Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version B 2.10.3 4.3bsd-beta 6/6/85; site ptsfb.UUCP
Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!bonnie!akgua!gatech!seismo!lll-crg!qantel!ptsfa!ptsfb!rob
From: rob@ptsfb.UUCP (Rob Bernardo)
Newsgroups: net.nlang
Subject: Re:  Metathesis
Message-ID: <257@ptsfb.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 12-Nov-85 00:11:22 EST
Article-I.D.: ptsfb.257
Posted: Tue Nov 12 00:11:22 1985
Date-Received: Thu, 14-Nov-85 00:54:38 EST
References: <747@cyb-eng.UUCP> <1900005@datacube.UUCP>
Reply-To: rob@ptsfb.UUCP (Rob Bernardo)
Organization: Pacific Bell, San Francisco
Lines: 18

In article <1047@oddjob.UUCP> sra@oddjob.UUCP (Scott R. Anderson) writes:
>In article <256@ptsfb.UUCP> rob@ptsfb.UUCP (Rob Bernardo) writes:
>>An example of metathesis that occured that is considered acceptable but
>>is still not reflected in the spelling is the word 'comfortable'
>>pronounced as 'comfterble'.
>
>What about 'Wednesday'?  Someone (from Britain, natch) intimated recently
>that some people still pronounce the first 'd'.

I suppose what you're asking is this: since "Wednesday" is pronounced
"Wendsday", is there not metathesis of the "n" and "d".

I suspect not. What I believe happened (just an educated guess) is that
the "d" got dropped due to assimilation to the "n", leaving "Wensday".
The "d"-like sound you hear between the "n" and "s" (actually a "z" sound),
is really a always thrown in by the tongue in normal speech between "n" and "z"
as is a "t"-like sound between "n" and "s". This is why, for example,
"sense" and "cents" sound identical, except in hyper-careful speech.