions of Webster's dictionary 
 said 2yletl\!o-ric^ and the later editions permit this 
 pronunciation. All the English orthoepists, ex- 
 cept Ash and Crabb, accent the second syllable. 
 
 pliime, not i^lum. See adduce. 
 
 po'em, not po'm. 
 
 poignant — poignant. 
 
 po-lice', not po-. See opinion. 
 
 polonaise (Fr.) — poFo-naz', not p6'-. 
 
 polyglot — p5re-gl5t. 
 
 p5l-y-syl-Mb^ie. 
 
 P5l-y-liym'in-ci. 
 
 It should be remembered that ?/, except when 
 beginning a word, has the sound of z, and that it 
 never has its name-sound when forming a sylla- 
 ble. Here the first y is unaccented and sounded 
 like obscure i or obscure e, which are hardly 
 distinjjuishable. 
 
 Soe Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
131 
 
 po-made'. 
 
 Pompeia (Lat.) — pom-pe'ya. 
 
 Pompeii (Ital.) — pom-pa'ye. 
 
 Pompeium (Lat.) — pora-pe'yLim. 
 
 por'ce-lain. 
 
 This is the marking of Worcester, Webster, 
 and Reid. Smart says pOrs'lan ; Knowles, pars'- 
 lin y Walker, pdr'se-ldn. 
 
 porte-monnaie — port'-mon-na'. 
 por-tfent'. 
 
 po-gi^tion, not po-. See opinion, 
 pos-te'ri-or, not pos-, nor p5s-. 
 p5st'liu-mous. 
 Perry and Craig ^2ij 2)dst'hu-motis. 
 
 po'ta-ble. 
 
 po'ten-tate, not p5t'-. 
 
 prairie — pra're, not per-a're. 
 
 prSb'end, not pre'-. 
 
 pre-ce'dence, not pres'e-. 
 
 pre-ce'deut, adj. 
 
 "A murderer and a villain : 
 A slave, that's not the twentieth part the tyths 
 Of your precedent lord ! " 
 
 — Hamlet, 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
132 
 
 preg'e-dent, oioun, 
 
 pre-cise', oiot -cize'. 
 
 pre-cise'ly, not pre-cise'-, nor -cize'-. 
 
 2)re-clude'. See adduce. 
 
 pred'a-to-iy. 
 
 pred-e-ces'sor, not pre'de-. 
 
 pre-di-lec'tion, not pred-i-. 
 
 preface, noun\md verb, not pre'face. 
 
 pre'fect. 
 
 prefecture — pref'ek-tur, or pre'fek-. 
 
 pref er-a-ble, not pre-fer'-. 
 
 prefigure — pre-f ig'yur. 
 
 prel'ate, not prelate. 
 
 prerude, noun. 
 
 Webster alone says pre'ludej and the later 
 editions of his dictionary permit prtHiide. 
 
 pre-lude', vei'h. 
 
 Smart says prU'ude, but he is supported by 
 Jameson only. 
 
 " So Love, preluding, plays at first with hearts, 
 And after wounds with deeper-piercing darts." 
 
 — Congreve. 
 
 pre-ma-tiire', not prem'at-yur. 
 premier (Fr.) — prem'ya'. 
 
 Se« Key to Prouunciation, p. C. 
 
138 
 
 pre-p6s'ter-otis, not -triis. 
 
 Pre§-by-te'ri-ai], not pres-. 
 
 pre§'by-ter-y, not pres-byt'e-ry. 
 
 pre§-en-ta'tion, not pre-. 
 
 pre-sen'ti-ment, not -zen'-. 
 
 pre-§ent'ment. 
 
 pre§'i-dent, not -dtiut. 
 
 prSs'tige. 
 
 prestige (Fr.) — pras'tezh'. 
 
 pre-§umpt'ii-ous, not -zump'slius. 
 
 pre-tence', not pre'tence. 
 
 pret'er-ite, or pre'-. 
 
 pre-text'. 
 
 This is the marking of nearly all the orthoe-' 
 pists. 
 
 " My pretext to strike at him admits 
 A good construction." 
 
 — Shakcsjyeare. 
 
 pretty — prit'te, not pret'-. 
 pre-vent'ive, not -ven'ta-tive. 
 pri'ma-ry, 7iot -mer-e. 
 prin'cess, not prin-cess'. 
 pris'tine, not -tin. 
 priVa-cy, not priv'-. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p 6. 
 
134 
 
 priv'i-ly. 
 pro'ba-to-ry. 
 pr5b'i-ty, not pro'-. 
 
 Tlie erroneous pronunciation is often used, 
 especially on the stage. 
 
 pr5g'ess, not pro'-. 
 
 proces verbal (Fr.) — pro'sa' ver'bill'. 
 
 pr5d'uce, not pro'-. 
 
 pr5d'uct, not pro'-. 
 
 profile — pro'fel, -fil, or -fil. 
 
 The first pronunciation is Worcester's and 
 Smart's ; the second, Walker's and Webster's ; 
 the third, Craig's. Pro-fel' is also authorized, 
 and by some speakers may be preferred. 
 
 pro-fuse', not -iivzJ. 
 
 pr5g'ress, not pro'-. 
 
 pr5j'ect, noun, not pro'-. 
 
 pro-ject', verb. 
 
 pro-jec'tile, not -til. 
 
 pro-lix'. 
 
 In their earlier editions both Webster and 
 Worcester pronounced this word pro'lix ; which 
 accentuation a few other authorities also recog- 
 nize. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. C. 
 
135 
 
 pr6l'5gue, or pro'-. 
 
 The first marking is that of Worcester, Smart, 
 and Walker ; the second, that of Webster and 
 one or two others. 
 
 pr5m-e-nacle', or -nade'. 
 pro-murgate, not pr5m'iil-gate. 
 pr5m-ul-ga'tion, or pro-mtil-. 
 pronunciation — pro-niin-slie-a'sliun, or 
 -ce-a'shun, J>ut not -ce-a'shun. 
 
 The majority of the authorities are in favor 
 of the sound of sh ; Webster was not, but this 
 sound has been adopted by the editors of the 
 later editions of his dictionary. 
 
 Wheaton in his " Travels in England " says : 
 " I was not a little mortified at having my Yan- 
 kee origin detected by my omitting to give the 
 full sound of sh in the ys;ox(\. pronunciation.^'' 
 
 Walker says : " The very same reasons that 
 oblige us to pronounce partiality, p>ropitiation, 
 S2Jeciality, etc., as if written p)arsheality, propi- 
 sheasliunySpeslieality, etc., oblige us to pronounce 
 pronunciation as if v^'Yittan pronunsheashun.'^'' 
 
 Smart marks this word p^'^'o-nHin-ce-d' slnni^ yet 
 he says in his " Principles ": " It is regularly \>\Qi- 
 nouneed 2^'i'o-7i{i7i-s/ie-d' shim, and by all speakers 
 would probably be so sounded if it were related 
 to any such verb as to pronunciate, in the same 
 way as association and enunciation are related 
 to associate and enunciate. In the absence of 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
136 
 
 any such related verb, most speakers say pro- 
 nUn-se-ii! shun, and so avoid the double occur- 
 rence of the sound of sh in the same word." 
 
 "The time was when the stage was justly 
 held the model of pronunciation ; but that golden 
 age of dramatic literature and dramatic life has 
 long since passed away." — Williaiin HusselL 
 
 propitiate — pro-pish 'e-at. 
 
 pro-§a'ic. 
 
 pro-see 'ni-iim, not -seen'-. 
 
 pr5s'per-oiis, not pr5s'priis. 
 
 pr5t'a-sis, not pro'-. 
 
 protege (Fr.) — pro'ta'zlia'. 
 
 pro tem'po-re, not tem'pore. 
 
 prot'es-ta'tion, not pro'-. 
 
 pro-tli5n'o-ta-ry, not pro-tlio-no'ta-ry. 
 
 pro-trude'. See accrue. 
 
 pro-tru'sive, not -ziv. 
 
 pro-tii'ber-ant. 
 
 proven — probv'n. 
 
 This word, incorrectly used for proved, is said 
 to be a Scotticism. 
 
 pro-vo'ca-tive, or -v5c'a-tive. 
 
 Smart is the only orthoepist of note who gives 
 the second marking. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
137 
 
 provost, the chief of any hody^ as a col- 
 lege — pr5v'ust. 
 
 provost, the executioner of an army — 
 pro-v6'. 
 
 Smart and some others pronounce the word 
 in the latter signification ^^roiy'i^s^ also. 
 
 prow — prou or pro. 
 prowess — prou'es. 
 JPro'es was once permissible. 
 
 prude, pru'clence, prune, pru'ri-ent. See 
 
 accrue. 
 Prussian — prtisli'an, or proc)'slian. 
 There is little choice here in point of good 
 
 usage. 
 
 prussic — prus'ik, or prob'sik. 
 
 psalmist — sam 'ist . 
 
 There is good authority for saying both sCiV- 
 mist and sal'tnist. 
 
 psalmody — s^l'mo-de. 
 Webster said sdm'o-de. 
 
 psalms — samz, not Siimz. 
 pseudo — su'do. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
138 
 
 Psyche — si'ke. 
 
 In Greek and Latin words which begin with 
 uncombinable consonants, the first letter is silent ; 
 thus P in Psi/che and Ptolemy is not sounded. 
 
 Ptolemaic — tol-e-ma'ik. 
 
 pu'er-ile, not -il. 
 
 puissance (from the French). 
 
 All the orthoepists, with one exception, accent 
 this word on the first syllable. Why this is done 
 it is not easy to see, since that accentuation makes 
 the word most difficult of utterance, and because 
 the last syllable, in French, is made most promi- 
 nent by being drawn out in the pronunciation 
 somewhat like a}t in Jiaul followed by nasal n 
 and the sound of s. It seems to the writer that 
 the word, in English, should be pronounced^^i^-l^*'- 
 sans instead of pu'is-sdns. 
 
 pum^ice, O)' pu'-. 
 
 "This word ought to be i^vononncod peian is. 
 In nothing: is our lano-uao-e more resrular than in 
 preserving the tf open when the accent is on it 
 and followed by a single consonant." — Walker. 
 
 We have at least three other words which 
 break this regularity — cum'in, duc'ctt, and pyin'- 
 ish. Puni'ice is as well established as ^yxin'ish. 
 We never hear a mechanic talk about Vvs, pewmis- 
 stone. 
 
 pump 'kin. See P. 
 
 8eo Key to Pronunciatiou. p. 0. 
 
139 
 
 pur'port, noun and verb, not pur-port'. 
 
 pur-siie', not -sii'. 
 
 pursuit — pur-sut', not -sut'. 
 
 pustule — piist'yiil. 
 
 put — pdbt, not ptit (very antiquated). 
 
 pyg-me'an, or pyg'me-. 
 
 There is very little authority for the second 
 accentuation. 
 
 pyramidal — p e -riini ' i-dal. 
 
 pyrites — pe-ri'tez. 
 
 Pyth-a-go're-an, or Py-tli^g-o-re'an. 
 
 Pytli'o-ness. 
 
 Q. 
 
 This consonant is always followed by u. The 
 digraph qu has usually the sound of kic, as in 
 quail, quart, etc. ; but in many words from the 
 French it has the sound of k, as in coquette, mas- 
 querade, etc. The termination que is also pro- 
 nounced k, as in oblique, antique, etc. 
 
 quadrille — ka-dril', not kw5d-rir. 
 quaff, not qu5ff. 
 qu^g'gy, not qu5g'-. 
 qu^g'mire, not quog'-. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
140 
 
 qiian'da-iy, or -da'iy. 
 
 Webster and one or two lesser lights arc the 
 only orthoepists who accent this word on the 
 first syllable ; but that is certainly the prevailing 
 pronunciation in this country. 
 
 quar'rel, not qiiar'l. 
 
 quash — kw5sli, not kw^sh. 
 
 quassia — kvv53li'e-a. 
 
 quay — ke. 
 
 quelque chose (Fr.) — kel'ke shoz, not 
 
 kek shoz. 
 
 quelle sottise (Fi-.) — kel sot'tez^ 
 
 quinine — kwi-nin', oi' kwi'-, not ke-nen'. 
 
 qui vive (Fr.) — ke vev. 
 
 quoit — kwoit, not kwat. 
 
 quoth — kwotli, or k^vuth. 
 
