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Silent K

Why do we have a silent k in some words?

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255 Comments and 35 threads

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  1. rijk says: 111

    Your pronunciation of the word knecht en specially knoten was really adorable, but no where near the real sound. I’ll try to record that for you, but first i have some catching up to do ;-) .

  2. leonard says: 110

    I can knot hear, near is here and fear knows where to pin the capital…RANDON and a horses knight to sleep on…[knows] pins :lol: :wink: Knowells and now=know=noses…crazy and not a daisy for the lazy…love has rusted and kneaded to dole out wheat of dust…be good and have a good day :-)

  3. b-meister says: 109

    pterodactyls are pterrifying!!!!!!!!! who put the silent p in there. I’m talking about the flying dinosaur in case anyone’s confused.

  4. Someone mentioned pneumonia. In French, the ‘p’ is pronounced in pneumonie. There are other examples where a very similar word in French maintains the pronuncation of a letter that the English have rendered silent.

  5. Hello all:
    Silent letters:
    Rhubarb pro. Rubarb
    Mighty pro. Mity
    Tea pro. T
    Two pro. To
    Four pro. For

  6. animalntaz says: 105

    :shock: OMG Marina, you’re so bright yellow that even Big Bird would go nuts over the sight of you. :lol:

    I think I hear his mating call.

  7. Even more obscure and irrelevant…. Has anyone ever really seen a “Bald” Eagle? May I get a feather in my cap now?
    Too much coffee…. I’m gonna go lay down now…

  8. i dont like ur raideo thing we dont get to see u

  9. cupid says: 102

    Word Request for “Alliteration”‘

    “HotForWords K-nows K-nothing” is an alluring alliteration in the title typed for this word lesson. It uses both avenues of alliteration.

    As it aptly appears with two silent Ks, we obviously observe the repetition of the first letter in both words.

    As it should show in usual usage, “HotForWords knows nothing”, the construct is the kind with repetition of the first consonant sound in both words.

    This is really reminiscent of Sergeant Schultz in Hogan’s
    Heroes
    . He frequently phrased “I hear nothing, I see nothing, I know nothing”. I wonder if current usage is derived from this TV comedy.

  10. Some people get to the head of the line or have special treatments because that have “clout”. I’d like to know what is “clout” and how do I get it?

  11. pisidia says: 100

    numb the b is silent, and Destine where the e is silent, know a silent k.

  12. here’s one…Sword..the silent w

  13. How about Dumb, the b is silet.

  14. hugh_jass says: 97

    Hi Marina! Great vid. :smile:

    I have a WORD REQUEST! With the Olympics coming up and everything I wanted to know the meaning of the phrase

    CHARLIE-HORSE

    It’s a problem I have sometimes and I’ve always wondered, “who is this charlie and who is his horse?”

    It might make a fun video, and it would be interesting.

  15. Other words with silent letters? That’s Eazy, right?

    How about those silent E’s to start? Also… what’s with the silent G before some words… like Gnosis? Is there any relation to silent k’s?

    Thanks,
    SGOG

    P.S. Intelligence is Sexy! Thank you for helping people be more intelligent in their words et cetera.

  16. kermat46 says: 95

    I would like to know what the where the word urika as in “urika!! I’ve found it” came from?

    Thanks

  17. “It is now possible for a flight attendant to get a pilot pregnant.” – Richard J. Ferris, president of United Airlines</blockquote

    FLY UNITED! LMAO :mrgreen:

  18. I wonder about the word (decide).
    From my understanding de is of and cide is murder.
    So see the word deals with choice does the word decide mean murder of choice?

  19. Ther won’t be another day quite like this one until September 9 next year! Happy Cubic Day (8×8x8)!
    To celebrate, I’d like to reiterate my word request for the use of and origin for “dirt”.

    dirty dog,
    dirty dancing,
    dirt nap,
    sleep dirt?
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3KtuQs5FJ4&feature=related

  20. demoniiik says: 91

    Word request!

    Wenis! I get tired of hearing that it’s your elbow or it’s the skin between your index finger and thumb, and from what I can find, it is merely an old god’s name, and that’s it.

  21. mittheman says: 90

    One more and I will stop.

    Whilst I’m on the subject of the letter “s”, why do the English use words like customise and Americans use customize? And in England, they pronunce the “sch” as “sh” in school and schedule whilst Americans pronounce it as “sk.”

