pronunciation: Meet you as 'meetchoo'

[CJ 4 life]

Hi, I've noticed that sometimes, when the letter "t" comes before a "y" sound (especially in the words "you" and "your") becomes a "ch" sound, but sometimes it doesn't, but there's just a little glottal stop between the "t" and the "y". For example:

1) Nice to meet you ---> I've heard both "meetchoo" and "meet(short pause)you"
2) I know that your parents are great ---> I've heard both "thatcher" and "that(short pause)your"

Does it vary from speaker to speaker or can the same speaker switch between them? Thank you.

 

[entangledbank]

Yes, this is a normal reduction, and also occurs with words ending in [d]. It is common in speech, probably most people say it much of the time, but it's not automatic. The faster we speak, the more likely it is to happen. You will sometimes see 'did you' and 'got you' written as 'didja' and 'gotcha' in representations of casual speech.

 

[VenusEnvy]

The same speaker can say it both ways. It just depends on how fast or lazily the speaker wants to speak. ha ha

I've used it both ways. I usually use "meetchoo" because it is easier to say and seems to come out of my mouth naturally. It is alright to use even in formal situations. I use "meet you" when I want to articulate my words very well.

 

[panjandrum]

This can be heard anywhere on the continuum from meet.yoo to meechoo and beyond, to meetcha.
I think I come somewhere on the meetyoo side of meechoo.
The threads about mature are interesting on this general point:
mature - pronunciation
mature pronunciation

 

[CJ 4 life]

The same speaker can say it both ways. It just depends on how fast or lazily the speaker wants to speak. ha ha

I've used it both ways. I usually use "meetchoo" because it is easier to say and seems to come out of my mouth naturally. It is alright to use even in formal situations. I use "meet you" when I want to articulate my words very well.

I understand....but I've also heard people talking fast and a bit sloppy, with all kinds of contractions and slang, but still separating the two words with a short pause (glottal stop).... So do you think it's a matter of how fast or lazily you speak?

 

[natkretep]

CJ - have a look at this thread:

pronunciation of s before y

This phenomenon can be called palatalisation. It happens more with particular combinations, like when you say 'Got you' (to mean 'I understand', or 'I've caught you out'), you have to say gotcha (also spelt gotcher).

 

[askforonce]

Are some of the words be pronounced differently when they are connected together? For example, "t+y"(meet you) is pronounced as /tʃju/ rather than /tju/, and "d+y"(did you) is pronounced as "dʒju" rather than /d ju/? Thanks in advance!

<This thread has been merged with an earlier thread>

 

[Keith Bradford]

You're right in your analysis, but I don't think you need make a rule of it. This is the normal behaviour of the human tongue when speaking quickly.

But there is in fact a difference between the two pronunciations which is not apparent until you meet a "limiting pair". (A limiting pair is a pair of sounds which, though similar, make a difference in meaning.) The best-known limiting pair for the phenomenon you describe is: White shoes/Why choose. Native speakers make a tiny but important distinction, pronouncing the 't' more distinctly in the first phrase, with a very slight pause after it.

 

[askforonce]

You're right in your analysis, but I don't think you need make a rule of it. This is the normal behaviour of the human tongue when speaking quickly.

But there is in fact a difference between the two pronunciations which is not apparent until you meet a "limiting pair". (A limiting pair is a pair of sounds which, though similar, make a difference in meaning.) The best-known limiting pair for the phenomenon you describe is: White shoes/Why choose. Native speakers make a tiny but important distinction, pronouncing the 't' more distinctly in the first phrase, with a very slight pause after it.

Do you mean Whenever I say "t+y" and "d+y", I can speak them as /tʃju/ and /dʒju/? No matter what words they are, if they are connected, I can change the pronunciation. Am I correct?

 

[Gugabd]

<This thread has been merged with an earlier thread. Moderator>

Hi everyone! Most of the times I hear people speaking English, they use /tʃ/ and /dʒ/ when a t or d sound is followed by a y sound. I use these sound as well when I'm speaking, for example:

I want you becomes I wantchou
I need you becomes I needjou

However, what I actually would like to know is how often do you guys use these sounds this way. Thanks for you attention!

 

[JulianStuart]

Hi everyone! Most of the times I hear people speaking English, they use /tʃ/ and /dʒ/ when a t or d sound is followed by a y sound. I use these sound as well when I'm speaking, for example:

I want you becomes I wantchou
I need you becomes I needjou

However, what I actually would like to know is how often do you guys use these sounds this way. Thanks for you attention!

It's not a conscious/deliberate action, so I expect no-one will be able to tell when we "use" these sounds that way - it just happens when we speak quickly

 

[suzi br]

I would say most of the time .... because we speak quickly most of the time.

Anther option is to "swallow" the consonant on the first word (I wan-you)

 

[Cagey]

These previous threads may be helpful:

pronunciation: 'need you' as 'neechu'?
pronunciation: "t" between consonants [want you, want her, want whatever]
​

(I am not good at this sort of question, so I can't usefully summarize the contents.)

 

[joanvillafane]

It's called palatalization and it's very common in casual speech.

 

[natkretep]

Yes, palatalisation can occur between words as you have shown. Sometimes when you have the /t/ and /j/ combination within words, the /tʃ/ becomes the normal pronunciation. If you consider a word like literature, the spelling points towards the original pronunciation of -ture. Today, most of us pronounce it with /tʃ/. Similarly, soldier would originally be /dɪ/ or /dj/ before becoming /dʒ/.