On 2017-10-27 4:33 PM, Mike Lynd via OldTools wrote:
> And the correct pronunciation is.........
>
> p'TEENǝ
>
> or
>
> PATinnǝ?
The Wiktionary suggests the two illustrate yet another difference
between English as spoken in Britain and as it's spoken in USA. In
Britain, the emphasis is apparently on the first syllable, whereas in
America it's on the second. The latter is arguably closer to the French
'patine' , from which it is derived (or so they say), though the 'hard'
EE sound would not be. In my experience here in Canada, English speakers
favour the American emphasis. As an aside, it appears the default
spell-checker in Thunderbird is American-based: it highlights my
spelling of 'favour'. I'll have to fix that!
FWIW
Don
--
"You can tell a man that boozes by the company he chooses"
The Famous Pig Song, Clarke Van Ness
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