how is the prefix "ex" really spoken (UNCLASSIFIED)

[Tom Zurinskas]

You can hear 'em at thefreedictionary.com.  Click on the flags for audio.  On second listening I hear the first "e" in excess more like an ~e (as in "bet") than an ~a.  Certainly it's an ~a (as in "hat") for "access".  Having listened to a bunch of words with "ex" prefixes I thought the "e" in "excess" seemed different trending toward ~a rather than ~e.


Tom Zurinskas, USA - CT20, TN3, NJ33, FL7+
see truespel.com phonetic spelling


>
> ---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
> Sender: American Dialect Society
> Poster: "Mullins, Bill AMRDEC"
> Subject: Re: how is the prefix "ex" really spoken (UNCLASSIFIED)
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------

>>
>> ~aks was the pronunciation for both USA and UK for one word, "excess"
>> ~akses
>>
>>
>
> How was "access" pronounced? The same as "excess"?
> Classification: UNCLASSIFIED
> Caveats: NONE
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
_________________________________________________________________
Hotmail has tools for the New Busy. Search, chat and e-mail from your inbox.
http://www.windowslive.com/campaign/thenewbusy?ocid=PID28326::T:WLMTAGL:ON:WL:en-US:WM_HMP:042010_1

------------------------------------------------------------
The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org