 "Mr. Sheridan, Dr. Kenrick, Mr. Scott, \y. 
 Johnston, Mr. Nares, Mr. Perry, and Mr. Smith 
 pronounce the o in this word long, as in both ; 
 but Buchanan short, as in moth. This latter pro- 
 nunciation is certainly more agreeable to the 
 general sound of o before th, as in broth, froth, 
 cloth, etc.; but my ear fails me if I have not 
 always heard it pronounced like the o in doth, as 
 if written laoiXth, which is the pronunciation Mr. 
 Elpliinstone gives it, and, in my opinion, is the 
 true one." — Walker. 
 
 See Key to Proaunciation, p. 6. 
 
141 
 
 R. 
 
 This letter is never silent. It has a peculiar 
 influence on both the long and the short sound 
 of the vowels. Sometimes it changes the short 
 sound of a as in man into its Italian sound, as in 
 far, and the short sound of o as in not into its 
 broad sound, as in noi\ It has a corresponding 
 effect on the short sound of the other vowels. 
 When r is preceded by a short vowel, it some- 
 times has the effect of blendinor the svHables. 
 Thus the dissyllables hif/her, lower, mower, rower, 
 soicer, and flower are pronounced precisely like 
 the monosyllables hire, lore, more, roar, soar, 
 and flour. 
 
 rM isli, not red'-. 
 
 raillery — rd-l'er-e. 
 
 Webster, in the early editions of his diction- 
 ary, said rdl'ler-e / and in this some later orthoe- 
 pists have concurred. 
 
 raisonne (Fr.) — ra'zon'na'. 
 
 rajah. 
 
 rancor — ntno-'kur. 
 
 r^p'iue, not ra-pen'. 
 
 raspberry — rilz'ber-re, not rawz'-. 
 
 rMi'er, or ratii'-, not riitii'-. 
 
 ratio — ra'slie-6. 
 
 ra'tion, not r^sli'ini. 
 
 See Key to ProDuuciation, p. G. 
 
142 
 
 rational — r^lsli'un-al. 
 
 • 
 
 Rd'shim-al is no longer permitted by any 
 orthot3pist. Tlie like is true of nd'shun-al and 
 other words of similar orthography. Indeed, 
 the making of the a in the first syllable of these 
 words long was never countenanced by any of the 
 English orthoepists. It was one of the many 
 Websterian innovations. 
 
 re-al-i-za'tion, not -i-za'-. 
 
 • • • 7 
 
 re/al-ly, not re'ly. 
 
 reb'el, not reb'l. 
 
 re-cess'. 
 
 There is no dictionary authority for saying 
 re'cess, though the word is very generally so pro- 
 nounced, even by good speakers. 
 
 rSg-ep-tiv'i-ty. 
 reg-i-pr5g'i-ty. 
 reg-i-ta-five'. 
 rec-la-ma'tion. 
 re-cliise', noun and adj. 
 
 " I all the livelong day 
 Consume in meditation deep, rechcse 
 From human converse." ni -j- 
 
 Sooner or later the accent of this word, when 
 a substantive, and also of ircess, will ])robably, by 
 general consent, be changed to the first syllable. 
 
 See Key to Pi-oniinciatii»n. p. rt. 
 
us 
 
 rec'oo:-niz-a-ble, or re-cbor'ni-za-ble. 
 
 There is no lack of authority for the second 
 marking, but in this country it is not heeded. 
 
 rSc'o2:-nize, 7iot re-koGr'niz, no?' rek'6ii-iz. 
 rec-ol-lect', not re-col-, 
 rec'on-dite, or re-c5n'dite. 
 reconnaissance (Fr.) — re'kon'a'sangs'. 
 
 This is the modern orthography of this word. 
 
 reconnoissance — ro-k5n'ni-sance. 
 
 * • 
 
 rec-on-noi'tre, not re'-. 
 
 re-cord', ve?'h. 
 
 rec'ord, nouiiy not rec'ord. 
 
 Some of the older writers accented this sub- 
 stantive on the second syllable, as we see in the 
 lines of Watts : 
 
 " Our nation reads the written word. 
 That book of life, that sure record.'^'' 
 
 re-course'. 
 rSc're-ant, not re'-, 
 rec're-ate, to take recreation. 
 re-cre-ate', to create aneio. 
 re-cruit'. See accrue. 
 rSc'ti-tude. See adduce. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
lU 
 
 ref'er-a-ble. 
 
 re-fer'ri-ble. 
 
 "This word," says "Worcester, "is given in 
 many of the dictionaries in two torms, referrihle 
 and referable^ and both are often met with ; but 
 referrihle is the form that seems to be the more 
 countenanced by the dictionaries. Smart says, 
 * Referable^ which is to be met with, violates the 
 practice of deduction from the verb.' " 
 
 re 'flex, not re-flex'. 
 
 ref'lu-ent, not re-flii'eut. 
 
 ref 'use, or ref'fuz. 
 
 re-fiit'a-ble. 
 
 regime (Fr.) — ra'zliem'. 
 
 rel-ax-a'tion, or re-. 
 
 Euphony and authority are on the side of the 
 first marking. 
 
 relievo — re-le ' v6. 
 
 This word, thus given in the dictionaries, is a 
 corruption of the Italian rilievo. Inasmuch as 
 our own word relief has the same meaning in 
 art, there is no occasion for a corrupt foreign 
 form ; and when the Italian word is used, it 
 should have its Italian sijelling and pronuncia- 
 tion — re-hjd'vo. 
 
 re-me'cli-a-ble. 
 
 • • • 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. G. 
 
145 
 
 re-mS(l'i-less, or rem'e-di-less. 
 
 Ease of utterance makes the first marking 
 preferable, though the second is that of a maj(jr- 
 ity of the authorities. 
 
 re-morse'less, not -liiss. See ailment. 
 
 renaissance (Fr.) — re-na'sangs'. 
 
 rendezvous (Fr.) — r5ng'da'vcro'. 
 
 renew — re-nii', not -nn'. 
 
 renunciation — re-niin-slie-a'sliun, or -se-. 
 
 See pronunciation. 
 
 rep'a-ra-ble. 
 
 rep-ar-tee\ 
 
 " A man renowned for repartee 
 Will seldom scruple to make free 
 With friendship's finest feeling." 
 
 — Cowper. 
 
 repertoire (Fr.) — ra'par'twar'. 
 
 rep'er-to-ry. 
 
 rep'tile, not -tile (antiquated). 
 
 r6p'u-ta-ble. 
 
 re'qui-em, or rek'we-em. 
 
 Smart says rek'we-em^ and Worcester permits 
 this marking. 
 
 re-searcli', not re'-. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
UG 
 
 res-i2:-na'tion, not res-. 
 
 reg'in, not rez'ii. 
 
 re§'o-lu-ble. 
 
 Those who, like the writer, are glad to have 
 AW authority for pronouncing this word re-zijl'u- 
 ble, find it in Sheridan. 
 
 reg-o-Ki'tion, not -lu'-. See adduce. 
 
 re§'o-n^nce, not res'-. 
 
 re-source', not re'-. 
 
 *' Pallas viewed 
 
 Ilis foes pursuing, and his friends pursued ; 
 
 Used threatenings mixed with prayers, his last 
 
 resourced r\ 7 
 
 — JJnjden. 
 
 re-spir'a-ble. 
 
 Perry and Knowles say res'pi-ra-blc. 
 
 re-spir'a-to-ry. 
 
 res'pite, not -pit. 
 
 re-splen'dent, not res-. 
 
 restaurant — re s ' t o -rant . 
 
 In speaking English, to pronounce this word 
 d la fraa^aise is in questionable taste ; it smacks 
 of pedantry. 
 
 restaurateur (Fr.) — ras'to'ra'tur'. 
 re-sto'ra-tive, not res-to'-. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. G. 
 
147 
 
 ,/ 
 
 re-§iime . 
 
 resume (Fr.) — ra'zu'ma'. 
 
 The vowel u has a souiifl in Frcneli which 
 can not be represented with English cliaracters. 
 The sound is identical with u or ue in German. 
 
 rc-trrir, verb ; re 'tail, noun. 
 re-tairer, or re'tail-er. 
 retch, or retcL. 
 
 ThoiiQ'h the former is more lieard in this 
 country, the latter has the weight of authority in 
 its favor. 
 
 re-trib'u-tive. 
 re'tro-cede, or ret'ro-. 
 
 All the dictionaries put the accent on the first 
 syllable of this word ; but in nearly all other 
 w^ords of similar formation it is on the last, as 
 intercede', supersede', etc. If this were as com- 
 monly used as the others, we apprehend it would 
 have been treated in like manner. 
 
 ret'ro-o:rade, or re'tro-. 
 
 A large majority of the orthoepists give the 
 first marking. Indeed, Smart is the only one of 
 note who prefers the second. 
 
 ret'ro-spect, or re'tro-. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 10 
 
148 
 
 rev'el-iy, not -til-ry. 
 
 revenue — rev'e-uii, in prose / re-ven'yu, 
 in verse. 
 
 " Do not think I flatter ; 
 For what advancement may I hope from thee, 
 That no YQvenwQ hath but thy good spirits 
 To feed and clothe thee ? " 
 
 — Hamlet. 
 
 rev'o-ca-ble. 
 
 re-volt', or -v5lt'. 
 
 "This word has Mr. Sheridan, Dr. Kenrick, 
 Mr. Perry, and Mr. Buchanan for that pronun- 
 ciation which rhymes it Avith malt; but that 
 which rhymes it wdth holt^ jolt, etc., has the 
 authority of Mr. Elphinston, Mr. Smith, Mr. 
 Scott, Mr. Nares, and W. Johnston, a clear anal- 
 ogy, and, if I am not mistaken, the best usage, 
 on its side." — Walker. 
 
 rlieiim — rum. 
 rheumatic — ru-m^it'ik. 
 
 • • • 
 
 rheumatism — ru'ma-tizm. 
 
 • • • 
 
 rhubarb — ru'barb, not rii'-. 
 
 Kichelieu — rish'el-yu. 
 
 It is doubtful taste to pronounce this historic 
 name after the French mode when speaking 
 English. It certainly smacks a bit of pedantry. 
 
 ripe'ness, not -niis. See ailment. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
149 
 
 ri§e, verb. 
 
 rise, or ri§e, noun. 
 
 " This word properly takes the pure sound of 
 s to distinguish it from the verb, but does not 
 adhere to this distinction so inviolably as the 
 nouns use, excuse, etc.; for we sometimes hear 
 'the rise and fall of the Roman empire,' 'the 
 rise and fall of provisions,' etc., with the s like z. 
 The pure s, however, is more agreeable to analogy, 
 and ought to be scrupulously preserved in these 
 phrases by all correct speakers." — ^tValktr. 
 
 Walker's recommendation is little heeded 
 nowadays by even the most fastidious. 
 
 risk, not resk. 
 ro-btist', not ro'bust. 
 
 " Survey the warlike horse ; didst thou invest 
 With thunder his robust, distended chest ? " 
 
 — Young. 
 
 robustious — ro-bust'yus. 
 ro-m^nce'. 
 
 Though ro'mance is often heard in cultured 
 circles, it is not sanctioned by any of the orthoe- 
 pists. 
 
 "A staple of romance and lies, 
 False tears and real perjuries." 
 
 — Prior. 
 
 roof. See cooper, 
 rook, or rook. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
150 
 
 root, not root. See cooper, 
 roseate — ro 'ze-at. 
 ro-se'o-la, not ro-sc-o'la. 
 roue (Fr.) — ro'a'. 
 route — r(K)t. 
 
 There is abundant authority for pronouncing 
 this word rowt ^ but this pronunciation is now 
 very generally considered inelegant. 
 
 "Most of the orthoepists more recent than 
 Walker give the preference to the pronunciation 
 root.'''' — Worcester . 
 
 routine (Fr.) — ro'ten'. 
 ru-be'o-la, not rn-be-o'la. 
 Rubinstein, A. — ru'bin-stin. 
 
 7 • • • 
 
 rn'by, not rii'-. 
 
 rude, not riide. See accrue. 
 
 ruffian — ruf 'yan, not ruf 'fi-an. 
 
 Eu'fus. 
 
 rule, not rule. 
 
 • • 7 
 
 rn'mi-nate. 
 
 • • • 
 
 rn'ral, not rii'-. 
 
 • • • 7 
 
 ruse de guerre (Fr.) — riiz de gar. 
 
