I'm from Maine, and the word "aunt" seems to be primarily (as far as I've heard it pronounced in 41 years, as the way you would say "font" There is no "w" at all in the prononciation. I am saddened to see that such a simple question posed by one person could have elicited such nasty replies. In all honesty, the dictionary, whether you use Websters, Merriams, or Dictionary.com, all say that it can be pronounced either way (we could get into a discussion on how to pronounce "either and neither" if it would be profitable, but I'm just not going to go there...). I have a dear friend down in SC that we all affectionately call "Ant" Shirley, as that is how we were introduced by her family and that is perfectly fine with me. She likes the designation, so I'm happy for her. God Bless
Pronunciation: aunt
I'm from Maine, and the word "aunt" seems to be primarily (as far as I've heard it pronounced in 41 years, as the way you would say "font" There is no "w" at all in the prononciation. I am saddened to see that such a simple question posed by one person could have elicited such nasty replies. In all honesty, the dictionary, whether you use Websters, Merriams, or Dictionary.com, all say that it can be pronounced either way (we could get into a discussion on how to pronounce "either and neither" if it would be profitable, but I'm just not going to go there...). I have a dear friend down in SC that we all affectionately call "Ant" Shirley, as that is how we were introduced by her family and that is perfectly fine with me. She likes the designation, so I'm happy for her.
God Bless