  22. mittheman says: 89

    I would also like to know how the long “s” which looks like the lower case “f” in script became the letter “s” we use today. And what about the word “today?” In the early 20th Century it was to-day and before that it was this day.

  23. mittheman says: 88

    knag
    knapsack
    knapweed
    knaur
    knead
    kneebrush
    knish
    knobstick
    knockwurst
    knock-kneed
    knoll
    knop
    knowledge
    knub

  24. larizzo says: 87

    Whoops sorry, and the word “gym”

  25. larizzo says: 86

    Hey Marina, just wondering where the word “brothel” originated!
    Thank you!!!!!!

  26. jnaples says: 85

    Marina – Who cares how Jay walks across the street? I mean, I use the corners but can you find out the origin of “Jaywalking” and why you get a ticket for something that’s named after Jay walking in Manhattan?

  27. georgeadams says: 84

    Darling Marina,

    As my Dad used to say, in the word pneumonia, the “p” is silent, as in swimming. (hee hee)

  28. wordymouth says: 83

    Dear HotForWords,

    Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday…
    Please can you tell me, where do we get names for the seven days.

    WM

  29. mrchex says: 82

    Fun one Marina. Good video. For other silent ones. Gnat, psyche… etc etc
    knack,knacker, knackwurst,knap knar knave knawel knead knee kneel knelt knell knickers knick-knack knit knitbone knob knobkerrie knock knoll knop knowbot knuckle knur knurl
    Climb, Crumb, Dumb, Comb, Lamb “b”
    Muscle, Scène, Scent, Science, Scissors “C”
    Handkerchief Wendnesday “d”
    Gnome, Gnaw, Gnats, Gnosis, Gnu “G”
    Ought, Fought, Thought, Taught, Daughter
    Night, Light, Might, Right, Fight “GH”
    Cough, Rough, Enough, Tough gh is well soudns like F
    What, Wham, Whip, Whiz, When, Where, Whether, Why “H”
    Hour, Honest, Honour, Heir, Hah, Mynah, Cheetah, Sarah, Messiah,Myrrh , Catarrh, Rhyme, Rhubarb, Rhythm, Rhombus
    “H”
    Would, Should, Could, Half, Calf silent L
    Autumn, Hymn, Damn, Column silent N
    Island, Isle “S”
    Often, Castle, Fasten, Listen, Rustle, Glisten,
    Thistle, Whistle, Wrestle, Christmas, Listening “T”
    Wrap, Wreck, Wrench, Write, Wrong “W”

  30. kaibanator says: 81

    gnome, knave, knell, gnaw, gnat, school, scholar, chiropractor, knit, solemn, column.

    Just thought of a ‘Z’ word for my word request : Ziggurat :wink:

  31. cboranian says: 80

    Silent “P’s” as in Psychology, Psalm, and Pseudisodomic. Silent “w’s” as in wreck, writing, wrath, There is also a silent “ph” which is pronounce as an “f” in many words like Phallus, Phantasize, and Phantasm. Hmmm.

  32. jcr says: 79

    Oh, I did not spell Evil Knieval right, did I?

  33. jcr says: 78

    That was so clever about Evil Kneival. I hadn’t paid attention to the fact that he kept the K in there. I think some examples of silent letters are words like “herb” which actually is pronounced with the “H” sound in England but not in America? It is interesting because “herbivore” has the “H” sound, doesn’t it? but “herb” does not, here in America.

  34. skiskiski says: 77

    Can you please trace the etymology of the strange word “crot”?

    I’ve read that Tom Wolfe is said to have revived the term; I can see that it once meant something about lichen; I can conceive no connection. The information is all so fragmentary.

    Thanks.

  35. bobsully says: 76

    Very interesting indeed! :smile:

    [copies off of others homework] :twisted:

  36. stokesjrj1 says: 75

    8-8-2008, today would be my 28th anniversary, if my x wife and I hadn’t divorced. Her Idea.