 Russian. See Prussian. 
 
 Ruy Bias (Sp.) — rn'e bias, not blii. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
151 
 
 S. 
 
 The usual or genuine sound of this letter is 
 its sharp, hissing, or sibilant sound, as in alas, sun, 
 same, caps, stuj/-s, etc. It has also a soft sound 
 like z, as in does, icas, ribs, j^rices, dismal, etc. 
 
 Combined with or from the effect of the suc- 
 ceeding vowel, it has the sound of sJi in words 
 ending in sion preceded by a consonant, as in 
 dimension, expidsion^ etc.; also in censure, se7i- 
 siial, fissure, pressz^re, sure, insure, nauseate, 
 nauseous, sugar, etc. 
 
 It has the sound of zJi in the termination sion 
 preceded by a vowel, as in contusion, explosion, 
 etc. ; also in many words in which it is preceded 
 by an accented vowel and followed by the ter- 
 mination ure, as in treasure, edcposure, leisure, 
 etc. ; also in a number of words ending in sier, as 
 in hosier, etc.; and finally in elysium, ehjsian, 
 and ambrosia. 
 
 In the German language, s, beginning a syl- 
 lable and followed by a voAvel, has the sound of z ; 
 at the end of a syllable, it has invariably its sharp, 
 hissing sound. 
 
 s^c-er-do'tal, not sa-cer-. 
 
 s^c'ra-meut, not sa'cra-. 
 
 " This word, with sacrifice, sacriler/e, and sac- 
 risty, is sometimes pronounced with the a in the 
 first syllable long, as in sacred ; but this is con- 
 trary to one of the clearest analogies in the lan- 
 guage." — Walker. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
152 
 
 sacrifice, verh — s^k're-fiz. 
 
 In the words sacrifice^ suffice, discern, and sice, 
 c has the sound of z. 
 *' They talk of principles, but notions prize, 
 And all to one loved folly sacrifice.'''' 
 
 — Pojye. 
 
 sacrifice, noun — siik're-fiz, or -fis. 
 
 The second marking is authorized by Smart 
 and by AYright. 
 
 s^c'ri-lege, not sa'cri-. 
 
 s^c-ri-le'gious, not -lij'iis. 
 
 siic'ris-ty. 
 
 sa-ga'cious, )wt -g^sh'tis. 
 
 said — sed, not sad. 
 
 Saint e-Beuve — Silngt' -Lev '. 
 
 Siiric, not Salic. 
 
 salmon — s^m'un. 
 
 salve — sav, or salv, not s^v. 
 
 " Dr. Johnson tells us that this word is origi- 
 nally and properly salf; which having salves in 
 the plural, the singular in time was borrowed 
 from it ; seal/) Saxon, undoubtedly from salvus, 
 Latin. There is some diversity among our ortho- 
 epists about the I in this word and its verb. Mr. 
 Sheridan marks it to be pronounced ; Mr. Smith, 
 W. Johnston, and Barclay make it mute ; Mr. 
 
 See Key to Pi-onuuelation, p. C. 
 
153 
 
 Scott and Mr. Perry give it both ways ; and Mr. 
 Nares says it is mute in the noun, Vjut sounded 
 in the verb. The mute I is certainly counte- 
 nanced in this word by calve and halve ; but, as 
 they are very irregular, and are the only words 
 w^here the I is silent in this situation (for valve, 
 delve, solve, etc., have the I pronounced), and as 
 this word is of Latin original, the I ought cer- 
 tainly to be preserved in both words ; for, to 
 have the same word sounded differently to sig- 
 nify different things is a defect in language that 
 ought, as much as possible, to be avoided." — 
 Walke7'. 
 
 sM'ver, 7iot sa'ver. 
 Sa-m^r'i-tan. 
 
 • • • 
 
 sano-uine — s^n<>:'G:\\iii. 
 
 sapphire — s^f fir, or s^f'fir. 
 
 The second pronunciation has a great prepon- 
 derance of authority in its favor ; but the first, 
 which is Webster's, is both more analogical and 
 more euphonious. 
 
 sarce'net, 7wt sar'se-. 
 
 sar'do-nyx. 
 
 sar-sa-pa-rilla, not s^s-a-. 
 
 satiate — sa'slie-at. 
 
 sa-ti'e-ty, 7iot sa'she-ty. 
 
 The pronunciation of this word seems anom- 
 alous, from the fact that it is the only one in the 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
154 
 
 language having the syllable ti under an accent 
 followed by a vowel ; but this syllable regularly 
 takes the accent, in analogy with society^ variety, 
 and all other words of similar formation. 
 
 s^t'in, not silt'n. 
 
 s^t'ire. 
 
 This is the marking of Webster and Craig. 
 Smart says safer ; Worcester, sd'ter • Walker, 
 sd'tlr. 
 
 sa'trap. 
 Siit'rap is becoming obsolete. 
 
 s^t'ur-iiine, not sa'tur-uiii. 
 satyr — sa'tur. 
 
 Smart alone prefers sat'ur. 
 
 sau'cy, not s^s'e. 
 
 sauer kraut (Ger.) — zow'er krowt. 
 
 saunter — san'ter, o)' saun'-. 
 
 " The first mode of pronouncing this word is 
 the most agreeable to analogy, if not in the most 
 general use ; but where use has formed so clear 
 a rule as in words of this form, it is wrong not 
 to follow it. Mr. Elphinston, Dr. Kenrick, Mr. 
 Kares, and Mr. Scott are for the first pronuncia- 
 tion ; and Mr. Sheridan and W^. Johnston for the 
 last." — Walker, 
 
 Sec Key to Pronunciation, d. 6. 
 
155 
 
 sau'sasre. 
 
 •• • o 
 
 The pronunciation sas'.nj, noAV exceedingly 
 v^ulgar, Avas at one time countenanced by good 
 usage, and was preferred by several orthoepists 
 of the last century. 
 
 savoir faire (Fr.) — Siiv'war' far. 
 
 says — suz, not saz. 
 
 sca'bi-ous. 
 
 sc^ld, 0?' scald, a Scandinavian 2yoet. 
 
 scallop, verh and noun — sk5l'lup. 
 
 " This word is irregular ; for it ought to have 
 the a in the first syllable like that in tallow ; but 
 the deep sound of a is too firmly fixed by custom 
 to afford any expectation of a change. Mr. Sheri- 
 dan, Mr. Scott, Dr. Kenrick, Mr, Nares, and Mr. 
 Smith pronounce the a in the manner I have 
 given it." — Walker. 
 
 scarce, not skars, nor skers (obsolete), 
 sc^th, not skath (old). 
 
 scen'ic. 
 
 Smart says sce'iiic. 
 
 schedule — sked'yid. 
 
 The orthoepists give us seven or eight differ- 
 ent ways to pronounce this word. This is the 
 markino^ of both Worcester and Webster. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
156 
 
 schism — sizm, not siz'iiin. 
 
 "The common pronunciation of this word is 
 contrary to every rule for pronouncing words 
 from the learned languages, and ought to be 
 altered. Ch, in English words, coming from 
 Greek words with %, ought always to be pro- 
 nounced like k / and I believe the word in ques- 
 tion is almost the only exception throughout the 
 language. However strange, therefore, skizm 
 may sound, it is the only true and analogical 
 pronunciation ; and we might as well pronounce 
 scheme seme as schism sizm, there being exactly 
 the same reason for both. But, when once a 
 false pronunciation is fixed, as this is, it requires 
 some daring spirit to begin the reformation ; but 
 when once begun, as it has (what seldom hap- 
 pens) truth, novelty, and the appearance of Greek 
 erudition on its side, there is no doubt of its suc- 
 cess. Whatever, therefore, may be the fate of its 
 pronunciation, it ought still to retain its spelling. 
 This must be held sacred, or the whole language 
 will be metamorphosed ; for the very same reason 
 that induced Dr. Johnson to spell sceptick skep- 
 tick, ought to have made him spell schism, sizm 
 and schedule sediile. All our orthoiipists pro- 
 nounce the word as I have marked it." — W^cdkci'. 
 
 scliismatic — siz-mat'ik. 
 schooner — skobn'er, not skdbn'-. 
 Schubert — sh 6b 'bert, not -bar. 
 Schurz, Carl — shobrts. 
 
 Seo Key to Pronunciation, p. C. 
 
157 
 
 scc)li', not scauf. See accost. 
 
 scor-bii'tic. 
 
 screw — skru, not skrii. 
 
 scr5f u-la, not ski-auf -. See accost. 
 
 scru'ple. See accrue. 
 
 scrup'u-lous. 
 
 scru'ti-ny. 
 
 sculpture — skulpt'yur. 
 
 seamstress — sem'stres, or sem'-. 
 
 Webster is the only orthoL'pist of note who 
 gives the second marking. 
 
 seance (Fr.) — sa'angss'. 
 
 seckel, a small pear — sek'kl, not sik'l. 
 
 se-cliide', not -clucV. See adduce. 
 
 sec're-ta-ry, not sec'ti-ta-ry. 
 
 se-d^n', a hind of cliair. 
 
 sed'a-tive. 
 
 se-duce'. See adduce. 
 
 seigneurial — sen-yu'ri-al. 
 
 seine, a net — sen, not san. 
 
 Seine, river — san. 
 
 sem'i, not sem'i. 
 
 sempstress — sem'stres. 
 
 Sec Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
158 
 
 se'nile, not se'nil. 
 
 sen'na, not se'na. 
 
 sentient — sen'slie-ent. 
 
 sen'ti-ment. See ailment. 
 
 sepulchre, noun — sep'iil-ker. 
 
 " I consider this word as having altered its 
 original accent on the second syllable, either by 
 the necessity or caprice of the poets, or by its 
 similitude to the generality of words of this form 
 and number of syllables, which generally have 
 the accent on the first syllable. Dr. Johnson 
 tells us it is accented by Shakespeare and Milton 
 on the second syllable, but by Jonson and Prior, 
 more properly, on the first ; and he might have 
 added, as Shakespeare has sometimes done." — 
 Walker. 
 
 sepulclire, verh — se-pul'ker. 
 
 se'quel, not -kwil. 
 
 se-ques'trate. 
 
 sequestration — sek-wes-tra'slmn. 
 
 sequestrator — sek'wes-tra-tur. 
 
 Se-ra'pis. 
 
 sergeant — sar'jent, or ser'-. 
 
 There is but little authority for the second 
 marking. 
 
 " There is a remarkable exception to the com- 
 mon sound of the letter e in the words clerk\ ser- 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
159 
 
 geant, and a few others, where we find the e pro- 
 nounced like the a in dark and margin. But this 
 exception, I imagine, was, till within these few 
 years, the general rule of sounding this letter 
 before r, followed by another consonant. Thirty 
 years ago every one pronounced the first syllable 
 of merchant like the monosyllable march,, and as 
 it was originally written, marchant. Service and 
 servant are still heard, among the lower orders of 
 speakers, as if written sarvice and sarvant ; and 
 even among the better sort we sometimes hear 
 the salutation, ' /Sir, your sarvant^ though this 
 pronunciation of the word singly would be looked 
 upon as a mark of the lowest vulgarity. The 
 proper names 2>er6y and Berkeley still retain the 
 old sound ; but even these, in polite usage, are 
 getting into the common sound, nearly as if 
 written Durhy and Burkeley. As this modern 
 pronunciation of the e has a tendency to simplify 
 the language by lessening the number of ex- 
 ce]^tions, it ought certainly to be indulged." — 
 Walker. 
 
 " The letters er are irre^ularlv sounded ar in 
 clerk and sergeant, and formerly, but not now, in 
 •merchant, Derby, and several other words." — 
 Smart. 
 
 " In the United States, the letters er are, by 
 good speakers, regularly sounded, as in her, in 
 the words merchant, servcoit, Derby, Berkeley, 
 etc. The regular pronunciation of clerk (cho'k) 
 is also a very common, if not the prevailing, 
 mode. Many give the same sound to e in se?'- 
 geant.'''^ — Worcester. 
 
 Soe Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
100 
 
 series — se'rez, or se'ri-ez. 
 
 serVile, not -vil. 
 
 ser'vi-tude, not -tud. 
 
 ses'a-me. 
 
 sew — so, not su. 
 
 sewer, one who seios — so'er. 
 
 sewer, an nnder-ground drain — su'er. 
 
