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FREE VARIATION: Which is Correct? TO-MAY-TO or TO-MA-TO

In phonetics, free variation is an alternative pronunciation of a word (or of a phoneme in a word) that doesn’t affect the word’s meaning.

Free variation is free in the sense that it doesn’t result in a different word. Usually there are reasons for it, perhaps the speaker’s dialect, or the emphasis the speaker wants to put on the word.

Sounds that are in free variation usually exhibit no difference or change in the word. This means that either way it is pronounced, the meaning of the word does not change, and is accepted by native speakers.

Examples of words (or phonemes in words) that exhibit free variation are:

  • Data – Day-ta; Da-ta
  • Tomato – To-may-to; To-ma-to
  • EconomicsE-co-no-mics; Eh-co-no-mics
  • Water – Wa-t-er; Wa-d-er
  • Tirade – Tie-rade; Te-rade

There are so many other similar examples in English language. And if you are a lover of American movies, then you couldn’t have missed hearing water pronounced wader. While you must have used either one of the words listed here in free variation yourself, whether to-ma-to or da-ta.

Which ever one rocks your boat is just fine, only that you should be careful not to extend this concept of free variation to all words, or phonemes in words. It still remains the best policy to check how a word is pronounced, and if it has a variation or not.

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