  37. Other silent letter combinations:

    -ou (i.e., gourmet, you…in each of those ONE letter is silent, although
    the silent letter is different between words)
    -er in ANY British or Northeastern U.S. dialect
    -ea (i.e., teach, beach, beat) the a is silent
    -Ts (i.e., Tsang in Chinese)
    -cz for anything from czecheslovakia
    -ph…(like elephant, philology, philosophy–double -ph bonus on the last word :wink: ) actually BOTH are silent, in favor of the ‘F’ sound…I think that deserves bonus points :grin: :!: :!:

  38. Homework: the letter Aleph (in Hebrew), knight, knowledge, the u in the Japanese desu at the end of a sentence, c in science, g in gnat, and the h in saccharine.

    (extra credit): in koine Greek a double lambda (two lambda’s next to each other) is both called a gamma nasal and is pronounced as an n.

    later, Marina!
    -Shawn

  39. alexei_aus says: 71

    how about the word SNICKERS. Just had an argument about this with this Canadian girl at work. Does it actually mean anything and how do you properly pronounce it?

    Сникерс форева…. походу и не сникерс вовсе :???:

  40. huggles131 says: 69

    Silent L in the word Salmon.

  41. tazman says: 68

    :?:
    ἔτυμον (étymon,-’etymos’ true) λόγος

    A little test for the teacher. What is this?

  42. triple 8 is coming!
    (eastern time zone)
    8-8-8

  43. dasoh says: 66

    Another good one – k’nockers!

  44. shani2008 says: 65

    Have a few k silent words, as the following are:

    known, or alternatively unknown, having the ‘un’ prefixed.

    Other K silent words: knit, know, knew.

    Thats all i can come up with. Hope to follow on for more comments.

  45. Ok, I’d like to know why English has so many “broken rules”? Best example, There was a whole Charlie Brown special about a spelling bee, and the main lesson that Charlie Brown had to remember to win the spelling bee was “I before E except after C” and remembering that, he won… HOWEVER, if he had been given the word weight, or the word height, he would have LOST the spelling bee.

    It’s like truly for every rule in the English language, there is examples that break it. I personally have always been a very good speller (99% of the time, when I misspell a word, it’s due to typing too fast, not that I didn’t know how to spell it), but I hear all the time how English is the hardest European language to learn because of all the broken rules, and I can see that being true because of this.

    • On a side note of my fast typing and misspelling, I type very fast, however I notice when I misspell a word, and then I try to correct it. So all these new typing tests that expect you to continue on and not correct your errors annoy me… my mind tells me “Fix that error” so I will actually hit the backspace key 5-6 times every error and it’s like that’s 5-6 more errors tacked on my already error! End up with a lower score than if they had just let me correct my darn errors! LOL

    • orion_ss1 says: 64.2

      English “breaks” so many rules because we adopt words from other languages and use the rules the parent language for spelling and pronunciation ( more or less – until we Americanize it ).

      I’m not saying its right or wrong, its what we do.

  46. BillyB says: 63

    Marina, there is a dead link in your youtube channel, Favorites, you may or may not want to replace it with this hfw r s. I don’t know why she took the other one down, I thought it was very good.

    • Capman911 says: 63.1

      BillyB it could be because of these words “This video may not be suitable for minors.” Is written across the top of one of her videos. Someone flagged her video as inappropriate for a shadow being on her right breast and looking like a nipple. Shameful someone did that to her. I guess Marina is just being safe with the flagging issue. So someone want flag her videos as inappropriate. :sad:

  47. tazman says: 62

    How did the phase..
    “More than one way to skin a cat”
    come about?
    :?: :neutral:

  48. BillyB says: 61

    Even as interesting as the silent “K”, is when the k isn’t there but it is pronounced. I remember playing a welsh rugby team from Llanelli. I don’t care about his subject but Clive in the video pronounces the double L’s with a K sound… more so in the second double L’s, but sometimes just as much in the first two. Anybody know any other words or english accents where the “K” sound is made by unusual combos of letters or just shows up randomly? I had a shirt with the name “Llanelli” emblazened on it from the friendly we played all those years ago & the way Marina tried to pronounce the nonsilent “k” words reminded me of the way I used to try to say it.

  49. manosmoo says: 60

    Here goes my homework:
    knee, kneel, knelt, know, knew, known, knowledge, knot! More for sure!
    Extra:
    Psyche, Psychology where the silent letters are “h, e” and “h”!

    Nice bright shirt Marina!!