 Walker and half a dozen other orthoepists say 
 shor • Smart says soo7\ and maintains that shor 
 is vulgar ; Worcester says soo'er or shor ; and 
 finally, Webster and Wright say su'er, which is 
 the pronunciation always heard here. 
 
 sli. 
 
 This digraph represents the simple sound 
 heard in shelf, flesh, usher, etc., and is never 
 silent. 
 
 "It is expressed : 1. By c, as in oceanic, 
 emaciation ; 2. By s, as in nauseate, Asiatic ; 
 3. By t, as in negotiation ; 4. By ce, as in ocean ; 
 5. By ci, as in soc^al ; 6. By se, as in nauseous ; 
 7. By si, as in tens/on ; 8. By ti, as in cap^^'ous ; 
 
 9. By the si implied in xi (^ksi), as in no.r/ous ; 
 
 10. By the si/ implied in su [=si/u), as in mens?^- 
 ration ; 11. By the si/ implied in xu (^^=ksf/i(), as 
 in lu.rz^ry ; 12. By ch, as in cAaise, c/mrlatan, 
 macAine ; 18. By chs, as in fuc/<sia ; 14. By sc, 
 as in conscientious ; 15. By sch, as in sc/<orl ; 
 IG. By sci, as in conscience." — W. A. Wheeler. 
 
 — ■■'■■■ 
 
 Sec Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
IGl 
 
 shall, auxiliary — sliiil, or sli'l, accord- 
 ing to the stress put upon it. 
 
 The auxiliaries, like the pronouns and a long 
 list of the particles, are touched but lightly when 
 they are not emphatic and the utterance is natu- 
 ral. 
 
 sha'n't {>iJiaU not) — shant, not sb^nt. 
 sheath, noun ; pl.^ sheatli§. 
 she, or she, according to the demands 
 of the emphasis. 
 
 " Then, with eyes that saw not, I kissed her ; 
 And she [sAe], kissing back, could not know 
 That my [m^ kiss was given to her sister." 
 
 " Oh, she [she] too died a short time since ; 
 she [she] broke a blood-vessel in a fit of passion." 
 
 sheik — shek. 
 
 shekel — shek'l, not she'kl. 
 
 shew — sho. 
 
 shewn — shon. 
 
 shire, or shire. 
 
 " The pronunciation of this word is very 
 irregular, as it is the only pure English word in 
 the language where the final e does not produce 
 the long diphthongal sound of i when the accent 
 is on it ; but this irregularity is so fixed as to 
 give the regular sound a pedantic stiffness. Mr. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
162 
 
 Sheridan, Mr. Scott, and Buchanan, however, 
 have adopted this sound, in which they have 
 been followed by Mr. Smith ; but Mr. Elphin- 
 ston, Dr. Lowth, Dr. Kenrick, Mr. Perry, and 
 Barclay are for the irregular sound ; W. John- 
 ston gives both, but places the irregular first. It 
 may likewise be observed that this word, w^hen 
 unaccented at the end of words, as Nottingham- 
 shire^ Wiltshire, etc., is always pronounced with 
 the i like ee." — Walker. 
 
 shoe — slidb, not sliii. 
 shone — shon, or sh5n. 
 
 " This w^ord is frequently pronounced so as to 
 rhyme with tone ; but the short sound of it is by 
 far the most usual anion c: those who mav be 
 styled polite speakers." — Walker. 
 
 Webster and others give the first pronuncia- 
 tion ; Smart, Worcester, and others, the second, 
 which violates an almost uniform analogy, and is 
 rarely heard in this country. This and gone are 
 the only words of similar formation in which the 
 regular short sound of o is ever heard, the only 
 other exceptions to the long sound being a few 
 words in which the o has the sound of short u, as 
 done, love, etc. 
 
 short-lived, not -livd. 
 shrew — shrn, not shrii. 
 shrewd — shrud, not sliriid. 
 shriek — shrek, not srek. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
163 
 
 shrill, not sril. 
 shrine, not srin. 
 shrink, not srink. 
 shrub, not srub. 
 shrusf, not sriio\ 
 sibyl — sib'il, not si'bil. 
 sice — siz. See sacrifice, 
 sigh — si. 
 
 "A verj'" extraordinary pronunciation of this 
 word prevails in London, and, what is more 
 extraordinary, on the stage — so different from 
 every other word of the same form as to make it a 
 perfect oddity in the language. This pronuncia- 
 tion approaches to the word sithe [^scythe^ ; and 
 the only diiference is that sithe has the flat aspira- 
 tion, as in this, and sigh the sharp one, as in thin. 
 It is not easy to conjecture what could be the 
 reason of this departure from analogy, unless it 
 were to give the word a sound which seems an 
 echo to the sense." — Walker. 
 
 " This * extraordinary pronunciation ' of sigh 
 is more or less common in some parts of the 
 United States. It is not countenanced by any of 
 the orthoepists." — Worcester, 
 
 silhouette (Fr.) — se'lo-et'. 
 sim'i-le, not sim'il. 
 si-mul-ta'ne-ous, not sim-ul-. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
 u 
 
164 
 
 since, not sence. 
 si'iie-ciire, not sin'e-. 
 si'ne cli'e (Lat.). 
 sin^is-ter, or si-nis'ter. 
 
 " This word, in the sense of left, is accented 
 by the poets Milton, Dryden, etc., on the second 
 syllable, though most lexicographers and orthoe- 
 pists accent it on the first syllable, whether it is 
 used in the sense of left or j^erverse. Walker 
 says : * This word, though uniformly accented on 
 the second syllable in the poets quoted by John- 
 son, is as uniformly accented on the first by all 
 our lexicographers, and is uniformly so pro- 
 nounced by tlie best speakers. Mr. Nares tells 
 us that Dr. Johnson seems to think that, when 
 this word is used in its literal sense — as, 
 
 " In his sinister hand, instead of a ball, 
 He placed a mighty mug of potent ale," 
 
 {Drydeii) — 
 
 it has the accent on the second syllable ; but 
 when in the figurative sense of eornq)t, l/islilious, 
 etc., on the first. This distinction seems not to 
 be founded on the best usage.' " — Worcester. 
 
 si'ren, not sir'en. 
 
 Sir'i-tis (Lat.). 
 
 sirrali — sir'ra, sitr'ni, o?' ser'ni. 
 
 *'This [sar'rdl^ is a corruption of the first 
 magnitude, but too general and inveterate to be 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. C. 
 
165 
 
 remedied. Mr. Sheridan, Mr. Kares, Mr. Scott, 
 Dr. Keurick, and Mr. Perry pronounce it as I 
 have done. W. Johnston alone pronounces it as 
 if written serrah ; and Mr. Elphinston, because 
 it is derived from sir and the interjection ah, 
 says it ought to have the first syllable like s/r." 
 — Walker. 
 
 sir'up. 
 
 Though sanctioned, sfir'riq) may be set down 
 as being rather inelegant. 
 
 sky — ski, skei, skyi, or sk'y. See kind. 
 
 slangier, o?' sMii'der. 
 
 sliib'ber. 
 
 This word is pronounced colloquially sloh'ber, 
 and sometimes so written. 
 
 " The second sound of this word is by much 
 the more usual one ; but, as it is in direct opposi- 
 tion to the orthography, it ought to be discounte- 
 nanced, and the a restored to its true sound." — 
 Walker. 
 
 sMng. 
 
 slant. 
 
 slate, 
 
 slau2!:li'ter. 
 
 sleek, not slick. 
 
 slew — sKi. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
1G6 
 pliv'er, or sli'ver. 
 
 The first marking, the prevailing pronuncia- 
 tion in this country, is that of Webster and 
 Craig ; the second, that of all the other ortho- 
 epists. 
 
 sloth. 
 
 Webster alone marks the o of this word and 
 its derivatives short. 
 
 slotli'fiil. 
 
 slough, the cast shin of a serpent — sluf. 
 
 slough, a deej)^ miry ijlace — slou. 
 
 sloven — sliiv'n^ not slov'n. 
 
 sobriquet (Fr„) — su'bre'ka'. 
 
 sociability — so-she-a-bil'i-te. 
 
 sociable — so 'she-a-bl. 
 
 s5ft. See accost. 
 
 soften — s5f 'n, not s5f 'ten. 
 
 soiree (Fr.) — swa'ra'. 
 
 so'journ, noun, 
 
 so-joiirn', or so'journ, verh 
 
 " This noun and verb are variously accented 
 by the poets ; but our modern orthoepists have, 
 in general, given the accent to the first syllable 
 of both words." — Walker. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6, 
 
167 
 
 so-joiirn'er. 
 
 All the authorities, so far as the writer knows, 
 place the accent of this word on the first syllable, 
 thus, so'journ-er. Ease of utterance, euphony, 
 and analogy demand the penultimate accentua' 
 tion, which is accordingly recommended here. 
 
 solder — s5rder, s5d'der, or saw'der. 
 
 .7 7 •• . 
 
 " Dr. Johnson seems to favor writin gr this word 
 without the ?, as it is sometimes pronounced ; but 
 the many examples he has brought, where it is 
 spelt w^tli /, show sufficiently how much this or- 
 thography is established. . . . Though our ortho- 
 epists agree in leaving out the /, they differ in 
 pronouncing the o. Sheridan sounds the o as in 
 sod ; W. Johnston as in sober ; and Mr. Nares as 
 the dipththong aw. Mr. Smith says that Mr. 
 Walker pronounces the / in this word, but every 
 workman pronounces it as rhyming ^\\i\l fodder ; 
 to which it may be answered that workmen ought 
 to take their pronunciation from scholars, and not 
 scholars from woi'kmen." — Walker. 
 
 s5re-ci§m, not sole-. 
 
 s5l'stice, not sol'-. 
 
 so-Ki'tion, not -lu'-. 
 
 s5m'bre, or som^-. 
 
 Nearly all the orthoepists mark the o of this 
 word long. It is not easy to see wdiy, especially 
 as it comes to us through the French, in which 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
168 
 
 langfuaGre the o is more like our short than our 
 long 0. True, the long o makes the word some- 
 what more sonorous. 
 
 s5m'brous, or som'-. 
 
 s5n'net, not son'-. 
 
 so-no'rous, not s5ii'o-. 
 
 S(5bii, not soon. 
 
 sdbt, or soot, not sut. 
 
 "Notwithstanding I have Mr. Sheridan, Mr. 
 Nares, Dr. Kenrick, W. Johnston, Mr. Perry, 
 and the professors of the black art themselves 
 against me in the pronunciation of this word, I 
 have ventured to prefer the regular pronuncia- 
 tion to the irregular. The adjective sooty has 
 its regular sound among the correctest speakers, 
 which has induced Mr. Sheridan to mark it so ; 
 but nothing can be more absurd than to pronounce 
 the substantive in one manner, and the adjective, 
 derived from it by adding ?/, in another. The 
 other orthoepists, therefore, who pronounce both 
 these words with the oo like ^, are more consistent 
 than Mr. Sheridan, though, upon the whole, not 
 so right." — Walker. 
 
 sobtlie. 
 
 "77i, at the end of words, is sharp, as deat/), 
 breath, etc., except in beneath, booth, loith, and 
 the verbs to seeth, to smooth, to sooth, to mouth, 
 all Avhich ought to be Avritten with e final, not 
 only to distinguish some of them from the nouns, 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 0. 
 
1G9 
 
 but to show that th is soft ; for th., when final, is 
 sometimes j^ronounced soft, as in to inouth / yet 
 the^ at the end of words, is never pronounced 
 hard. There is as obvious an analogy for this 
 sound of th in these verbs, as for the z sound of 
 s in verbs ending in se ; and why we shouhl 
 write some verbs with <?, and others without it, is 
 inconceivable. The best way to show the ab- 
 surdity of our orthography, in this particular, 
 will be to draw out the nouns and verbs as they 
 stand in Johnson's Dictionary : 
 
 Nouns ^ etc. Verbs. 
 
 Bath, to bathe. 
 
 Breath, to breathe. 
 
 rioth i ^° clotlie, 
 
 ^^^"'' j to uneloath. 
 Loath, to loathe. 
 Mouth, to mouth. 
 
 JVoiins, etc. Verbs. 
 
 Sheath, to sheath, sheathe. 
 
 StQooth, to smooth. 
 
 Sooth, to sooth. 
 
 Swath, to swatlie. 
 
 Wreath, ) J<^ ^yr^'-^lK 
 
 ' ( to mwreathe. 
 
