Talk:abstain

Pronunciation

Shoudn't be /əpˈsteɪn/? With /p/ instead of /b/? Maro 12:43, 11 August 2012 (UTC)

Not really. The Classical Latin IPA of abstineo is listed as /apsˈti.ne.oː/, though I don't know what evidence that's based on, as there are no sound recordings of Classical Latin. Also the French abstenir isn't pronounced /ap/ as some claim. I have no idea where this hypothesis comes from. I also don't know why we allow unattested pronunciations, I've raised the point before and been merely 'outvoted' with no reasons to explain why. Mglovesfun (talk) 12:58, 11 August 2012 (UTC)

I meant that there should be /p/ instead of /b/ in the pronunciation due to assimilation. There of course is not [pʰ], but just plain [p]. It's impossible to pronounce voiced /b/ and then voiceless /s/. /s/ doesn't become voiced, so "b" should become voiceless. Like we don't pronounce dressed: /dɹɛsd/ but /dɹɛst/. In similar words beginning with "abs-" there is /p/ in the pronunciation: File:En-uk-absent.ogg, File:En-uk-Absolute.ogg. Am I right? Maro 14:04, 11 August 2012 (UTC)