    • Ooo, good ones :smile:

      Request: Speaking of psyche and psychology, Marina, when did psyc- go from being a “feelgood” sort of term to having such negative meanings? Psyche is like the spirit, the mind or self.
      Psychology is like the study of that, along with the interplay between thoughts, feelings, behaviors. BUT psychosis, psychopath (aka, psycho), psychopathology, psychosomatic, psychotic, psychedelic, psycheism, etc. took on a lot of negative meanings. Fast forward through the years to the 1980’s slang to “psych out” someone is to trick them.

      I suspect that the shift in meaning occurred when psychologists came into the picture and labeled everything they didn’t understand as a “psychological problem.” The first true documented psychologists were physiological researchers, whereas practitioners were medical doctors–both emerged in the mid-late 1800s). Do you have any other insight into the shift from negative meanings of all things psyche and psych- ?

  50. Miss Marina,
    Why do soooooooooooo many people confuse the word ignorant (lacking knowledge or unaware) with stupid (lacking intelligence/ common sense).

    Just wondering. It bugs me when people do this.. Kind of when people say Warshington or warsh the dishes instead of Washington or wash the dishes.

  51. bill2468 says: 58

    knuckle
    Knute Rocney

    Aexception to the silent “k” is knuble worst (garlic sausage)

    BiLL

  52. icebreaker says: 57

    I would like to request two phrases that I thought I knew the origin of. These phrases are:

    “Son-of-a-gun”, and

    “beat the rush”

    I thought that both of these words have nautical origins (Royal navy and US Coast Guard), but a website that I recently visited said differently, but they were not definitive.

    Thank you


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    school_dean_hot4.u says: 56

    kickapoo

  54. soupcan says: 55

    Hellow-My first time hear.
    Try the word
    “FLIBBERTIGIBBET”

  55. Gnat, gnome, gnarl, pneumonia, pneumatic…and by the way, you looked kvery knice today in you kyellow ksweater.

  56. soulstain says: 53

    hey marina

    may i ask for a word?
    impropability-proof!

    found it at the start of the eleventh chapter of douglas adams – ultimate hitchhikers guide of the galaxy
    as in an impropability-proof room within the spaceship called “heart of gold”

    by the way i don’t believe in the ideoligy in words such as ; perfection; normal; standards..,

  57. after i played knickknack-paddywack on my knees (and gave my dog a bone), i knealt on my kneecaps, and drooled over the knishes & knackwurst on the nearby table. being lazy, i got out my trusty knitting needle & skewered a knackwurst; then i used my knife to half it. beginning to feel knackered kneeling on my knees, i felt a stich in back – it began to knit. “gawd, what i wouldn’t give for a good kneading,” i thought, “i’ve got knots. if only a masseuse would turn the knurled knob on the door; i know i’d be her knave.” suddenly there was a knock. my knuckles were white, i was so nervous. “’tis not a knave i crave,” said the sunny-blond beauty, “but a knight.”

    annudder :cool:

  58. i agree with dustin535. what is the origen of the words “sex” and “sexy”???

  59. Q: What’s the last think that goes through a Gnat’s mind as it rendeZvous with your windshield at 70 mph?

    A: Its asshole!

  60. lord_oth says: 49

    Hey Marina! I ate at a well know fast food restaurant the other day and I got to wondering. Whats the origin of Jack In-the-box (not the restaurant) the word. Who is this Jack anyway, and why is he in a box?

  61. wetsuit5 says: 48

    Marina,

    This site has you recognised as a film star. :razz: :razz:
    http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2984081/

  62. ::REQUEST::
    Where did the saying “Get of your high horse come from”

    Also Kudos of such a nice site !

    Wait ! Or how about the word Kudos, Where does that come from lol

  63. CaptainJack says: 46

    Yay! Im best friend in the Navy used to pronounce Ka-nife all the time. Is other favorite word to play with was Comb. The ‘b’ being silent.

    I was looking for the clip that George Carlin covered those words but to no avail. So here are some fun clips to watch for the mean time.

    George Carlin – “Words” – 1976
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mVzT1Xtw2Us
    George Carlin – Euphemisms
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8HAGc521SAo

    • pagedoll says: 46.1

      Hey captain!! I saw your post a few down about almost making a hill racer. Check this out, you’ll love it!

      • Holy sh*T!!! :shock:
        that was nucking futs! :grin:
        I’m adding this one to the bucket list!