 "Surely nothing can be more evident than 
 the analogy of the language in this case. Is it 
 not absurd to hesitate a moment at writing all 
 the verbs with e final? This is a departure from 
 our great lexicographer which he himself would 
 apj)rove, as nothing but inadvertency could have 
 led him into this unmeaning irregularity." — 
 Walker. 
 
 "Although AValkcr speaks so decidedly on 
 this matter, yet he has not accommodated the 
 orthography of all these words to the principle 
 which he inculcates. It could be wished that all 
 the words of this class were conformed in their 
 orthography to this rule. The only ones which 
 are not now actually, by respectable usage, con- 
 formed to it, are the verbs to mouth and to 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
170 
 
 smooth, which we hardly ever see written t) 
 inouthe and to smoothed — Worcester. 
 
 s(x)tli'say-er, not sobtii'-. 
 s5p-o-rif' ic, not so-po-. 
 s5r'ry, not saw'iy. 
 sou2:li — -stif. 
 souse, not soiiz. 
 souvenir — sov'ner'. 
 sov'er-eio*!!, or s5v'-. 
 
 In England the o of this word is generally 
 sounded like o in on, while in the United States 
 it is generally sounded like o in so}i. 
 
 spaniel — sp^n 'y el . 
 sp^§m, not sp^z'mia. 
 specialty — spesli'al-te. 
 species — spe'sliez, or -shez. 
 
 A tautophonic objection to the second mark- 
 ing will, probably, make the first one generally 
 preferred. 
 
 specious — spe'shus. 
 
 sper-ma-ce'ti. 
 
 sphe'roid. 
 
 spinach, or spinage — spin'ej. 
 
 ^- .1. ■ .-.I.. — . I. . ■■■■II.. I— - ■ » 
 
 See Key to Pronnneiation, p. G. 
 
171 
 
 spir it, not spir'iit. 
 
 "The general sound of the first ^, in this 
 word and all its compounds, Avas till lately the 
 sound of G in merit ; but a very laudable atten- 
 tion to propriety has nearly restored the i to its 
 true sound ; and now spirit sounded as if written 
 sperit begins to grow vulgar." — Walker. 
 
 spir'it-ed, 7iot spir'et-iid. 
 
 splen'e-tic. 
 
 spruce, not spriice. See accrue. 
 
 squalid — squ5rid, not squ^il'-. 
 
 squa'lor. 
 
 This is the marking of all the dictionaries ; 
 but universal usage makes the word squd'lor. 
 
 squirrel — skwtir'rel, skwir'-, or skwer'-. 
 
 " The i in this word ought not, according to 
 analogy, to be pronounced like e; but custom 
 seems to have fixed it too firmly in that sound to 
 be altered without the appearance of pedantry." 
 — Walker. 
 
 ^ee jxmeffi/ric. The above note assumes that 
 the word must be pronounced with the sound 
 either of short ^ or of short e ; but in this coun- 
 try the general pronunciation is that first given. 
 
 stal'wart, or st5l'-. 
 st^mp, not st5mp. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
172 
 
 stanch, not stanch, 
 stead — steel, Hot stid. 
 stead'y, oiot stid'y. 
 steeryard. 
 
 Colloquially in the United States, std'yard j 
 in England, according to Smart, sttl'i/ard. 
 
 " This word, in common usage among those 
 who weigh heavy bodies, has contracted its double 
 e into single i, and is pronounced as if written 
 stllyard. This contraction is so common, in com- 
 pound words of this kind, as to become an idiom 
 of pronunciation, which can not be easily coun- 
 teracted without oj^posing the current of the lan- 
 guage." — Wcdker. 
 
 " It is sometimes written stlllyardy — Crahb. 
 
 ste're-0-scope, or ster'e-. 
 ste're-o-type, or ster'e-. 
 steward — stii'ard, Qiot stn'-. 
 stint, not stent, 
 stir'rup, or sttir'rup. 
 st5l'id, not sto'lid. 
 stom'a-clicr, not -ker. 
 
 • .7 
 
 stone, not stun, 
 ston'y, not stim'e. 
 storm, not stawm. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciatiou, p. 6. 
 
173 
 
 stra-teg'ic, or -te'gic. 
 
 Webster and Cull are the only authorities for 
 the second pronunciation. 
 
 strength, not strenth. 
 strew — strii, or stro. 
 
 The first place is given here to stru because 
 that is the marking of the majority of the ortho- 
 epists, and because both Worcester and Webster 
 give it the preference. The writer personally pre- 
 fers stro, thinking it the easier of utterance and 
 the more sonorous ; in fact, the sound of long o 
 is the most sonorous sound in the language. 
 
 stry^li'nine, or -nine. 
 
 stu'dent, not stu'-. See adduce, 
 
 stu-pen'dotis. 
 
 stu'pid, not stu'-. 
 
 suavity — sw^v'e-te, not su-^a^'-. 
 
 sub-al'tern. 
 
 • •• • 
 
 The antepenultimate accentuation of this 
 word is becoming obsolete. 
 
 sub-due', not -du'. See adduce. 
 
 . 7 •• 
 
 sub-ject'ed, not stib'Ject-ed. 
 
 " A very improper accentuation [sfih'ject-ed) 
 of the passive participle of the verb to subject 
 has obtained, which ought to be corrected." — 
 Walker'. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
174 
 
 siib-lu'nar. 
 siib'la-na-iy. 
 
 subpoena — stib-pe'na, not sup-, 
 sub-si'dence, not sUb'sk 
 substantiate — sub-stiln'slie-at. 
 siib'stan-tive-ly, not sub-st^n'-. 
 subtile, tliin, rare, fine — siib'til. 
 subtle, sly, artful, cunning — sut'l. 
 
 These two words are often confounded with 
 each other both in orthography and pronuncia- 
 tion. 
 
 sub'iirb, not su'burb. 
 
 stib-urb'an. 
 
 siicb, not sech, nor sich. 
 
 sud'den, not sud'n. 
 
 suffice — suf-f iz', not -fis'. See sacrifice. 
 
 sug'gest'. 
 
 Smart marks this word siid-jest'. 
 
 "Though the first g in exagc/erate is, by a 
 carelessness of pronunciation, assimilated to the 
 last, this is not always the case in the present 
 word. For, though we sometimes hear it sounded 
 as if written sud-jest, the most correct speakers 
 generally preserve the first and last g in their 
 distinct and separate sounds." — Walker. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
175 
 
 sii-i-ci'dal, not su-ic'i-dal. 
 
 suite — swet, not siit. 
 
 sul-ta'na, or -tii'-. 
 
 sul-pliii'ric. 
 
 sum'ma-ry, not -mer-e. 
 
 summoned — sum'mund, not -munzd. 
 
 su'per-a-ble. 
 
 su-per-e-r5g'a-to-iy, or su-per-er'o-ga- 
 
 su-per'flu-ous, oiot su-per-flii'-. 
 
 Suppe, F. Yon — zcJb'pe. 
 
 supple — stip'pl, not sob'pL 
 
 sup-po§e', not spoz. 
 
 sure — shnr, not sliur. 
 
 surety — shiir'te, not sliur'te. 
 
 sur-named'. 
 
 sur-pri§e', not sup-. 
 
 sur-vey', verb, 
 
 sur'vey, noun, 
 
 Su'§an, not su'-. 
 
 suture — siit'yur. 
 
 swartli'y, not swatli'y. 
 
 swatli — sw5tli. 
 
 sword — sord. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
176 
 
 syl-Mb'ic. 
 syn'ocl, not si'n5d. 
 syr'inge, not syr-inge 
 sys'to-le. 
 
 • / 
 
 T. 
 
 This letter is silent in the terminations te7i 
 and tie after s and /* as in fasten, listen, often, 
 soften, gristle, castle, throstle, bristle, etc. It is 
 also silent in the words chestnut, Christmas, host- 
 ler or ostler, mistletoe, and mortrjage. 
 
 tiib'or-na-cle. 
 
 tableau ; ])l.^ tableaux (Fr.) — ta'blo'. 
 
 Tal-mtid'ic. 
 
 t^p'es-try, not t%)s'tre, nor ta'pes-tre. 
 
 tapis (Fr.) — ta'pe'. 
 
 tar-paulin, not tar-po'lin. 
 
 Tarpeian — tiir-pe'yan. 
 
 Tar-ta're-an, not tiir-ta-re'an. 
 
 tar-t^r'ic, not tar-tar'ic. 
 
 t^s'sel. 
 
 The authority for saying tos'sl is very slight 
 and antiquated. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6, 
 
177 
 
 t^t-ter-cle-m^l'ion, not -marion. 
 Taubert (Ger.) — tow'bert. 
 taunt — tant. 
 Several of the older orthoepists said taicnt^ 
 
 t^v'ern, not ta'vern. 
 
 Tchaikowsky, P. — clii-kuvs'ke. 
 
 teat — tet, not tit. 
 
 tedious — te de-US, or ted'yus. 
 
 te-leg'ra-pliy, not tere-gntpli-y. 
 
 Telemaclius — te-leni'a-kus. 
 
 tem'per-a-ment, not -rnunt. See ailment. 
 
 tem'per-at-ure, or tem'per-a-tiire. 
 
 ten'a-ble, not te'na-. 
 
 tenacious — te-na'slms, not -n^sli'us. 
 
 ten'et, not te'net. 
 
 Some of the older orthoepists said tt'net, but 
 now the weight of authority is decidedly in favor 
 of the marking we have given. 
 
 tenure — ten'yiir. 
 tep'id, not tepid, 
 ter-gi-ver-sa'tion. 
 ter'ra-pin, not tiir'-. 
 Tei'psicliore — terp-sik'o-re. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
178 
 
 Terp-si-elio-re'an. 
 tete-^-tete (Fr.)— tat'-a'-tat'. 
 Tha-li^i. 
 
 tli^nks'giv-iiig, or tliauks-giv'ing. 
 tiie, when empliatlc ; otherwise^ tiie. 
 the'a-tre, not tlie'a-tre. 
 tlieir — tii4r, when em])hatlc; otherwise^ 
 tiier. 
 
 *' Hearing tlieir \tlie,r^ conversation and their 
 ?Aer] accounts of the \the\ approbation their 
 ther\ papers were received with, I was excited 
 to try my [m/] hand among them [^A'??i]," — 
 Franklin. 
 
 " If their \thch'\ loss were as great as yours, it 
 would bankrupt them [tJt'm].'''' 
 
 t]iem, wlien emphatic ; othenvisej thorn, 
 or tii'iii. 
 
 "If you give me [me] money, what are you 
 going to give them [them] ? " 
 
 " If I had them [t/i^m] now, I should know 
 what to do with them [i?A'>>i]." 
 
 tlier-a-peu'tic. 
 therefore — tiier'for. 
 
 Thougli tlidr'for is permissible, it is generally 
 accounted inelegant. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
179 
 
 thereof — tiier-5v', or tiier-^;!?'. 
 there- witli', or -witii^ 
 Tlieuriet, Andre — tu're-a'. 
 they — tlia, lolien emjyliatic ; oilier wise, 
 tha. 
 
 " We'll see our husbands before they \thct\ think 
 
 of us." 
 "Shall they [Ma] see us?" 
 
 "So she asked him what they \th(i\ were, 
 whence they \th(t\ came, and whither they \thq\ 
 were bound." 
 
 Tliiers — te-ar'. 
 
 thousand — thou'zand, not -zan. 
 
 threw — thru. 
 
 three-legged — three'-legd, or -leg-g6d. 
 
 thresh'old, or -hohl. 
 
 thr5ng. See accost. ' 
 
 thyme — tim. 
 
 ti-a'ra, or ti-a'ra. 
 
 ticklish, not -el-ish. 
 
 tid'bit. 
 
 tiers etat (Fr.) — te-ar' za'ta'. 
 
 ti'ny, not tin'y, nor te'ny. 
 
 ti-rade'. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 12 
 
180 
 
 to — to, or to, depending npon tlie stress 
 it receives. 
 
 " From morn 
 To \to\ noon lie fell, from noon to [?o] dewy eve." 
 
 We say, " lie is at home," not " to [to] home." 
 
 to-ma'to, or -ma'-. 
 
 tobth'aclie, not teeth'ache. 
 
 to-p5g'ra-pliy. 
 
 t5p-o-gr^pli'ic, not to-po-. 
 
 tortoise — tor'tiz, or -tis, not -tois. 
 
