Singer vs sinner

[ROBINDESBOIS]

are singer and sinner homophones?
And nosey and noisy?

[caliber1]

No. Neither example is a homophone. Something like "stationary" and "stationery" would be. Or "principal" or "principle".

I worked with a Mexican guy who thought "eyes" and "ices" were pronounced the same because it didnt really make sense that "eyes" has a "z" sounds.

[chileno]

Originally Posted by caliber1

No. Neither example is a homophone. Something like "stationary" and "stationery" would be. Or "principal" or "principle".

I worked with a Mexican guy who thought "eyes" and "ices" were pronounced the same because it didnt really make sense that "eyes" has a "z" sounds.

Correct. I always taught my students about those differences and to look out for that.

For us Hispanics in general a "barco" or a "varco" is the same thing, as long as it floats...

[poli]

Originally Posted by ROBINDESBOIS

are singer and sinner homophones?
And nosey and noisy?

The oi sound in noisy is similar to the Spanish oy as in hoyo.

The ng sound in singer is unlike anything is Spanish, but if you have problems replicating the sound try the ng as in tango. Many New Yorkers , especially older generation New Yorkers use that formula(singuer, Longuyland) In reality the ng sound in words like singer and Long Island are soft but the g is there making singer quite different- sounding than sinner. I hope this helps.

[wrholt]

As the others have said, no and no. In "sinner" the "n" is always pronounced with the front edge of the tongue touching the alveolar ridge (the place just behind the front teeth where the top of the mouth turns almost vertical) and the back of the tongue pulled down, while in "singer" the "ng" is usually pronounced with the back of the tongue touching the ulvula (the soft part of the top of the mouth) and the front of the tongue pulled down.

The first syllable of "nosey" rhymes with the word "beau" (or "bow" = arco); using Spanish spelling it sounds like "nou". (The spelling "bow" has 2 different pronunciations: when "bow" = inclincarse, doblegarse, ceder; reverencia it is pronounced "bow": using Spanish spelling it sounds like "bau".)

The first syllable of "noisy" rhymes with "boy(s)": using Spanish spelling it sounds like "noy".