Why do Brits pronounce Lieutenant as leftenant?

Why do Brits pronounce Lieutenant as leftenant?

According to military customs, a lower ranking soldier walks on the left side of a senior officer. This courtesy developed when swords were still used on the battle field. The lower ranked soldier on the “left” protected the senior officers left side. Therefore, the term leftenant developed.

Is Lieutenant pronounced leftenant?

A Lieutenant (a leader of a platoon) is pronounced ‘Left-tenant’ in the U.K. (as he/she is left the tenancy of command). In the US however, the word is pronounced as ‘Lew-tenant’, much to British distaste. Leftenant is the U.K. and Commonwealth pronunciation. USA pronunciation of the same rank is LOOtenant.

How do you pronounce Lieutenant in the British navy?

No one can really say why in the British Army the word is pronounced “left-tenant” but it’s notable that in the Royal Navy the pronunciation seems half way across the ocean. They drop the “f” and say “le-tenant.”

Why is colonel pronounced weird?

Why is the word “colonel” pronounced with an “r” sound when it is not spelled with an “r”? “Colonel” came to English from the mid-16th-century French word coronelle, meaning commander of a regiment, or column, of soldiers. By the mid-17th century, the spelling and French pronunciation had changed to colonnel.

What is a British lieutenant?

Lieutenant (UK: /lɛfˈtɛnənt/; Lt) is a junior officer rank in the British Army and Royal Marines. It ranks above second lieutenant and below captain and has a NATO ranking code of OF-1 and it is the senior subaltern rank.

How do the Irish pronounce lieutenant?

It is ‘lef-tenant’ over here. But in American and Ireland it’s ‘loo-tenant’.”

Why do British pronounce clerk as Clark?

It was spelled both clark and clerk. Because the word clerk was pronounced with (är) rather than (ĕr) in the south of England, the vowels in the word did not become (ûr).

How do the British pronounce sixth?

Finally, the word “sixth” has more than one possible pronunciation in English. It is usually pronounced SIKSTH in British English (pronounced as the word ‘six’, with ‘th’ as in ‘thin’ attached at the end), but can also be pronounced SIKST-TH.

How does Canada pronounce lieutenant?

Pronunciation. The British pronunciation of the French word “lieutenant” (as “lef-tenant”) is the official pronunciation as used by the Canadian Armed Forces, but the American pronunciation of “loo-tenant” (which is closer to the original French pronunciation) is sometimes heard outside of the military.

How is lieutenant pronounced in Canada?

How do you pronounce lieutenant in Australia?

Lieutenant general (abbreviated LTGEN and pronounced ‘lef-tenant general’) is the second-highest active rank of the Australian Army.

Why do Brits say Darby instead of Derby?

Derby means a horse race, a contest open to all comers or a sporting event between two local teams. In British English, derby is pronounced dar-bee. In American English, derby is pronounced dur-bee. Unfortunately, more often than not, I hear Americans — including a number of folks at The18 — pronounce derby as dar-bee.

How do Brits pronounce Ralph?

(In Northern England – or at least in Northumberland – “Ralph” apparently used to be pronounced /ra:f/, very roughly so that it rhymed with the contemporary American pronunciation of “half” and “calf”.)

Why do English say Sickth?

Here is what I guess is happening: The word sixth ends with a consonant cluster which is quite difficult to pronounce, so lots of people simplify it. In Ireland, if [sɪksθ] is simplified, it gets simplified to [sɪkst] (which the OP doesn’t notice because he’s used to it).

Why is Ralph pronounced Rafe in England?

However, some Ralphs in the UK, like the actor Ralph Fiennes and the composer Ralph Vaughan Williams, have pronounced their name as if it were spelled “Rafe.” Words were pronounced as they were spelled in Old English, which was spoken from roughly 450 to 1100. There were no silent letters.