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What Is Free Variation?

A. Leverkuhn
A. Leverkuhn

Free variation is a phenomenon where two different sounds can be used interchangeably in speech. Linguists define this phenomenon using the test of perceived authenticity by native speakers. In other words, if the two different sounds can both be used by native speakers, and are considered correct pronunciation, their dual use qualifies as free variation.

The sounds used in free variation can be either vowels or consonants. One common example in English is the word, “data.” Here, the short "a” sound, as in “apple,” can be used in the first vowel position, or, the speaker can instead use the long "a” sound as in the word, “day.” These are commonly accepted pronunciations in American English, and most other regional forms of the language.

One common example of free variation in English is the word 'data'.
One common example of free variation in English is the word 'data'.

Other examples include the use of consonant sounds. Some of these can be extremely technical and nuanced. For example, in American English, words, like “rope,” can be pronounced either with a glottal stop, where the listener doesn’t really hear the “p” sound, or with a full plosive, where the “p” at the end is prominent.

In English, as in some other languages, examining cases of free variation can show language learners and others quite a lot about how “natural language,” or “native speech,” works. Most English learners, for example, pronounce many of the full plosives mentioned above, while many native speakers do not. A common example in American English is the use of the letter “t” in various words. For example, while newscasters or others may say the word, “Internet,” with two plosive “t” sounds, it’s also common for native American English speakers to pronounce the word more like inner-net. Some people refer to this as the difference between formal or professional American English, and “street language,” though its acceptability may also vary from one region of the country to another.

Although the term, free variation, sounds quite technical, and is mostly used within linguistic or academic communities, assessing its use is actually quite practical for anyone who is trying to imitate native speech in any language. People can use this idea to understand dialects, regional accents, or formal versus informal speech. Linguists can also use the phenomenon to study the mechanics of how people express themselves in a given tongue. The term provides a designation for when speakers may have more than one choice of pronunciation for a word or phrase, which can be a very confusing situation for language learners.

Discussion Comments

anon347692

The "internet" phenomenon comes from an American English rule: when 't' is preceded by 'n' in an unstressed syllable, such as "dental, rental, winter, hunter, center, internet" etc., the 't' can be eliminated in the word, and meaning is still retained; try it.

hamje32

@Charred - Some people just have difficulty expressing certain consonants or vowels. You simply have to allow for that.

If you were in the Middle East, trying to learn Arabic, I’m sure you would have trouble learning some of the phlegm-like sounds that they use in their consonants.

It doesn’t roll easily off the American palate so it takes a lot of practice. I am of the opinion that as long as a person’s written communication is up to par then the spoken dialect really doesn’t matter that much.

Charred

Well, it’s like they say, “tomato, tomato, potato, potato, banana, banana,” with variations on the accented “a” in each word. I suppose it depends on the locale of the speaker.

I don’t think it really matters so I think free variation is acceptable in spoken discourse, within reason. What is not reasonable in my opinion is making the word “rope” sound like “row” as the article says that some people do.

Frankly I’ve never heard that and I don’t think it’s acceptable. I think pronouncing “Internet” as “inner-net” is mildly acceptable however.

Regardless of where people are from, I still believe we should be educating them to the correct standard of spoken speech, though we may allow for some variances here and there.

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    • One common example of free variation in English is the word 'data'.
      By: Focus Pocus LTD
      One common example of free variation in English is the word 'data'.