The Great Vowel Shift. English writing was sensible in the early 14th century around the time of Chaucer, but then shit got out of whack speaking-wise and the writing system was never adjusted to reconcile the difference. So you can blame the Black Death I guess.
The last point resonates with me! 😭 all other European languages are actually write-as-you-speak. Why, English, why???
NoneOfUrBusiness@fedia.io 3 weeks ago
Eq0@literature.cafe 3 weeks ago
It’s not only vowels, but consonants disappearing or just having a different flavor of sounds in each word. Like word, sword, swan…
FriendOfDeSoto@startrek.website 3 weeks ago
Danish has entered the chat. They don’t pronounce anything the way it’s written either. And French consists of 80 percent silent letters or thereabouts. It’s not just English in Europe.
Eq0@literature.cafe 3 weeks ago
I don’t know Danish, but French is at least consistent in what is pronounced and what is not. So seeing a word will tell you how to pronounce it even if it’s the first time you encounter it.
TrickDacy@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
Incorrect
Eq0@literature.cafe 3 weeks ago
Can you give me an example?