Hoarse, four, mourning etc.

[Laurence Horn]

At 10:01 AM -0400 7/2/10, Mark Mandel wrote:
>I use "4" for "for" in text-messaging, and AFAIK I don't pronounce them
>differently, apart from stress-related difference.

Same here (well, same here if I used text messaging), but I suspect
that even text messagers (as I would also refer to them) who
distinguish the vowels in question would "forgive" the (relatively
slender) difference in this context and use the abbreviation.  I
remember all of us in high school writing things like "2 Good 2 B
4-Got-10" without pronouncing "forgotten" like 4-Got-10"

LH

>
>Sideslipping:  Interesting that you use "messengers" here. I would use
>"messagers", from the (recent?) verb "to message" 'to send a message',
>reserving "messenger" for 'one who carries a message'.
>
>m a m
>
>On Fri, Jul 2, 2010 at 6:14 AM, Margaret Lee <mlee303 at yahoo.com> wrote:
>
>>  Do you think that text messengers, advertisers and others who use the
>>  number 4 in place of 'for' make a distinction in the pronunciation of four
>>  and for?
>>
>  > --Margaret Lee

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