Grammar Girl here. Today’s topic is when a consonant is a vowel. When I was out on my book tour, someone at the Third Coast Coffee Roasting Company in Austin asked me whether the "w" is ever a vowel. I was stumped, but I promised to look into it. Guest-writer Sal Glynn generously took on the research project and created today's episode.

Before we get to his answer, something related to the e-mail newsletter came up in an audiobook I was listening to this week -- Undead and Uneasy. I'm finishing that book series by Mary Janice Davidson I told you about last week. In the newsletter, I answered a question about the plural of the word "bus,"  as in "school bus." It can actually be made plural with one "s" in the middle or two. "Buses" with one "s" is the preferred form, but "busses" with two "s's" is also acceptable.

A bunch of people wrote in asking if I was confusing "bus" with the word "buss" spelled with two "s's." I wasn't, but "buss" with two "s's" is another word for a big sloppy kiss, and its plural is also "b-u-s-s-e-s." I'd never heard the word before, and when I looked it up in the dictionary, I found that it is considered archaic or dialect. So imagine how surprised I was when two days later I heard the word in Undead and Uneasy! Here it is:

[EXCERPT]

How about that?

And if you want to sign up for my free daily e-mail newsletter and join in the fun of harassingme about possible errors, there's a sign-up button in the Grammar Girl section at quickanddirtytips.com.

Now back to Sal Glynn's explanation about the mysterious "w" vowel.

I bet you all remember the grade school line of vowels: "a, e, i,o, u, sometimes y." Well, to this you can also add "sometimes w." The "w" came late to the Roman alphabet. Emperor Claudius tried to give this letter its start during the alphabet reforms, but the early version was dropped after his death in 54 CE due to spiteful rumors that the "w" only served the emperor’s whim and not the common good. (1) Anglo-Saxon writing of the seventh century revived the forgotten "w", this time in the runic script that took precedence in Britain after the fall of the Roman Empire.

The "w" is used in words that help us know where we are other than here, names the short-winged songbird known as a wren, and gives us the question of "Why?" that nagging children use to drive their parents to encyclopedias and family counseling. These examples show how "w" is used as a consonant for its "wuh" sound -- "winged," "wren," "why," etc. But these words miss out on how "w" functions as a vowel like "y," though its not mentioned as often as "y." Both of these letters are consonants only at the beginning of a syllable. Let "w" sneak inside a syllable and become part of a diphthong (more on that later), and it becomes a vowel. The double duty makes "w" not just an ordinary consonant but also a semi-vowel, also sometimes called a semi-consonant.

Phonetically Speaking

Where other cultures have gotten along just fine with writing systems based on pictures or signs, Latin-based languages like English come from human speech. "D" for example, looks like a "d," sounds like a "d," and stands for "d," not tree or ground squirrel or overcoat. The study of phonetics looks at how humans make sounds, especially speech, and helps determine whether a letter is a vowel or a consonant as used in a specific word. Consonants come from constricted or closed configuration of the vocal tract. Think of the harsh sounds of "k," "p," and "t." Vowels come from an open configuration of the vocal tract and are much more musical (2).

Enter the Diphthong

Even the most straightforward of vowels have driven writers to perilously high flights of fancy. For example, French poet Arthur Rimbaud wrote, “I invented the color of vowels!—A black, E white, I red, O blue, U green (3).” Add diphthongs and the palette of vowels expands to include purple, teal, ecru, and even plaid.

A diphthong is what happens when vowels are combined to create a new sound, like the "ai" in "again," the two "o's" in "good," and the "au" in "author." One vowel is always more dominant than the other when they are put together. This makes for falling and descending diphthongs when the stress is on the first vowel, and rising and ascending diphthongs when the stress is on the second vowel. You can remember that dipthongs are made up of two letters because the prefix "di-" means "two."

"W" becomes a semi-vowel when it becomes part of a diphthong. You hear it most commonly in combination with "a," "e," and "o." For example, we have the "aw" in "claw," the "ew" in "few," and the "ow" in "show." Sound out the word where it's used to make the final determination for "w." If it glides, it’s a vowel. If not, it’s a consonant.

A Final Confusion

Finally, is there a case where the "w" is a vowel on its own? Yes and no. According to the American Heritage Dictionary, this happens in the word spelled “cwm,” pronounced “koom” and meaning "a steep hollow at the upper end of a mountain valley." The word is originally from the Welsh, a Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages, and a language in which "w" is a standard vowel, not just a semi-vowel. English comes from the Anglo-Saxon and has clashed with the Celtic for centuries. "Cwm" is great to use in Scrabble games and for stumping your friends, but as an example of using "w" as a single vowel, forget it. Although it is sometimes used as an example of a word in which "w" is a vowel, it is more often used as an example of a rare English word without a vowel.

Now that you understand "w" can be a vowel, remember the quick and dirty rule is "w" is vowel when it's part of a diphthong, and a clue is to look for it when it's used in the middle of a syllable.

Administrative

The Dog Walked Down the Street: An Outspoken Guide for Writers Who Want to Publish

Thanks to this week's guest-writer Sal Glynn, the author of the award-winning book The Dog Walked Down the Street, An Outspoken Guide for Writers Who Want to Publish. Find out more about Sal at his blog, http://dogwalkeddownthestreet.blogspot.com.

Finally, do you want to get Grammar Girl and other great shows from QDT streamed to your iPhone? If so, download Stitcher free today at stitcher.com.

That's all. Thanks for listening.

References