Enquiry/Inquiry Thread poster: Mats Wiman
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Mats Wiman 
Sweden
Local time: 02:39
Member (2000)
German to Swedish
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In memoriam
The General Motors press officer was yesterday talking about
new enguiries/inquiries from possible buyers of SAAB Automobile.
He pronounced it INKweries and I would say enKWAIerees.
I his American and mine British?
AND
when does one use en- or in-?
Mats
| | | | Sara Senft
United States
Local time: 20:39
Spanish to English
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| What I do--native US English speaker | Dec 20, 2009 |
Was he a native speaker of US English? I am native in US English and I use the spelling with "I," pronouncing it as "INkerees."
As for the two spelling differences.....It seems like British English uses the spelling that starts with "E."
| | | | | Native UK English speaker | Dec 20, 2009 |
Sara Senft wrote:
Was he a native speaker of US English? I am native in US English and I use the spelling with "I," pronouncing it as "INkerees."
As for the two spelling differences.....It seems like British English uses the spelling that starts with "E."
I agree, Sara. It seems the Americans say INquiries and the British enQUIries. Likewise, the Americans spell it INQUIRIES and the British ENQUIRIES, though I think both spellings are acceptable in the UK. Maybe in America too?
Jenny
| | | | mediamatrix (X)
Local time: 20:39
Spanish to English
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In UK English like wot I was lernt at skool meny yeers ago:
ENquiry relates to ENquire as in 'consult', and we say 'en-quire-ee'
INquiry relates to INquire, which is much closer to INquest and INquisition and has a more official - not to say 'nasty' - air about it, and it sounds like 'in-quire-ee'.
So, I will dial directory ENquiries to find my friend's phone number, and I will ENquire about my brother-in-law's health next time I see my sister.
... See more In UK English like wot I was lernt at skool meny yeers ago:
ENquiry relates to ENquire as in 'consult', and we say 'en-quire-ee'
INquiry relates to INquire, which is much closer to INquest and INquisition and has a more official - not to say 'nasty' - air about it, and it sounds like 'in-quire-ee'.
So, I will dial directory ENquiries to find my friend's phone number, and I will ENquire about my brother-in-law's health next time I see my sister.
But, if my boss tells me to conduct an INquiry into fraudulent use of the company car, then I shall, indeed INquire, although I will probably make some ENquiries first so see who was the last person seen using the car.
MediaMatrix ▲ Collapse
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David Wright
Austria
Local time: 02:39
German to English
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Since the first syllable in inquiry / enquiry is unstressed, it i most likely to be pronounced "schwa" in fluent speech. In citation form you might hear an e or an i, and if you ask people how to pronouce it you will get that answer; but actually listen to someone speaking normal fluent English and I would imagine you would get a "schwa" for both words
(For those not familiar with the term, schwa isd the sound of the e in "the" and is the typical pronunciation of most unstressed vow... See more Since the first syllable in inquiry / enquiry is unstressed, it i most likely to be pronounced "schwa" in fluent speech. In citation form you might hear an e or an i, and if you ask people how to pronouce it you will get that answer; but actually listen to someone speaking normal fluent English and I would imagine you would get a "schwa" for both words
(For those not familiar with the term, schwa isd the sound of the e in "the" and is the typical pronunciation of most unstressed vowels in fluent English. One of the pronunciation criteria at the university I work at is whether students can "reduce" the full vowels to the reduced schwa in fluent speech.) ▲ Collapse
| | | | Krzysztof Kajetanowicz (X)
Poland
Local time: 02:39
English to Polish
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David Wright wrote:
Since the first syllable in inquiry / enquiry is unstressed, it i most likely to be pronounced "schwa" in fluent speech. In citation form you might hear an e or an i, and if you ask people how to pronouce it you will get that answer; but actually listen to someone speaking normal fluent English and I would imagine you would get a "schwa" for both words
That's what I thought, although some online dictionaries make a distinction between pronunciation of the two.
| | | | Mats Wiman
Sweden
Local time: 02:39
Member (2000)
German to Swedish
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TOPIC STARTER In memoriam | Thanks David | Dec 21, 2009 |
for the 'schwa' lesson. I had never heard of it. It is even applicable
in Swedish on e, ö and even a in some positions and in Jones it is depicted as the inverted mirrored e.
If the GM press officer says INquiri, he hasn't applied it though.
Mats
| | | | Latin_Hellas (X)
United States
Local time: 02:39
Italian to English
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| Both acceptable in US English | Dec 21, 2009 |
According to Websters, inquiry and enquiry are interchangeable in US English. I pronounce it with the accent on the second syllable, as does Marlon Brando in the Godfather ...
"I want no inQUIRies made ..."
