Acme--two syllables or three? :)

[Peter A. McGraw]

I noticed my best friend in grade school (Oregon, early 50s, shortly after
we moved up from So. Cal.) using a two-syllable pronunciation of
'batteries,' and it seems to me as if I hear it more and more nowadays.

But as I think about it, I'm not sure whether he said "bat-try" or "bat-ry"
(the latter with unaspirated /t/).  I know his family said "cunt-ry" for
'country,' which I've never heard anywhere else.  What I hear nowadays is
definitely "batry" or "bat-try," both with aspirated /t/.

Peter Mc.

--On Friday, July 23, 2004 11:32 AM -0400 Beverly Flanigan
<flanigan at OHIO.EDU> wrote:

> Interesting.  My father (born in MN,1900) also said "battries."  Is this
> common?



*****************************************************************
Peter A. McGraw       Linfield College        McMinnville, Oregon
******************* pmcgraw at linfield.edu ************************