Lingusitics Why I hate the english language.

[Sorry!]

I was thinking southern, like Texas, where the e probably also spans over two syallables: a-ig.

Bahaha not that type of a sound... it's hard to explain it over the internet. It sounds exactly like the e in end with a lower sort of 'a' sound involved... nothing like 'a-ig' haha. Man typing out how thing sound to you is hard because you never know if the other make the same sounds

 

[Kenneth Mann]

Rules like, "I before E except after C." Oh really? You mean like "foreigner?" Or, "soceity?" Or how about like half of the words that end with "E" where that "E" is pronounced, and the other half where the "E" is not pronounced.

Feel free to add to this, and post the gargantuian list of english fallibles! :)

Your gripes are really not very good. As Moonbear points out :

Neo_Anderson, I think you need a sarcasm alert added to your post.

Though, the i before e rule really only applies to words where the sound is a long e (eeeee, not eh), like thieves, deceive, chief.

The rule is really quite consistent, as in the following:

Believe, grieve, relief, tier

Or:

Receive, receipt, deceit

Then, there are the exceptions, usually lifted from other languages, like:

Diet

As far as your other gripe is concerned, remember that English derives predominantly from two languages; German (and its derivates) where the trailing “e” is pronounced, and French, where it is not (unless accented).

KM