 Toulmouche — tool 'mobsli'. 
 
 tout-a-fait (Fr.)— tob'-ta'-fa'. 
 
 tout court (Fr.) — too lv(X)i'. 
 
 toward — to'ard, not to-ward'. 
 
 towards — to'ardz, not to-wai'dz'. 
 
 .7 ... 
 
 " No*lwithstanding our poets almost univer- 
 sally accent this word on the lirst syllable, and 
 the poets are pretty generally followed by good 
 speakers, there are some, and those not of tho 
 lowest order, who still place the accent on thti 
 second. These should be reminded that, as in- 
 wards, outirards, backwards, f or icards, and every 
 other word of the same form, have the accent on 
 the first svllable, there is not the least reason for 
 pronouncing towards with the accent on the last." 
 — Walker. 
 
 See Kty to rronunciation, p. 6. 
 
181 
 
 tranquil — tr^ng'kwi 1 . 
 
 tr^ns-^ct', not tr^nz-. 
 
 transition — tr^n-sizli'uii, or -sisL'un. 
 
 tr^ns-lu'cent, not -In'-. 
 
 tr^ns'mi-o-rate. 
 
 trd.ns-par'ont, not -pa'-. 
 
 tr^ns-pire'. 
 
 This word is frequently misased in the sense 
 of to Juqypen, to occur. It is properly used in the 
 sense of to become known. 
 
 tr^v'el, not tr^v'l. 
 tr^v'el-ler, not triiv'ler. 
 tr^v'erse, not tra-verse'. 
 
 .7 • 
 
 treble — treb'l, not trib'l. 
 
 This is one of the long list of words which 
 are differently marked in the later editions of 
 Webster's dictionary from what they were for- 
 merly. 
 
 tre-men'dons, not -mend'yii-us. 
 tre'mor, or trem'or. 
 
 • 7 • 
 
 tri-bii'nal. 
 
 trib'ime, not tri'bnn. 
 tri'6, or tri'o. 
 trip'ar-tite. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
182 
 
 triphthong — trif 'th5ng, or trip'-. 
 
 " Two aspirations in succession, says Mr. El- 
 phinston, seem disagreeable to an English ear, 
 and therefore one of them is generally sunk. 
 Thus diphtliong and tripJithonrf are pronounced 
 dipthong and triptliong. P is lost, as well as A, 
 in apophthegm ; and therefore it is no wonder 
 we hear the first h dropped in ophthalmy and 
 ophthalmic, which is the pronunciation I have 
 adopted, as agreeable to analogy. Nay, such an 
 aversion do we seem to have to a succession of 
 aspirates, that the h is sunk in isthmus, Esther, 
 and Demosthenes [?], because the s, which is akin 
 to the aspiration, immediately precedes. Mr. 
 Sheridan pronounces the first syllable of ophthal- 
 mic like off, but the first of diphthong and triph- 
 thong like dip and trip. Mr. Scott, W. Johnston, 
 and Mr. Perry pronounce diphthong and triph- 
 thong in the same manner as Mr. Sheridan. Dr. 
 Kenrick gives no pronunciation to diphthong, but 
 makes the h silent in triphthong ; while Barclay 
 pronounces the h in oplithalmic, but makes it 
 either way in dijjhthong, and silent in triphthong. 
 It may be remarked that Dr. Jones, who wrote a 
 spelling dictionary in Queen Anne's time, makes 
 the h in those two words silent." — Walker, 
 
 trisyllable — tris-sil'la-bl, or tris'-. 
 triv'i-al. 
 The older orthoepists say tfir'gal. 
 
 troche — tro'ke. 
 
 Bee Koy to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
183 
 
 trochee — t ro 'ke. 
 
 tro'pliy. 
 
 tr5tli, not troth. 
 
 trou'§er§, not -zez. 
 
 trousseau (Fr.) — trob'so'. 
 
 tru'ant. See accrue. 
 
 • • • 
 
 true, not trii. 
 
 truffle. 
 
 tiTiucheou — truu'shuu. 
 
 truth, not truth. 
 
 truths, not trutiig. 
 
 tube, not tub. 
 
 tu'ber-ose, tu'ber-o§e, or tiibe'roge. 
 
 The first of these markings has the fewest 
 authorities in its favor, but tliey are among the 
 latest — Smart, Cooley, and Cull ; and the Web- 
 ster "Unabridged" gives it the second place — 
 after tuhe'rose., which is a corruption resulting 
 from the accidental resemblance of the word to 
 a compound of tube and rose. The second mark- 
 ing, in retaining the soft sound of the s, goes only 
 half-w^ay in rejecting the vulgarism. The word 
 comes from the Latin adjective tuberosi(S, and 
 should have the sharp sound of s, like all other 
 words of similar derivation, as morose, verbose, 
 etc.; and this, we believe, is the actual pronun- 
 ciation of the majority of educated speakers. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
184 
 
 Tues'day, not tuz'-. See adduce. 
 
 Tuileries (Fr.) — twele-re'. 
 
 tii'lip, not tu'-. 
 
 tu'inidt, not tu'-. 
 
 tuue, not tun. 
 
 tiii''gid. 
 
 turkois, or tur(]^uoise — tur-koiz', or kez'. 
 
 tu'tor, not tu'-. 
 
 ty'phus, not ti'pus. 
 
 tj^p-o-gntpli'ic, or ty-po-. 
 
 ty-ran^uic. 
 
 tyr'an-ny, not ty'ran-. 
 
 tzar (for czar) — zar. 
 
 tzarina (for czarina) — za-re'nii. 
 
 This is a remarkable instance of defeat of 
 good intentions. The proper sound of cz in these 
 Slavic words is that of ts, and some English 
 writers have spelt them with a t in order to get 
 them pronounced correctly ; but our lexicogra- 
 phers, assuming that this was merely an unmean- 
 ing variation of the orthography, have inserted 
 them as above Avith the same lazy pronunciation 
 given in English to the original forms. It should 
 be remembered that, as a rule, there are few or wo 
 entirely ineffective letters in any of the Euro- 
 pean languages, the English and the French ex- 
 cepted. 
 
 Bee Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
185 
 U. 
 
 This vowel was formerly the same letter as 
 the consonant v, and the two forms were inter- 
 changeable for both purposes ; and, though the 
 consonant and vowel have very different uses, 
 their representation came to be discriminated 
 only at a comparatively recent period. 
 
 The sound of this letter in French has no 
 equivalent in English, and therefore can not be 
 represented with English characters. In German 
 it is sounded like double o in English ; followed 
 by e, or with two points over it (m), it is sounded 
 precisely like u in French. 
 
 tirti-ma TM'le. 
 
 til-ti-ma'tum, or -ma'tum. 
 
 We frequently hear this word pronounced 
 with the a broadened, and this pronunciation can 
 not be said to be really incorrect, although it is 
 not sanctioned by any of the dictionaries. This 
 remark applies with equal force to apparatus, 
 armada, bravado, datum, desperado, gratis, ig- 
 noramus, lava, octave, octavo^ panorama, p)rome- 
 nade, etc. All these words are of foreign origin, 
 even to their form, and to many ears are more 
 euphonious with a broadened a. 
 
 til-tra-m5n'tane. 
 
 • 
 
 til-u-la'tion. 
 um-bi-li'cus. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
186 
 
 umbrageous — um-bra'ju8, or -je-us. 
 
 tim-brerici, not tim-ber-era. 
 
 tin-as-sum'ins:, not -sum'-. 
 
 un-bat'ed, not b^t'-. 
 
 *' With a little shuffling, you may choose 
 A sword unbatecV* — Hamlet. 
 
 uu-civ'il, oiot -civ'l, nor civ til. 
 uucourteous — uu-kur'te-tis, or -kort'ytis. 
 tiu-coutli', not -coutii'. 
 uuctuous — uugkt'yu-tis. 
 uudamited — tiu-daut'ed, not -dauut'-. 
 un-der-ueatii', not -ueatli'. 
 uu-der-sisrued'. 
 
 uudiscerned — tiu-diz-ziiriid'. See sacri- 
 fice, 
 tin-ex-pect'ed, not -ud. Sae ailmeut. 
 uu-fre-queut'ed, not im-frc'queut-ed. 
 tin-fruit 'fiil, not -friit'-. 
 
 • • 7 
 
 uu mient — tiu o-'c: went, 
 unhandsome — un-lutn'sum. 
 unlieard — tin-lierd'. 
 Webster said kn-htnV . 
 
 1in-in'ter-est-ed. 
 
 • • « 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
187 
 
 tm-in'ter-est-inor. 
 
 One of the most common of errors is the mis- 
 placing of the accent of the verb interest and its 
 derivatives. See note on interesting. 
 
 unison — yti'ne-sun. . 
 
 Smart says yn'm-ziXn. 
 
 ii-nit'ed-ly, not -ud-. 
 
 tm-kind'ness, not -niis. See ailment. 
 
 un-lcarn'ed, culj.^ not -l?rnd. 
 
 iin-mask', not -niiisk'. See advance. 
 
 tin-preg'e-dent-ed, not -^^re'ce-. 
 
 im-ruly. See accrue. 
 
 unscathed — un-skiitlit', or -skatlit'. 
 
 tin-tune', not -tun'. 
 
 un-tii'tored, not -tu'-. 
 
 • 7 • • 
 
 unvanquislied — tin-v^ng'kwislit, 
 
 un-wa'iy. 
 
 lip 'most, not -mtist. 
 
 tJ'ra-nus. 
 
 usage — yii'zaj, not -saj. 
 
 usurious — y u-zliu 'ri-tis. 
 
 u-§iirp', not -siirp'. 
 
 uxorious — uo-z-o 'n-iis. 
 
 See Koy to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
188 
 
 V. 
 
 This character represents a uniform conso- 
 nant sound, and is never silent. (See U.) 
 
 In German the letter v invariably has the 
 sound of/*, excej^t in words derived from foreign 
 languages. 
 
 vac'^iue, o/' vac'ciue. 
 
 va-ga'ry, not va^ga-ry. 
 
 "They changed their minds, 
 Flew off, and into strange vagaries fell 
 As they would dance." — Milton. 
 
 v^l'et ; ill Frencli, v^Vla'. 
 
 valet de chambre (Freneli) — va'la' de 
 
 sli5n2:'br. 
 va-lise', or -li§e'. 
 
 viHu-a-ble, not v^ru-bl, nor v^rii-a-bl. 
 vanquisli — v^ng'kwisli. 
 Ya'ri-e-o:ate, not va-ri'-. 
 va'ri-e-o:at-ed. 
 va'ri-0-loid, not vttr'i-. 
 va-ri-6'nim. 
 vase, or va§e. 
 
 For the pronunciation vilz^ in imitation of the 
 French sound — more frequently heard in Eng- 
 
 Sed Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
189 
 
 land than with us — there is no authority what- 
 ever ; nor is there authority for vawz, which was 
 only ^jJcrm^Y^eJc^ by Jameson. The pronunciation 
 to which we give the first place is unquestionably 
 the most rational and most euphonious, especially 
 in the plural. 
 
 '' I have a pretty fancy for bric-a-brac and antique vases; 
 Know how to carve a cabinet and make books on the 
 races." 
 
 vaunt, or vaunt. 
 
 ve'he-mence, not ve-he'mence. 
 
 ve'he-ment, 7iot ve-he'ment. 
 
 vel'vet, not -vit. 
 
 ven-diie', not -clu'. 
 
 Venezuela — ven-e-zwe'la, or -zwa'la. 
 
 ve'ni-al, or venial. 
 
 venison — ven'zn, or ven'e-zn. 
 
 This word is rarely pronounced in three sylla- 
 bles. 
 
 venue — ven'yu, not ve'nu. 
 veraciotis — ve-ra'sluis, not -r^sli'us. 
 ver-bose', not -hoz'. 
 ver'di-gris, not -gris. 
 verdure — verd'yur, or -yiir. 
 vermicelli — ver-me-sere, or -cliere. 
 vermilion — ver-mil'yun, not -mire-un. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
190 
 
 version — ver'sliun, not -zliuii. 
 ver'ti-2:o, ver-ti'-, or ver-fi'-. 
 vesture — vest^ur. 
 ves'sel, not ves'l. 
 vet'er-i-na-iy, not vet'ri-iia-iy. 
 Vibert — ve'bar'. 
 vig'i-nage. 
 
 vig'i-nal, or vi-ci'nal. 
 vi-cis'si-tu le. See adduce, 
 vic'to-ry, not vic'try. 
 victuals — vit'tlz. 
 