      • OMG that was more fun to watch than sex! I was getting into the grove. I was air driving there for a moment. I the racing blood still runs through my veins. I wanted to buy a $50k Supra and trick it out. Oh I got to stop talking about this. Im getting the bug again.

      • Wow, that guy could really go! I loved the lunge move at “the reach” section. I’ve done that route (Bear’s Reach @Lovers Leap) but it was quite a bit different. I brought a partner, a 50-meter rope, and and a full set of hardware so we could still joke about it later around the campfire if one of us were to slip and fall. I got tagged by a falling rock during the second pitch, and my ears rang for a half hour (it left a permanent impression in my helmet but I was fine). It took us about 2 and a half hours. Putting in anchors and taking them out again as the second person ascends takes a bit of time to do safely, plus we stopped for lunch on “Bushy Ledge,” which, btw, has no bushes anymore. We used to call guys who free solo stuff like that “life-haters.” One free-soloist I spoke with remarked,”I prefer the freedom of not having all that metal and rope to deal with.”

        Yeah, I thought to myself, plus, you hardly EVER fall (only once)!

  64. roadrunrnch says: 45

    Now this is what I am talking about !!! Very Nice Marina, YOU look marvelous
    Sweats are for :evil:

  65. yokel says: 44

    Hey Marina!
    Loved your explanation of the silent K..My name is Scott Knauer and I’ve recently started pronouncing the K again after being chided by my German kayaker friends…which brings me to 3 more words for your consideration: Kayak (which is a palindrome) cenotaph, and my favorite- Triskidecaphobia, which is more prevalent than one might think…actually, the word ‘palindrome’ is kinda cool too…

  66. can you please do the orgin and define the word Autoerotic Asphyxiation please and thanks :smile:

  67. anojansmart says: 42

    I was wonderin a plzzz do this as a youtube show, wat the word gullible meant and i love ur show keep up the gud work

  68. headwaves says: 41

    Xerox illustrates two ways of pronouncing the letter X, so when I hear some people say “buzzum” and others saying “bucksum” when pronouncing the word buxom, I wonder which is correct?

    Perhaps you can investigate?

    x for teacher x

  69. wetsuit5 says: 40

    Oh my, such a bright yellow sweater. :razz: :wink: :idea: :idea:

    Like staring into the sun. :cool: :cool: :cool:

    Can’t see what my hands are doing. :eek:
    Humm, odd shape for pillows, whoops sorry (smack!!) :oops: :oops:

    Cookoo Cookoo, Sunny Days, Everything’s AOK, Hey look it’s the Sun on the Tele Tubbies. :shock:

    Yellow sweater and yellow hair. :smile:
    Our teacher is so pretty and fair. :grin:

    Coming around :cool: :cool: , Oh Hi Marina, What’s with the hand marks on your sweater? :?:

  70. seesixcm6 says: 39

    Dear Marina, I’ll go to YouTube to rate your video five stars. I’m thankful most homework was done by others. I could add the word, “gnome.” What a dramatic photo of a beautiful blonde in a box holding a “Kukri” knife, which was used by Gurka and Indian soldiers. I hope she’s actually more friendly than she appears.
    I made a word request for “Sweetheart”, but you are very busy, so I looked it up for myself. According to Dictionary.com, it’s from Middle English term “swete heart” used in 1250 to 1300 AD to mean a fast-beating heart. It was later changed to “sweet heart.” Now, accoeding to the Oxford English Dictionary, it has the meaning of the person with whom you have a romantic relationship, an affectionate or familiar term of address, a beloved person, a genorous sponsor, or anything that arouses affection. In 1910, the song, “Let Me Call You Sweetheart” was written. In 1911, “Sweethart of Sigma Chi” was written, and in 1998, Mariah Carey did a song called “Sweetheart.” BTW, August 23rd is “Hug your Sweetheart Day.” I’ll remember to send you a long-distance “hug.” :-) Your dear student, Seesixcm6

  71. dustin535 says: 38

    the origen of “sex” and “sexy”

  72. think u can find the origin of the word mama mia? like the movie that came out a few weeks ago…o and can u tell me what type of software you use to make that awesome beginning of your videos do u use adobe after affects?