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| It depends a little on which dictionary you consult! | Dec 21, 2009 |
mediamatrix wrote:
In UK English like wot I was lernt at skool meny yeers ago:
ENquiry relates to ENquire as in 'consult', and we say 'en-quire-ee'
INquiry relates to INquire, which is much closer to INquest and INquisition and has a more official - not to say 'nasty' - air about it, and it sounds like 'in-quire-ee'.
So, I will dial directory ENquiries to find my friend's phone number, and I will ENquire about my brother-in-law's health next time I see my sister.
But, if my boss tells me to conduct an INquiry into fraudulent use of the company car, then I shall, indeed INquire, although I will probably make some ENquiries first so see who was the last person seen using the car.
MediaMatrix
That is what I learnt a couple of generations ago too, but people just look puzzled if you try to enforce that kind of thing now!
Consulting the first three dictionaries I have at hand, Concise Oxford and Oxford Advanced Learners' give the main entry at ENquiry, with INquiry as an acceptable alternative. Advanced Learners' mentions that INquiry is especially N. AmE.
In Longmans Dictionary of Contemporary English, ENquiry is said to be an alternative, mainly BrE spelling of INquiry... and the main entry is under INquiry.
The Longman Guide to English Usage says that some BrE writers make the same distinction as MediaMatrix, but the explanation is shorter and far less amusing. It also says that AmE writers do not make the distinction, and spell it Inquiry...
And Godfrey Howard (The Good English Guide) maintained that the distinction in the UK was becoming even more pronounced in the 1990s...
But that was more than a decade ago, and I bet it depended, even then, who you asked, and how word-conscious they were.
British English makes no distinction in the pronuncuation, (weak first syllable, stress on the second), which is probably why we are so vague about the distinction in meaning.
Some dialects would probably prounounce it with the same vowel in the first and last syllables - a weak short i, tending towards a "schwa" but not quite making it, especially on the second.
I think what I am trying to say is that you write what you prefer, or choose what your target reader is likely to expect. If a client complains, you explain that both are correct, and go for the option the client prefers.
| | | | Neil Coffey
United Kingdom
Local time: 01:39
French to English
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| About the schwa | Dec 21, 2009 |
A couple of people have mentioned the potential pronunciation of the first syllable as a schwa, so just to add a couple of clarifications (talking mainly from the point of view of British English):
- there is variation between speakers as to whether the unstressed /I/ is pronounced as a schwa or given its [I] quality (so this extends e.g. to the first and last syllables of the word "decided"-- some speakers pronounce both with a schwa)
- some speakers (especially in the north ... See more A couple of people have mentioned the potential pronunciation of the first syllable as a schwa, so just to add a couple of clarifications (talking mainly from the point of view of British English):
- there is variation between speakers as to whether the unstressed /I/ is pronounced as a schwa or given its [I] quality (so this extends e.g. to the first and last syllables of the word "decided"-- some speakers pronounce both with a schwa)
- some speakers (especially in the north of England) have more of a tendency to give unstressed vowels their "full" quality (i.e. not make them a schwa) compared to others -- so for example, southern British pronunciation would generally have the word "computer" pronounced with a schwa in the first syllable, whereas many northern speakers would give it a vowel similar to the vowel in "cop" (but unstressed)
- @Christine : I'd need to see evidence to be convinced about your notion of "schwa that doesn't quite make it" as being a special feature in this particular situation -- the schwa (and unstressed vowels in general) apparently tend to be subject to more variation/coarticulation in general, so what you may be hearing is just the behaviour of the schwa-- in effect, it's part of what a schwa is that it never/rarely "quite makes" its target ▲ Collapse
| | | | | and in a teaching/examining situation? | Jun 15, 2011 |
Yesterday I had exactly the same query as Mats had when he started this thread 18 months ago.
Now that I have read the postiungs it is pretty clear to me where the difference lies.
However I am seeing it from a teaching or rather an examining viewpoint.
In a listening comprehension test for lower intermediate learners I came across the INKwirry pronunciation, spoken by an AE voice actor. As I only speak/am familiar with BE myself, I found this word difficult to... See more Yesterday I had exactly the same query as Mats had when he started this thread 18 months ago.
Now that I have read the postiungs it is pretty clear to me where the difference lies.
However I am seeing it from a teaching or rather an examining viewpoint.
In a listening comprehension test for lower intermediate learners I came across the INKwirry pronunciation, spoken by an AE voice actor. As I only speak/am familiar with BE myself, I found this word difficult to understand and wonder whether European learners of English would be less insular than I am and would understand both pronunciations?
The test makers use speakers of various different NS and non-NS accents with the aim of making their spoken texts sound authentic, but there should not be a bias towards BE or AE.
So do you think that enKWAIery and INKwirry are both recognisable to learners of English? ▲ Collapse
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