The charts below show the way in which the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) represents Standard Bemé pronunciations. English approximations are loose in some cases and are only intended to give a general idea of the pronunciation. For more information, see Help:IPA.
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| Diphthongs
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| Bemé orthography |
IPA |
Examples |
English approximation
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| ey |
ei̯ |
skey |
may
|
| oi |
oi̯ |
woiwoi |
joy
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| ow |
ou̯ |
grown |
bow
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The distinction between /kr tr t͡ʃr/, as well as between /gr d͡ʒr/, has been historically neutralised, leading to a varying pronunciation:
- ⟨kr⟩ may be heard as /tɹ̥ kɹ̥ t͡ʃɹ̥/;
- In the most basilectal(Kriyal) varieties, the stop may be simply strongly aspirated, leaving /tʰː kʰː t͡ʃʰː/;
- The realisation may be aspirated retroflex /ʈʰ/, and similarly affricated to /ʈ͡ʂ ʈ͡ʂʰ/.
The pronunciation of ⟨gr⟩ is less variable; there still exists a distinction between /gr~d͡ʒr/ and /dr/, though /dr/ is extremely rare and only exists in certain words, such as grag "stop (v.)" and drag "drag queen".