Danish Diphthongs

Danish has many diphthongs. English also has many diphthongs, but Danish has diphthongs that do not occur in English. Let us look at them.

Danish has four diphthongs that are not used in English. In these four Danish diphthongs, the second component of the diphthong is the high front rounded back vowel that occurs in the English word now. Four Danish words with diphthongs that do not occur in English are døv (deaf), liv (life), ræv (fox) and syv (seven).

In the word døv, the first component of the diphthong is a mid front unrounded vowel. This vowel does not occur in English, but it does in languages such as French and German. The word døv has the same meaning and spelling in Norwegian, but in Norwegian it does not have a diphthong.

The word liv has the same meaning and spelling in Norwegian and Swedish, but in Norwegian and Swedish it does not have a diphthong. The first component is a high front unrounded vowel. The first and second components of the diphthong share the same tongue height.

In the word ræv, the first component of the diphthong is a mid front unrounded vowel. The Norwegian equivalent is rev and does not have a diphthong. The letter æ was once used in English.

The word syv is also used in Norwegian, but in Norwegian it does not have a diphthong. The first component is a high front rounded vowel. This vowel does not occur in English, but it occurs in languages such as French and German.

Danish and English both have a large number of diphthongs. However, a number of Danish diphthongs do not occur in English. In fact, Danish has four diphthongs that do not occur in other Germanic languages.

Verbs with the Prefix -mis

Many English verbs are formed with the prefix -mis. When it is attached to verbs, it changes the meaning to include incorrectness or an action that is badly done. The prefix can also be attached to nouns. 

The following verbs are formed with the prefix -mis:

misbehave

mishear

misjudge

mismanage

mispronounce

misread

misspeak

misspell

misunderstand

miswrite

The prefix can combine with the verbs read, speak and write, but not with listen. However, it can combine with hear to form the word mishear. Many nouns can also be formed with the prefix such as mismanagement and misunderstanding. The prefix -mis is used to create many words in English.

High Central Unrounded Vowel of European Portuguese

The phonology of European Portuguese is very different from that of Brazilian. One noticeable difference is the high central unrounded vowel. It occurs in European Portuguese but not in Brazilian. The high central unrounded vowel only occurs in unstressed syllables. However, it can be deleted.

Speakers of European Portuguese use the high central unrounded vowel in words such as noite (night), presidente (president) and sete (seven). In the word colesterol (cholesterol), the high central unrounded vowel occurs in the second and third syllables. However, in all of these words, the high central vowel can also be deleted.

In Brazilian Portuguese, the high central unrounded vowel does not occur. In words such as noite, presidente and sete, most speakers of Brazilian Portuguese use the high front unrounded vowel [i]. In the word colesterol, speakers of European Portuguese often pronounce it with only two syllables. In Brazilian Portuguese, however, it is always pronounced with four syllables.

One feature of European Portuguese which is different from Brazilian Portuguese is the high central unrounded vowel. It occurs in many unstressed syllables and can even be deleted. The use of the high central unrounded vowel and the frequency of vowel deletion serve to distinguish the European variety of Portuguese from the Brazilian.

Pronunciation of Word-Final d in Norwegian

In many Norwegian words, the word-final d is not pronounced. This is also the case with many words in Danish, a language that is closely related to Norwegian. In Swedish, however, the final d is pronounced in these words. In one particular Norwegian dialect, however, a dialect that is spoken in western Norway and includes the city of Ålesund, the word-final d is pronounced.

Norwegian words with a word-final silent d include bord (table) fjord (fiord) hard (hard) hund (dog), jord (earth), hånd (hand), land (country), ord (word) sand (sand), and strand (beach). Only a few dialects of western Norway pronounce the word-final d. The pronunciation of the word-final d reflects an earlier pronunciation.

In many Norwegian words, the final d is silent. This is the case with words such as hund (dog), land  (country) and ord (word). These words are identical in Danish and Swedish. In Danish, the final d is silent, but in Swedish it is not. A few dialects of western Norway pronounce the word-final d and thus use the same pronunciation as in Swedish.