  73. paulpez1994 says: 35

    Marina i want to know when the word gay started to be homosexual :mrgreen:


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    school_dean_hot4.u says: 34

    wergild :?:

  75. sniperskaya says: 32

    Marina, let me check my knapsack, maybe I have something in there…
    Knope, knothing… :razz:

  76. sniperskaya says: 31

    Marina, knice sweater. Cashmere? Someone told me that you have big knockers on your front doors, and nice knobs too. Can you please show them to us?
    Now for the homework – words with silent “K”? Well, you certainly have a knack for words. I don’t know what I could possibly add to that… :mrgreen:

  77. how about the ‘E’ in shoppe

  78. blueskies13 says: 29

    while speaking of old english what is the difference between an english bulldog and an olde english bulldog and how and who made bull and terrier that is now extinct and a staffordshire bull terrier and a regular bull terrier also i havn’t seen gucci in a while he is a beutifull dog and you look amazing standing next to him is he your dog or a stand in for some of your photo shoot’s any how i would like to see him in a video with you pretty please

  79. geronimo says: 28

    I went to a cabaret, and sat there so long that my arse went numb, so I went a ballet, and and hitched with my thumb, and ate sorbet, with a crumb. Pneumonia has made me dumb as a gnome. Wow I am bored! Excuse me while I go get a life. I am turning into capman. Just kidding cap.

  80. xenoplankton, xenon, xenotransplantation, xerography,

  81. sanford says: 26

    Often wondered about laughter and slaughter and P’s in pneumonia, psychology, etc.

  82. tazman says: 25

    and this one…
    ‘XENOPHPBIA’

  83. James says: 24

    On the 10th I am going away for a week, So I won’t be on much. It will give my eyes a rest/

  84. prospero811 says: 23

    Well, let’s see if I can add anything to what has already been said.

    Other silent k words – knub, knabble, etc.

    O.k. – for the extra credit.
    The guy below me got most of them covered.

    I’ll throw out “diphthong” as a word loaded with silent letters. I should get some extra credit for that.

    Here’s another neat word – twyndyllyng, which is the longest word in the OED that doesn’t contain any of the 5 major vowels.

  85. Gnat, Knee, dumB, Psyco, iSland, Knickers, Knuckle, numB, deScent, aScend, Knot…. Thats all I can think of at the moment.
    Hey why is sugar not spelled shuger, or laugh not spelled laff, or tough not tuff?

  86. tazman says: 21

    Here is the best one of all I think.
    ‘XYLOPHONE’ :mrgreen:

  87. 5 stars! A fine explanation!

    Homework:
    silent “a” as in aardvark
    “b” as in lamb, doubt, etc.
    “c” as in fluorescent, etc.
    “d” as in Wednesday, etc.
    “e” as in lake, potatoes, etc.
    “f” as in affect(?), stuff, etc.
    “g” as in gnu, gnome, etc.
    “h” as in schizo, psycho, etc.
    “j” as in jalepeno, etc.
    “k” as in knot, etc.
    “l” as in colonel, salmon, etc.
    “m” as in mnemonic
    “n” as in damn, autumn, etc.
    “o” as in oppossum
    “p” as in pshaw, cupboard, etc.
    “s” as in aisle, debris, etc.
    “t” as in ballet, crochet, etc.
    “u” as in guard, guarantee, etc.
    “w” as in two
    “y” as in day
    also, there are two letter silent combos
    suchas “gh” as in thought, might, etc.

    ummm…. “…shrimp salad, shrimp kabob, shrimp sandwich…
    that’s about it” – “Bubba”, Forrest Gump :mrgreen:

    • James says: 19.1

      What about z??

      rendezvous

    • aLx says: 19.2

      here’s my opinion.

      there is no silent a in “aardvark”. if there was, you wouldn’t be able to pronounce that word (”rdvark”).

      it seems to me that, in this case, “ch” is just another way for writing the sound /k/ … so … there would not be a silent h in “psycho” etc.

      f in “stuff” etc. is not silent. don’t you hear an f? or just “stu”?

      i’d argue that the p in “cupboard” is not silent, instead, either (1) maybe some sort of regressive assimilation resulting in a geminate “bb” takes place, or (2) “p” is not aspirated.

      i’m not a phonologist, though. :)

    • orion_ss1 says: 19.3

      Is there a good way to remember that the ‘m’ is silent in mnemonic?