 *This corruption, like most others, has ter- 
 minated in the generation of a new word ; for no 
 solemnity will allow of pronouncing this word as 
 it is written. Victuals appeared to Swift so con- 
 trary to the real sound, that, in some of his manu- 
 script remarks, he spells the word vittles.-' — 
 Walker. 
 
 villain — vU'lin, 7iot vil'lun. 
 
 vin'di-ca-tive, or vin-dic'a-tive. 
 
 vin'di-ca-to-ry. 
 
 vi'o-lence, not -Itince. 
 
 vi'o-lent, not -liint. See ailment. 
 
 vi-ra'go, or vi-ra'-, 7iot -ra'-. 
 
 ^■" — ■ - - ■ ■ ■ 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
191 
 
 Vircliow — fir'ko. 
 
 virile — vi'ril, or vir'iL 
 
 virtue — virt'yu. 
 
 " Dr. Hill published, in a pamphlet, a petition 
 from the letters Zand C^to David Garrick, Esq., 
 both complaining of terrible grievances imposed 
 upon them by that great actor, who frequently 
 banished them from their proper stations, as in 
 the word virtue, which, they said, he converted 
 into vurtue ; and, in the word wigratefid, he dis- 
 placed the u, and made it iiigrateful, to the great 
 prejudice of the said letters. To this complaint 
 Garrick replied in the following epigram : 
 
 ' If it is, as you say, that I've injured a letter, 
 I'll change my note soon, and, I hope, for the better. 
 May the right use of letters, as well as of men, 
 Hereafter be fixed by the tongue and the pen. 
 Most devoutly I wish they may both have their due, 
 And that / may be never mistaken for fT.' " 
 
 — Walker. 
 
 vir'u-lence, not vir'-. 
 
 vir'u-lent. 
 
 It will be observed that i in these two words 
 has the sound of i in vista. 
 
 viscount — vi'kount. 
 
 vi§'or. 
 
 There is but little authority for vTzor. It is 
 only permitted in the later editions of Webster. 
 
 visual — vizli 'u-al. 
 
 ^ — -■ — — — — ■ _ ■ . — % 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
192 
 
 vivacious — vi-vri'shu-i, not -vuslrus. 
 vizier — viz'yer, or -yer. 
 vo'ca-ble, not v5c'a-. 
 v6ra-tile, not -til. 
 
 • 7 
 
 v5l-ca'uo, not -ca'no. 
 
 The latter pronunciation, although etymolog- 
 ically correct, is so seldom heard as to sound 
 pedantic. 
 
 volume — v5ryum. 
 Webster said vol'iun. 
 von (Ger.) — fun, not v5n. 
 
 This German monosyllable is pronounced pre- 
 cisely like the English word fitn^ except that its 
 utterance is somewhat shorter or more abrupt. 
 Hence we should ssij fiin (not voji) Arnim, etc. 
 
 w. 
 
 This letter is a consonant (or more correctly 
 a semi-vowel) at the beginning of a word or of a 
 syllable, and when preceded by a consonant in 
 the same syllable. Its combination with a pre- 
 ceding a in the same syllable produces the sound 
 of broad a in hall, as in lawn ; with e, a diph- 
 thong sounding like long k, as in n"w, or, if pre- 
 ceded by r or y, like the u in rule — i. e,, like 
 long 00 — as in crew, yew • with o, the diph- 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
193 
 
 thongal sound sometimes also represented by ou, 
 as in tov:)n^ or that of long o (the w having no 
 effect), as in gloio. 
 
 It is always silent before r in the same sylla- 
 ble, as in icrite, v'ring, loren, wrong ^ etc.; it is 
 likewise silent in the words sicordy answer , two, 
 toward. 
 
 Before another vowel in the same syllable, it 
 is frequently represented by ii, as in languor, 
 question, etc. 
 
 In German, v:) has the sound of v in English. 
 
 waft, not Avaft. See advance. 
 
 Warner — vao:'nGr. 
 
 Wa-lia'bee§. 
 
 waistcoat — wast'kot, or wes'kot. 
 
 wan — ^v5n, not w^n. 
 
 "Mr. Sheridan has given the a, in this word 
 and its compounds, the same sound as in nia)i, 
 Mr. Scott and Dr. Kenrick have given both the 
 sound I have given and Mr. Sheridan's, but seem 
 to prefer the former by placing it first. I have 
 always heard it pronounced like the first syllable 
 of wan-ton ; and find Mr. Nares, W. Johnston, 
 and Mr. Perry have so marked it." — Walker, 
 
 war'y, or war'y. 
 
 wassail — wfts'sil. 
 
 weapon — wep'n, not we'pn. 
 
 well, not w^l. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation. \). 0. 
 
194 
 
 we, or we, according to the stress it 
 slioiikl receive. 
 
 " We \\iie\ go to Boston ; they to Chicago." 
 " We \}oe\ hope to see you when we \}np\ ar- 
 rive ; if we \yoe\ do not, we \ioe\ shall be disap- 
 pointed." 
 
 Weber — va'ber. 
 west'ward, not -iird. 
 wharf, not worf. 
 where'fore, not ^vdier'for. 
 
 A goodly number of the orthoepists say ichdr'- 
 for, and Smart is among them. 
 
 where-with', or -^vitli'. 
 
 where- witii-al'. 
 
 whetii'er, not Avetii'-. 
 
 which, not wich. 
 
 while, not wile. 
 
 whis'key, not wis'-. 
 
 whole — hole, not htil. See cooper. 
 
 whole 'sale, not hiil'-. 
 
 Wieland — ve land. 
 
 wife ; 2^oss€ssive, ^vife's, not wives. 
 
 Winckelmann — vink'el-man. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, j). G. 
 
195 
 
 Vv'ind, or wind. 
 
 " These two modes of pronnnciat ion have been 
 long contending for superiority, till at last the 
 former [lotncl] seems to have gained a complete 
 victory, except in the territories of rhyme. . . . 
 Mr. Sheridan tells us that Swift used to jeer 
 those who pronounced icind with the ^ short, by 
 saying, 'I have a great mmd to find why you 
 pronounce it icmd.^ A very illiberal critic re- 
 torted this upon Mr. Sheridan by saying, 'If I 
 may be so boold, I should be glad to be toold 
 why you pronounce it r/oold.^ . . . Mr. Sheridan 
 and Mr. Scott give the same preference to the 
 first sound of this word that I have done. Dr. 
 Kenrick and Mr. Barclay give only the short 
 sound. Mr. Perry joins them in this sound, but 
 says in dramatic scenes it has the long one. Mr. 
 Nares says it has certainly the short sound in 
 common usage, but that all our best poets rhyme 
 it with inind, Idnd^ etc.; and Mr. Smith observes 
 that it is now the polite pronunciation, though 
 against analogy." — Walker. 
 
 AvincVpipe. 
 
 'Wind' pipe is antiquated. 
 wind'ward, not -iird. 
 wi§e'a-cre. 
 
 Worcester says wise'a-ere, 
 mtii, preposition^ not with, 
 with, or withe, a twig — mth. 
 
 See Key to Pronaaciation, p 6. 
 
196 
 
 women — wim'en, not -im. 
 
 wont, verb and noun — wtint. 
 
 won't — wont, not wiint. 
 
 wonted — wtint'ed. 
 
 word — werd. See advertisement. 
 
 work — werk. 
 
 world — world. 
 
 worst, verb and adj. — worst. 
 
 worsted — wobst'ed, or wobrst'ed. 
 
 worth — worth, not wiitb. 
 
 wound — wobnd, not wownd, wliich is 
 
 antiquated, 
 wrath. 
 
 Smart says rath. 
 wrath'ftil. 
 wreath, noim — reth, 7iot retli ; pluralj 
 
 wreaths — retiiz, not reths, 
 wreathe, verb — reth. 
 wrestle — res 'si. 
 wrestler — resler. 
 wristband — rist band. 
 wr5ng. See accost, 
 wroth, adj. — rawth, or r5th. 
 
 See Key to Pronunci:itit)n. p. 6. 
 
197 
 
 X. 
 
 The rejxiilar sound of this letter is like Is, as 
 in tax, excuse, etc. 
 
 It has a soft or flat sound like gz when the 
 following syllable begins with an accented vowel, 
 as in exist, example, etc. It also has the sound of 
 gz in some words derived from primitives which 
 have that sound, when not followed by an ac- 
 cented vowel, as in exemplary. 
 
 When x begins a word, it has the sound of z, 
 as in xt'hec (ztbek). 
 
 xitn'tlie-ine. 
 
 xerophagy — ze-r5f'a-je. 
 xy-l5g'ra-pliy. 
 xy-loi'dine. 
 
 Y. 
 
 This letter at the end of a word, preceded by 
 a consonant, is generally pronounced short and 
 indistinct like obscure e, as in many, comely, pol- 
 icy, etc. The exceptions are monosyllables and 
 their compounds, as dry, fiy, by, whereby, icry, 
 awry, etc.; verbs ending in/y, as magnify, beau- 
 tify, and a few others — for example, supply, mul- 
 tiply, reply, etc. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
198 
 
 The sound oLy is heard in many positions 
 whore it is either unexpressed, or is represented 
 by i or e / as in imion (yUn'yun), rUjliteous {i'lV- 
 yus), etc. 
 
 yaclit — y5t, not y^t. 
 ycleped — e-klept'. 
 
 yes. 
 
 Walker and several other orthoepists said y1,s, 
 but this pronunciation is now obsolete. 
 
 yesterday — yes'ter-da, or -da. 
 yet, not yit. 
 
 "The e in this word is frequently changed by 
 incorrect speakers into i ; but, though this change 
 is agreeable to the best and most established 
 usage in the word yes^ in yet it is the mark of 
 incorrectness and vulgarity. 
 
 " Dr. Kenrick is the only orthoepist who gives 
 any countenance to this incorrectness, by admit- 
 ting it as a second pronunciation ; but Mr. Sher- 
 idan, Mr. Scott, W. Johnston, Mr. Perry, and Mr. 
 Smith give the regular sound only." — Walker. 
 
 yew— yu. 
 
 yolk — yok, or yolk. 
 y5ii'der, not ySn'-, nor yim'-. 
 you — yu, wlien empliatie ; otlieriolse^ ye, 
 not ye. 
 
 8oe Key to Pronunciatiou, p. G. 
 
199 
 
 your — juY^ when einpliatic ; otherivise^ 
 yiir, or yer. 
 
 In the latter case the word is pronounced pre- 
 cisely like the last syllable in the word lawyer. 
 
 *' What judgment shall I dread, doing no wrong? 
 You {ye\ have among you \ye\ many a purchased slave, 
 Which, like your \_yiir\ asses and your [yui-] dogs and 
 
 mules, 
 You \ye\ use in ahject and in slavish parts, 
 Because you \ye\ bought them \tlCrii\-^ shall I say to 
 
 you {ye\ ' 
 Let them [Win] be free, marry them [th'')n] to your [ynr] 
 
 heirs ? 
 Why sweat they [tJia] under their [tlier] burdens? let 
 
 their [thd?'] beds 
 Be made as soft as yours [ynrz]^ let their \flidr] palates 
 Be seasoned with such viands. You* will answer, 
 The slaves are ours! So do I answer you [yti]. 
 The pound of flesli which I demand of him * 
 Is dearly bought, is mine, and I will have it ! 
 If you * deny me [me], fie upon your [yur] law ! 
 There [thei'] is no force in the decrees of Venice. 
 I stand for judgment : — answer: shall I have it? " 
 
 — Shy lock. 
 
 The writer would take occasion now to say 
 that he is not of opinion that the sound of the 
 pronouns should always either be brought out 
 distinctly and fully, or that it should be touched 
 very lightly, in strict accordance with the mark- 
 ings he has given, which are intended to repre- 
 
 * Here the rhythm and not the sense lengthens the vowel 
 "oniGwhat, which accounts for the quantity of the sound being 
 loft unindieated. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
200 
 
 sent only the two e?'tre'mes. Much must be left 
 to the discretion of the reader, who, it is believed, 
 if he takes the trouble to observe and to give the 
 matter a little thought, will quickly come to the 
 conclusion that nothing tends more to make one's 
 delivery stilted and unnatural than the continual 
 bringing out of the full name-sound of the pro- 
 nouns, after the fashion of so many of the would- 
 be correct. 
 
 z. 
 
