Printable View
Ummm...
This is 6 syllables, not 7. Unless American English pronounces "different" as 3 syllables ('dif-fer-ent'), whereas in the Queen's English it's 2 syllables ('diff-rent'). But what about the American sitcom "Diff'rent Strokes"? Whatchoo talkin' 'bout Sky-Byte!Quote:
with four different figures
"That wasn't Haiku... that was Senryuu." - Fire Convoy
So you're saying, the 'e' is silent?
Different has three syllables. Just because it's become acceptable as an alternative pronunciation to slur it into two, it doesn't mean the middle syllable has just disappeared. The whole reason why 'Diff'rent Strokes' had an apostrophe was to approximate how it would be pronounced by street kids from Harlem, rather than 'Different Strokes', which would potentially have an extra syllable.Quote:
Originally Posted by GoktimusPrime
Go here and click the sound button to see how the word should be pronounced. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/different. Note that the word itself is broken into three syllables (although it allows diff - ruh nt as a secondary pronunciation.)
Anyway, the point is, for the sake of poetry in particular, three syllables is far more correct than two. And the poem was correct in its syllabification.
(And there is no way that the Queen would say different in anything but three syllables.)