Date:  Fri, 25 Jul 1997 10:36:45 -0700
From:  Peter McGraw <pmcgraw[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]LINFIELD.EDU>
Subject: ough

>From one of those "Did you know..." lists that bounce around the Internet,
followed by a comment from my son:

> >>>> >The combination "ough" can be pronounced in nine different ways.
> >The
> >following sentence contains them all: "A rough-coated, dough-faced,
> >thoughtful ploughman strode through the streets of Scarborough; after
> falling
> >into a slough, he coughed and hiccoughed."

>Whough pronounces "slough" differently from "through"?  They sound
>like they rhyme to me. "Dough" vs. "Scarborough" also seems pretty
>debatable.

1) Are there parts of the country where "slough" (i.e., the body of
water) is pronounced other than [slu:]?

2) I presume that on the East Coast "Scarborough" has a schwa rather than
an [o] as its final vowel, yes?

Peter McGraw
In the wilds of Orygun