 This letter has the sound of soft s, as in inaze, 
 gaze, zone. In some words, combined with a 
 succeeding vowel, it has the sound of zh, as in 
 azure, glazier, etc. 
 
 In German, it has the sound of ts ; in Span- 
 ish, that of th as in thin, or (in Spanish America) 
 of sharp s as in sun. 
 
 Zamacois (Sp.) — tlia-ma-ko'is. 
 
 zealot — zerot, not ze'lot. 
 
 "There are few words better confirmed by 
 authority in their departure from the sound of 
 their simples than this and zealous. If custom 
 were less decided, I should certainly give my 
 vote for the long sound of the diphthong ; but, 
 as propriety of pronunciation may be called a 
 compound ratio of usage and analogy, the short 
 sound must, in this case, be called the proper 
 one." — Walker. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
201 
 
 ze'nith. 
 
 "I never once called in doubt the pronuncia- 
 tion of this word till I was told that mathemati- 
 cians generally make the first syllable short. 
 Upon consulting our orthoepists, I find all who 
 have the word, and who give the quantity of the 
 vowels, make the e long, except Entick. ... If 
 this majority were not so great and so respect- 
 able, the analogy of words of this form ought to 
 decide." — Vt^alker. 
 
 Smart says zen'ith. 
 
 Zeus, not Ze'us. 
 zo-5ro-gy, not zg-. 
 z6-o-l5o:'i-cal, not zo-o-. 
 Ziinz (Ger.) — tsobnts. 
 
 SUPPLEMENT. 
 
 One of the objects I have in view in adding 
 to this manual is to make an opportunity to say 
 something about the pronunciation of co)iver- 
 sant, exemplary, obligatory, and peremptory. 
 All the dictionaries in general use accent these 
 four words on the first syllable, and all the Eng- 
 lish-speaking world, except the few that chance 
 to know how the modern orthoepists mark them, 
 accent them on the second. The dictionary ac- 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
202 
 
 centuation is as cliflicult as it is unnatural, the 
 case of conversant excepted, and ought, in my 
 judgment, to be abandoned, not only because it 
 is difficult, unnatural, and unpopular, but also 
 because, if we go back to the dictionaries pub- 
 lished a hundred years ago, we find that the 
 weight of authority was then decidedly on the 
 side of the second-syllable accent. I have re- 
 cently consulted ticelve dictionaries published 
 between the years 1730 and 1799, with the fol- 
 lowing result : Conversant is accented in ten of 
 them on the second syllable ; exemplary in all 
 of them on the second ; obligatory in eight on 
 the second ; and perew^:>^or?/ in seven on the 
 second. AYalker, whose dictionary appeared in 
 1791, accented all four words on the first sylla- 
 ble, and the later orthoepists appear to have 
 been content to follow his example. If Walker's 
 accentuation vras ill-advised, as the result, it 
 seems to me, clearly proves, then we shall do 
 well to allow usage, seconded as we see by am- 
 ple authority, to be the um.pire, and say, con- 
 ver'sant, ex-em'pla-ry (cgz-), ob-lig'a-to-ry, and 
 per-emp'to-ry. 
 
 acacia — a-ka'she-a. 
 ^c'cu-rate, iiot ilk'er-et. 
 
 Vowels in syllables standing next to accent- 
 ed syllables are generally obscure ; there are, 
 
 See Key to Pronundation, p. 6. 
 
203 
 
 however, a considerable number of vowels so 
 situated, and tliat Worcester marks obscure, 
 which properly receive their long sound some- 
 loliat shortened. Of these, ii is the one most 
 frequently met with. Giving these vowels their 
 full long sound has the same effect that it has 
 to make the pronouns, articles, prepositions, and 
 conjunctions too prominent : it makes the speak- 
 er appear pedantic and self-conscious. He speaks 
 best whose manner of speaking is least noticed. 
 A few of the words in whicli this peculiar vowel 
 appears are acc?«rate, ad^dation, dep^^^tize, emob«- 
 ment, occ?«pation, occi«py, partic^dar, perpen- 
 diczdar, and s?/-perior. 6^ thus situated is some- 
 times obscure ; in disputant and disputable, for 
 example. See ophiion^ also licentiite. 
 
 acoustics. 
 
 All our dictionaries pronounce the on of this 
 word 0K\ while nearly the whole English-speak- 
 ing world, as far as my observation goes, pro- 
 nounce it 00. Many persons boldly pronounce 
 it do, knowing that the authorities are against 
 them. Squalor is another word treated in like 
 manner. I am of opinion that this manual has 
 heretofore been in error in condemning, in com- 
 mon with the dictionaries, the wellnigh univer- 
 sal mode of pronouncing this word. If usage 
 and not the orthoepists make the law, then it is 
 the duty of " The Orthoepist" to sanction and 
 not to condemn a-koos'tiks. A-kows'tiks, one 
 of " The Orthoepist's " critics very justly says, 
 " is a most unlovable pronunciation." 
 
 »■ — ■ - ■ ■ — . 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
204 
 
 Arkansas — ar'kan-saw. 
 
 This is now, by act of the State Legislature, 
 the legal pronunciation. Usage was long di- 
 vided between this and ar-kan'sas. 
 
 a-cu'men, not ^k'u-men. 
 adobe (Sp.) — a-do'ba. 
 Ajaccio — a-yat'cko. 
 ar-bu'tus. 
 
 In the last edition of Webster's dictionary 
 the accentuation of this w^ord, to make it ac- 
 cord with the Latin, is changed from that rec- 
 ommended here to ar'bu-tus. Usage and au- 
 thority, however, not only in English but also 
 in German, decidedly favor placing the accent 
 on the penult, which is certainly the more eu- 
 phonious accentuation to the English ear, and 
 the one that undoubtedly will prevail. 
 
 Ar-€lii-me'de§. 
 
 as-ph^lt', not as-plialt'. 
 
 aii't5p-sy. 
 
 Beaconsfiekl — bek'unz-feld. 
 
 Beli-aL 
 
 bicycle — bi'ce-keL 
 
 B5s'ton, not baws'ton. 
 
 carrousel (Fr.) — k^r'rdb'zer. 
 
 car-niv'o-ra, not kar-ni-v6'ra. 
 
 >■ ■ ■ I . 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
205 
 
 ca'se-ine. 
 
 ca-si'no (It.) — a little house. 
 casualty — k^zh'u-al-te. See accurate, 
 c^t-a-ma-r^n'. 
 
 Incorrectly marked in the old editions of 
 Worcester, ca-tam'a-ran. 
 
 Cau-ca'sian, not kau-ka'zhan. 
 
 • • • / •• • 
 
 caVe-d-t, not k^v'. 
 
 ce-r^mic, or ke-r^m'ic. 
 
 ck^r'y? "^ot clia'iy. 
 
 chiaro oscuro (It.) — ke-a'ro 5s-ku'ro. 
 
 cli-m^t'ic. 
 
 The vowel i is often long in the initial sylla- 
 bles ^, bi, chly cli^ pri^ tri, though not under the 
 accent, as in iclecil, hiograpliy^ chirology, cli- 
 matic, primeval, tribunal, etc. 
 
 c5m-m^n-daiit' (Fi'.). 
 
 The pronunciation of this word is a compro- 
 mise between the French and the English. 
 
 c5m'moii-al-ty. 
 coquetry — ^ko-ket're. 
 dyn'am-ite, not di'n^m-ite. 
 elongate — e-l5ng'gat. 
 iVJ ending an accented syllable before g, 7c, 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
20(^ 
 
 hard c or cA, or qu, often has the sound of ??// / 
 as in anger, ankle, rancor, anchor, banquet, etc. 
 
 epizootic — e2>i-zo-5t'ic. 
 fa-n^t'ic, not f^n'a-tic. 
 floor — ^flor, not flo^a. 
 
 Careless speakers often fail to articulate the 
 letter r when it follows a vowel in the same syl- 
 lable. 
 
 f r5m, wlien emphatic ; otherwise, from. 
 
 Geikie — gi'ke. 
 
 gla-di'o-lus, oiot gla-di-6'lus. 
 
 Goethe — gtir'ta. 
 
 her'alcl — her as in heretic and aid as in 
 Donald, not htir'ruld. 
 
 He-r5d'o-tus. 
 
 Her-mi'o-ne. 
 
 het-er-5ph'e-my. 
 
 hy-gi-en'ic. 
 
 hy-per'ba-ton. 
 
 Jacques (Fr.) — zhilk. Jaques, in " As 
 You Like It," is pronounced ja'quSz. 
 
 Lin-nae'us, Lin-nae'an. 
 
 majolica — mta-yori-ka. 
 
 Ma-lay'. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
207 
 
 ma-ni'a-cal, not ma'ni-a-cal. 
 
 m^t-u-ti'naL 
 
 metonymy — me-t5n'e-me. 
 
 Michaelmas — mik'el-mas. 
 
 mi-cr5s'co-py, not mi-cro-sc5p'y. 
 
 New- founcl'land. 
 
 This accentuation is believed to accord with 
 the best usage. 
 
 or'diid, or'eliis. 
 
 o-vip'a-rotis, not o-vi-pa'roiis. 
 
 parquet (Fr.) — par'ka'. 
 
 pas'tor, 7iot p^s'. 
 
 quer'u-loiis, not quer'u-. 
 
 Both Webster (u) and Worcester (u) mark 
 the u of this word, together with the ii in a few 
 other words, incorrectly. It is properly long, 
 somewhat shortened. Forming a syllable by it- 
 self, it is not affected by the r. See accurate. 
 
 re-cii^§ant. 
 
 Sar-d^n-a-pa'lus. 
 
 se-r^ph'ic. 
 
 Seville.' 
 
 ta-riint'u-la. 
 
 te-leg'ra-plier, not teVe-gr^pli-er. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. G. 
 
208 
 
 tiicliina — tri-ki'na ; jpl.^ trichinae. 
 Yo-s^m'i-te. 
 
 " On that day. my lord, with truth I assure ye (ye), 
 My sainted progenitor set up a brewery (e)." 
 
 Here we have in ye — a perfect rhyme for the 
 last syllable of hreioery — the exact pronuncia- 
 tion you when unemphatic should have, pedantic 
 ignorance to the contrary notwithstanding. 
 
 See Key to Pronunciation, p. 6. 
 
 THE END. 
 
THE VERBALIST 
 
 A MANUAL 
 
 Devoted to Brief Discussions of the Right and the 
 
 Wrong Use of Words, and to some other Mato 
 
 ters of Interest to those tvho would Speak 
 
 and Write with Propriety. 
 
 By ALFRED AYRES. 
 
 " As a man is known by his company, so a man's company 
 may be known by his manner of expressing himself." — Swift. 
 
 " We remain shackled by timidity till we have learned to 
 speak with propriety." — Johnson. 
 
 " It may be submitted that English, like other languages, 
 has its difficulties and problems which can not be solved or 
 attempted to be solved, without special application and special 
 8 cholar sh i p . " — Tlie A cademy. 
 
 THE PRESS SAVS: 
 
 " Those who are familiar with ' The Orthoepist ' will give 
 'The Verbalist' a hearty welcome. From Ud to lid it is full of 
 valuable matter." — Central Christian Advocate. 
 
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 the right use of our mother-tongue by giving instances of the 
 wrong use of it, and showing why they are wrong." — The 
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 most of us a great deal." — Springfeld Republican. 
 
 [see next page.] 
 
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 makes numerous citations to illustrate his points, and his criti- 
 cisms are keen and searching." — Boston Journal. 
 
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 of valuable rules. The book can be studied with profit by 
 writers, readers, and speakers of every class." 
 
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 lish, and are an example of good as well as a warning against 
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 conceived on similar lines, and will doubtless find equal favor." 
 — The Critic. 
 
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 Bryant were he alive to see it." — Xew Britain Herald. 
 
 " It would take hours to point out the sharp and profound 
 distinctions of the author of this ingenious and most useful 
 work. V»'e may provoke inquiry for the volume itself when 
 we say that, judged by his high standard, very few men, even 
 the greatest, have written or write with an exactitude required 
 by Mr. Ayres. There is no question that he is entirely correct 
 in the majority of cases, and no man, however accomplished, 
 can study this book without profit. We do most cordially 
 commend it to all who care to speak and write correctly." 
 
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