[Lexicog] Re: lexical entries as singulars or plurals

[Fritz Goerling]

For me they are identical in pronunciation in normal speech. Maybe an actor
or someone
who recites poetry might exaggerate and make the difference by hissing the
double "s".
Or someone who wants to emphasize the difference in this little saying might
just put more
stress on the "isst." Or there is a discussion where someone says "Man ist
was man liest"
(One is what one reads) to which someone more given to the pleasures of the
palate might
reply "Nein, man ist was man ISST" (No, one is what one eats).

Fritz Goerling
  Fritz Goerling wrote:
  > the point of the little world-play is in the similar-sounding
  > "ist" (= is) and "isst" (= eats).

  Are they similar sounding, or identical?  If different, what is the
  difference?  (I vaguely recall my German prof claiming that they were
  pronounced differently, but not being able to hear any diff.  Of course,
  that was before my linguistics days.)
  --
        Mike Maxwell
        Linguistic Data Consortium
        maxwell at ldc.upenn.edu


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