why is lieutenant pronounced leftenant why is lieutenant pronounced leftenant

Why do Americans say zee? I always suspected--and I have never seen anything to back this up--that this pronunciation was adopted because "lootenant", as the Americans pronounce it, sounds like "Loo-tenant," i.e., "individual occupying the loo (toilet)." In the US, zebra is pronounced as zee-bruh, so with a long e. It is only capitalized when . Leftenant is the U.K. and Commonwealth pronunciation. Why is the French word lieutenant pronounced leggy instead of lieutenant? Armchair linguists on both sides of the Atlantic offered up various answers and suggestions: here's a selection for your interest and entertainment . Because thats the word. There's no need to delve into etymythology to try and fail to figure out the why. The senior grade of lieutenant is known as first lieutenant in the United States, and as lieutenant in the United Kingdom and the rest of the English-speaking world. Additionally, it can also provide synonyms and suggest formatting improvements. Is lieutenant pronounced leftenant? The British monarch's representatives in the counties of the United Kingdom are called Lords Lieutenant. The pronunciation of zebra in English varies between British English and American English. A number of city and burgh police forces in Scotland used the rank of lieutenant (and detective lieutenant) between inspector and superintendent from 1812 to 1948. Dont worry, its not a violent word it has nothing to do with blood.Bloody is a common word to give more emphasis to the sentence, mostly used as an exclamation of surprise. why is lieutenant pronounced leftenantrobert downey jr house malibu. He is passionate about sharing this knowledge with others, and he frequently speaks at education conferences around the world. In the old US of A, they just pronounce it how it is spelled. This courtesy developed when swords were still used on the battle field. These are surely not the only words that arent spelled the way theyre pronounced. According to military customs, a lower ranking soldier walks on the left side of a senior officer. During the early days of the naval rank, a lieutenant might be very junior indeed, or might be on the cusp of promotion to captain; by modern standards, he might rank with any army rank between second lieutenant and lieutenant colonel. Such is the case with the word lieutenant. The first French Lieutenant of Police, Gabriel Nicolas de la Reynie, was appointed in Paris by Louis XIV on 15 March 1667 to command a reformed police force. Good luck, This one is amazing. What money is available for senior citizens? [citation needed]. Some areas of Britain say darbee, some say derbee. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. Glossophilia..just love its diversity and humour ! Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. However, their efforts failed, and the French word is still used, along with its many variations (e.g. Thank the British for our language and New York, else we would be speaking Dutch in New Amsterdam (or however the Dutch spell it). Mat, Parma U.S. I dont really know but I love the way the British pronounce certain words, such as schedule, it sounds so much more proper. Nanette Y. Mitchell, Fredericksburg, US, P.S. In the United Kingdom, a lord lieutenant is the sovereign's representative in a county or lieutenancy area, while a deputy lieutenant is one of the lord lieutenant's deputies. The Lieutenant Governor exercises all the royal prerogative powers that the monarch holds. What Town Is The Cheapest To Live In New Hampshire. Leftenant in the British army, Lootenant in the American army. 38 Sponsored by Forbes Advisor Are You Prepared for Your Pet Health Emergencies? A Lieutenant (a leader of a platoon) is pronounced Left-tenant in the U.K. (as he/she is left the tenancy of command). It can detect misspelled words (yes, even those with unusual spelling) and incorrect grammar. The weird way they spoke filtered down to the lower classes. 2 Is there a difference between lieutenant and leftenant? The insignia of a lieutenant in many navies, including the Royal Navy,[92] consists of two medium gold braid stripes (top stripe with loop) on a navy blue or black background. Today, were going to give you the history (and correct spelling and pronunciation) of two military words: colonel and lieutenant. The emergence of the pronunciation /ref/ seems clearly connected with the Great Vowel Shift, since it is around this time that people in Southern and Central England start interchangeably spelling their names both Ralph and Rafe. Its an achaic spelling in English, but not in French. According to military customs, a lower ranking soldier walks on the left side of a senior officer. Niece can be a challenging word for some people to spell. Think of LanguageTool as the colonel of all text editors. In Australia, Queensland's first police force (founded 1864) had second lieutenants and lieutenants between the ranks of sergeant and inspector-general. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance". Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features. Where more junior officers were employed as deputies to the lieutenant, they went by many names, including second lieutenant, sub-lieutenant, ensign and cornet. (The German name for the Thames is die Temse). You have entered an incorrect email address! The Royal Air Force also has an acting pilot officer designation, the most junior commissioned rank in the British armed forces. In smaller police departments, they may command a precinct itself. Why exactly do the British say lieutenant as 'leftenant'? Then some Italian texts began influencing the English written form and we ended up with the l making its way back into the word, but the French pronunciation had already stuck. This courtesy developed when swords were still used on the battle field. Zero is a little bit longer to pronounce, hence the oh. The leftenant is left(tenant, English) in tenancy of the platoon, in lieu(tenant, French) of the captain. How do you start a conversation with a stranger? In the army it is pronounced as leftenant, but in navy they use lootenant. The post of first lieutenant in a shore establishment carries a similar responsibility to the first lieutenant of a capital ship. The Oxford Dictionary suggests that it might be because at some point, the "u" in the French word "lieu" was pronounced as a "v" (which was not uncommon in French given the derivation from the Latin "v" for many "u"s). John. As a given-name, St. Is there a difference between lieutenant and leftenant? What is the difference between a lieutenant and a lieu? It's understandable why these words cause so much confusion. In the case of lieutenant even the English themselves dont agree. In the mid-17th century, spelling it with L became the standard, but it was still pronounced with an R. This long and winding history of this word led to its unusual spelling and pronunciation. Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. Lets help each other to perfect our writing. What rank is leftenant? [2] Lieutenant may also appear as part of a title used in various other organisations with a codified command structure. The British pronunciation of the French word lieutenant (as lef-tenant) is the official pronunciation as used by the Canadian Armed Forces, but the American pronunciation of loo-tenant (which is closer to the original French pronunciation) is sometimes heard outside of the military. Well go over its spelling and meaning, and show you how to make sure you always spell this word correctly. Why do British people say Zed? Because the word clerk was pronounced with (r) rather than (r) in the south of England, the vowels in the word did not become (r). 3 : second lieutenant. the British pronunciation of the word. Your browser does not support the audio element. Even later, when the Americans cuddled up to the French during the revolutionary war, their pronunciation changed to follow the french term. Political uses include lieutenant governor in various governments, such as the viceregal representatives of the Crown in Canadian provinces. No response from any American on this page has earned such a bitter rebuke. This spelling was to stick to the pronunciation, and not the opposite, as there is not lefttenant in old French. Second lieutenant is usually the most junior grade of commissioned officer. "Lieu" means place and "tenant" means holding. [94] Throughout the 19th century and until as late as World War II[95] the United States Army sometimes referred to brevet second lieutenants as "third lieutenants". It comes easier after a few tries. 4 : a commissioned officer in the navy or coast guard ranking above a lieutenant junior grade. :) Mike, Washington DC, US, To read the more informative answers (including ahypothesis offered by Sean from Colorado that in British slang, of which he observes there is a great deal, the word loo refers to a toilet, and therefore he assumesthat they do not want to give the impression that a leftenant is a resident of a toilet, as in loo-tenant), read the full piece at The Guardians website . The lower ranked soldier on the "left" protected the senior officers left side. So maybe they encouraged the alternate pronunciation to keep rank and file soldiers from making a joke of their superiors' title? The lower ranked soldier on the "left" protected the senior officers left side. How is Lieutenant pronounced in Canada? In the 17th century, the term "lieutenant" corresponded to "deputy" (i.e. The first lieutenant in the Royal Navy and other Commonwealth navies, is a post or appointment, rather than a rank. This word means commissioned officer of high rank in the military. Simply by the way it looks, its easy to see why some people would think its pronounced co-lo-nel. This gave rise to the Old French zede, which resulted in the English zed around the 15th century. Why do the British say Zed? Edmund Duncan is an education expert and thought leader in the field of learning. Therefore, the term leftenant developed. 2 : first lieutenant. Maintenance is one of those English words that many people find difficult to spell. No idea whether any of this is true, just telling you what I have heard and from whom I heard it. 3 yr. ago. Look up . and our No, they are not. Well explore what these words mean and provide example sentences. Glossophilia. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. Do all humans on this planet belong to the same species? Leftenant is the U.K. and Commonwealth . You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. The rank of cadet lieutenant (CLT) is given to officer cadet trainees who have passed their officer's course. Lieutenant also has more than one abbreviation, and it varies based on the nation and military branch. Therefore, the term leftenant developed. When your question is answered, we encourage you to flair your post. How do you spell luitenent? It's believed that at some time before the 19th century, the British read and pronounced the "U" at the end of "lieu" as a "V" and the "V" later became an "F". Us for me is common in the north east (of England) particularly Co Durham Land of Prince Bishops. In the United States, a governor serves as the chief executive officer and commander-in-chief in each of the fifty states and in the five permanently inhabited territories, functioning as both head of state and head of government therein. This is the reason why colonel is pronounced kernel. The United States Marine Corps and British Royal Marines[88] both use army ranks, while many former Eastern-Bloc marine forces retain the naval form[clarification needed]. Americans changed it to fit their own odd version of a perfect language. Sid, Saffron Walden, England, Well, how def yef say leftenant? Mark Dallas, London UK, Because its our language, and we can say it any way we like. Flight lieutenant(Royal Australian Air Force). Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. The pronunciation came about because of the famous British inland pirate. So a Lieutenant is someone who "holds a place" or functions as a deputy of a superior. Some police departments split the rank of lieutenant into two separate grades. So if no-one gives you the real answer, as no-one has been able to give me the real answer, at least you have this speculation. In Germany it is called Oberleutnant (senior lieutenant). This historical remnant caused increasing confusion in multi-national operations and was abolished. Back in 2013, onThe GuardiansNotes and Queries page, a man calledJeff Rushton from London asked this very good question: Why exactly do the British say lieutenant as leftenant? By the mid-17th century, the spelling and French pronunciation had changed to colonnel. The Salvation Army also uses lieutenant to denote first time officers, or clergymen/women. Some sources claim that 'lieutenant' had alternative spellings such as leftenant, leftenaunt, lieftenant, lieftenaunt etc., and that the ModE pronunciation with /f/ (BrE mostly) is a holdover from those spellings. Do Canadians say lieutenant or leftenant? These are surely not the only words that aren't spelled the way they're pronounced. Leftenant is the U.K. and Commonwealth . Go well beyond grammar and spell checking. For more information, please see our I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. a person appointed to carry out a task). Sounding it out may help, al-loo-MIN-ee-um Theres a second i in the British form of the word, aluminium, hence the extra syllable. The lower ranked soldier on the "left" protected the senior officers left side. . The rank of Lieutenant was formerly used in areas outside of the Metropolitan Police. In French history, "lieutenant du roi" was a title borne by the officer sent with military powers to represent the king in certain provinces. In the film clip, Keeley Hawes appears to be playing the Prime Minister, whose bodyguard addresses her as maam with the reduced vowel. This courtesy developed when swords were still used on the battle field. ", "tat des Lieux: Formation des forces de dfense et de scurit sur les droit de l'enfant au Niger", "Pakistan Army Ranks with Salary and Insignia", " 11 2010 293 " , ", "Gradabzeichen und Farben der Achselschlaufen", " ", "Journal officiel de la rpublique togolaise", "Tonga Defence Services (Amendment) Regulations 2009", "TRKMENISTANY KANUNY Harby borlulyk we harby gulluk hakynda (Trkmenistany Mejlisini Maglumatlary 2010 ., 3, 58-nji madda) (Trkmenistany 01.10.2011 . It was replaced by the rank of chief inspector. This was because the rank was bestowed upon the commander of a column of troops. Its not that neatly divided. Lieutenant is the 18th rank in the United States Navy , ranking above Lieutenant Junior Grade and directly below Lieutenant Commander. In March 1813, the US Army created the rank of third lieutenant. In minor war vessels, destroyers and frigates the first lieutenant (either a lieutenant or lieutenant-commander) is second in command, executive officer (XO) and head of the executive branch; in larger ships where a commander of the warfare specialization is appointed as the executive officer, a first lieutenant (normally a lieutenant-commander) is appointed as his deputy. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. Some parts of the British Army, including the Royal Artillery, Royal Engineers and fusilier regiments, used first lieutenant as well as second lieutenant until the end of the 19th century, and some British Army regiments still preserve cornet as an official alternative to second lieutenant. Historically, the "lieutenant" was the deputy to a "captain", and as the rank structure of armies began to formalise, this came to mean that a captain commanded a company and had several lieutenants, each commanding a platoon. 'Lieutenant' comes from French lieu ('place') and tenant ('holding'). In the UK zebra is pronounced as zeh-bruh, with a short e, so without the ee sound. The Israel Defense Forces rank segen () literally translates as "deputy", which is equivalent to a lieutenant. The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. What Is The Hottest Month In New Hampshire? According to military customs, a lower ranking soldier walks on the left side of a senior officer. 18 3 [2] The early history of the pronunciation is unclear; Middle English spellings suggest that both pronunciations may have existed even then. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. I'm not sure which way other English speaking countries go. New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast. Learn how to pronounce \"lieutenant\" in British English and American English. It is possible that when the English heard the French pronounce the compound word lieutenant, they perceived a slurring which they heard as a "v" or "f" sound between the first and second. A Lieutenant (a leader of a platoon) is pronounced 'Left-tenant' in the U.K. (as he/she is left the tenancy of command). How Many Classes The Article Are Divided Into In English? I always suspected--and I have never seen anything to back this up--that this pronunciation was adopted because "lootenant", as the Americans pronounce it, sounds like "Loo-tenant," i.e., "individual occupying the loo (toilet)." 94-84", "i gradi dell'Esercito Italiano - distintivi di incarico e funzionali", " , ", " , ", "LOI N 96-029 portant Statut Gnral des Militaires", "2011 - Plaquette sur les insignes et blasons des Forces Armes du Mali", "Manual grfico para el uso de Uniformes, Divisas y Equipo del Ejrcito y F.A.M. The word lieutenant derives from French; the lieu meaning "place" as in a position (cf. Quick Answer : Does Grindr tell if you screenshot? Some areas of Britain say darbee, some say derbee. 234-IV Kanuny esasynda girizilen tgetmeler we gomaalar bilen)", "Ppstliche Schweizergarde: Gradabzeichen", "O'zbekiston Respublikasi fuqarolarining harbiy xizmatni o'tash tartibi to'g'risida", "RM Officers & Other Ranks Badges of Rank Royal Navy website", "Ley 1405 de 2010 Nuevos Grados Militares", "RM Officers & Other Ranks Badges of Rank", "Uniforms and Badges of Rank Royal Navy website", "Officer Ranks in the Royal Navy Lieutenant Commander", "Full Text Citations For Award of The Distinguished Service Cross", "United States Revenue Marine Uniforms & Devices to 1908", Commander Elmer F. "Archie" Stone, USCG Coast Guard Aviator #1, "National Civil Defence Cadet Corps (NCDCC) / National Civil Defence Cadet Corps (NCDCC)", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Lieutenant&oldid=1128780536, Articles containing Albanian-language text, Articles containing Portuguese-language text, Articles containing Spanish-language text, Articles containing Armenian-language text, Articles containing Azerbaijani-language text, Articles containing Bengali-language text, Articles containing Belarusian-language text, Articles containing Flemish-language text, Articles containing Malay (macrolanguage)-language text, Articles containing Bulgarian-language text, Articles containing Kirundi-language text, Articles containing Estonian-language text, Articles containing Finnish-language text, Articles containing Swedish-language text, Articles containing Georgian-language text, Articles containing Italian-language text, Articles containing Latvian-language text, Articles containing Lithuanian-language text, Articles containing Maltese-language text, Articles containing Romanian-language text, Articles containing Nepali (macrolanguage)-language text, Instances of Lang-ne using second unnamed parameter, Articles containing Russian-language text, Articles containing Swahili (macrolanguage)-language text, Articles containing Turkmen-language text, Articles containing Ukrainian-language text, Articles containing Dhivehi-language text, Articles with dead external links from October 2022, Articles with permanently dead external links, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles with unsourced statements from March 2013, Wikipedia articles needing clarification from February 2010, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 21 December 2022, at 23:46. Lieutenants were commonly put in command of smaller vessels not warranting a commander or captain: such a lieutenant was called a "lieutenant commanding" or "lieutenant commandant" in the United States Navy, and a "lieutenant in command" or "lieutenant and commander" in the Royal Navy. Why do Brits pronounce lieutenant with an F? When asked what hes looking for inland, he said Dar be treasure.