"au jus" (UNCLASSIFIED)

[Paul Johnston]

Bill,
It's native for an earlier /zj/ intervocalically as in "vision"--and yes, I know that's a French loan too, but it was taken in with /zj/, as the modern French still shows.  It alternates with more nativized /dZ/ at the end of words in rouge, garage (the last is /gaerIdZ to the Brits).  Initially, though, it's in all foreign loans.

Paul Johnston
On Jan 25, 2012, at 10:13 AM, Mullins, Bill AMRDEC wrote:

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> Poster:       "Mullins, Bill AMRDEC" <Bill.Mullins at US.ARMY.MIL>
> Subject:      Re: "au jus" (UNCLASSIFIED)
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>> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>> Poster:       Tom Zurinskas <truespel at HOTMAIL.COM>
>> Subject:      Re: "au jus"
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>>
>> There is no good way in
>> English to spell the ~zh sound, the leasty prevelant sound in English
>>
>
>
> ????
> "Zh" is a perfectly good way to spell the sound.
>
> As far as it being the least prevalent sound in English, is it even an
> English sound?  All the words I can think of that use it are foreign
> loan words.
> Classification: UNCLASSIFIED
> Caveats: NONE
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