When the word ‘drawing’ is pronounced as /’drɔːrɪŋ/, is that R called intrusive? Is such pronunciation colloquial and unacceptable for formal address? Answer For people who use the term “intrusive r”, it refers to linking /r/ whenever it occurs in a context where the letter R isn’t written. It doesn’t make a difference whether it … Read more
Most of us have heard plenty of examples of the so-called Intrusive-R. It is a feature of non-rhotic dialects, including British RP and some New England dialects. It occurs between two vowels that are normally articulated, such as a vowel ending one word followed immediately by a vowel beginning another word, presumably to avoid having … Read more
The phenomenon is not dissimilar to this: Word for "butting in on the Net", yet it wouldn’t necessarily be considered trolling. Person A replies to a comment/post by Person B on the internet. The conversation might be clearly between Person A and Person B, and it may be a debate/disagreement/point of contention. As the conversation … Read more
If I say two words consecutively, with the first ending in a vowel sound and the second starting with one, when is it correct to include a non-existent r between those two words? Examples from phrases I’ve heard: I saw (r)a movie They saw (r)us Law (r)and order That’s the idea, (r)anyway. I heard the … Read more
My grandmother, who grew up in western Pennsylvania, pronounced wash and Washington with an intrusive R: “warsh” and “Warshington.” Where does the intrusive R come from in that dialect? It doesn’t seem to be produced by the same mechanism that changes law and order to “lawr and order” in non-rhotic dialects (plus, my grandmother’s dialect … Read more
I am from New England (northeastern US) and it’s my understanding that we have a non-rhotic dialect in this region, which is unusual compared to the rest of the US. It is common to drop the final r in a word, and that is the most singular feature of the dialect, as Tom Bosley’s character … Read more
I know that idea is pronounced as /aɪˈdiə/, but I’ve meet several people in real life who put an ‘r’ at the end of the word. How come? Answer In practically all dialects of (British) English, the word "idea" would generally be followed by an ‘r’ sound when followed by another word beginning with a … Read more