    • aLx says: 19.4

      i do see your reasoning. i just think you’re being deceived by the letters, the spelling. what really matters are the sounds. just try to imagine those words written using an alphabet that more or less eliminates different spellings of one sound.

      double vowels are often used to indicate that this vowel is a “long” vowel. nevertheless, it’s the same vowel. how about “spoon”? now … you don’t pronounce an o in there. then what is it? a silent o?
      consider me yelling “fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck!” how many sounds are in there?

      important: sound != letter.

  88. subverse says: 18

    Silent letters: through, thought, bought :mrgreen:

  89. geronimo says: 17

    other silent letters: Gnat, pneumatic.

  90. James says: 16

    homework

    Whore wholesome wholesale when which whip
    phone
    counterfeit

    knacker knackered knackwurst knapweed knawel knead
    knee
    kneel knell

    knickknacks knife
    knife pleat knife-edge knifelike knight knight

    knit knitted knitter knitting
    knob

    philology phallic phallus phishing marijuana schwartz zygocacti elephant

  91. Bob says: 15

    Wow! What a video with two gorgeous girls, both as hot as KN (cayenne) pepper. :smile:

    Now then, I have a question – how would you pronounce “Hotforwords”?
    The H is silent, as in ghost.
    The O is silent, as in leopard.
    The T is silent, as in thistle.
    The F is silent, as in halfpenny.
    The O is silent, as in jeopardy.
    The R is silent, as in far.
    The W is silent, as in whole.
    The O is silent, as in opossum.
    The R is silent, as in catarrh.
    The D is silent, as in Wednesday.
    The S is silent, as in island.

    :???:

  92. labbatt78 says: 14

    Hmmmm.. I may have 1. There is a name with no U sound. How about Kosuke as in Kosuke Fukudome? An excellent cub hitter. I can pronounce Fukudome in English. It’s fuck-you-do-me.

  93. orion_ss1 says: 13

    The ‘e’ in most words ending with e is silent ( even though it makes the previous vowel long ). Also, the ‘w’ in sword ( but I usually pronounce it anyway just to irritate people ).

  94. athoorth says: 12

    Marina, Awesome vid as always!

    In Sweden (yeah, will I ever shut up about sweden?) we have several “kn” words, such as Kneck (knecht), knacka (knock), kniv (knife) and we prenounce the K as well.

    Homerwork: psycology, psalm….

    Best Wishes, Ath, Knekten.

  95. Love that sweater!!! :wink:

    Do you think on finding out how the term, damsel-in-distress, come from?

  96. Capman911 says: 9

    Marina where was the picture taken of you standing in front of the truck with the Alpine costume on? At least that is what it looks like to me. May I please have a copy of that shot. It’s gorgeous. :wink:
    Mike

  97. orion_ss1 says: 8

    Good gnus; I thought of another silent letter.

  98. Capman911 says: 7

    You took the mystery out of that one. I have been wondering about that for a while. Great video. :smile:

    Homework= :???:
    Knee, opossum, pneumonia, knickers, comb, tomb, womb, lamb. I’ll leave some for others to do.

    • Capman911 says: 7.1

      @ Jack you did say you have a friend that always said k-nife when ever he would pronounced the word. :grin:

      • Oh yea! All the time. :mrgreen: He loved playing with words. I think he thought George Carlin was a god of sorts. His name is Gerald Downs Jr. I lost contact with him many years ago. :sad: I can’t seem to find him. In boot camp I hated him and he wanted to kill me. I was a geek and he wore a black leather jacket. Funny later on we became best friends. I think it was because we discovered we where the two smartest people in the whole damn Navy at the time. :wink:
        So even today I sometimes say ka-nife, com-bu, Ka-nees, etc. In retaliation that we still spell words with silent letters in them. Makes no logical sense that we should continue using them. Sorry I get so annoyed with stupidity. :neutral:

  99. foxbow15 says: 6

    lol the way you said knoten and knecht, sounded like some weird pygmee tribe :lol: Here in the Netherlands we have tons of words in which you pronounce both KN….

  100. okay4now says: 5

    HwK: Knee (a loan word from German?), at least in German they do pronounce every letter – every time.

  101. okay4now says: 3

    Wow this guy is on, 2nd

Author: HotForWords