Vowels NEAR

The realization of the NEAR vowel alternates between /iε/ and /iə/; [fiε, fiə] fear, [giε, giə] gear, [spiε, spiə] spear; /iə/ seems to be more characteristic of acrolectal speakers. A spelling-derived /ε/ is common in interfere, atmosphere, sphere, mere which thus merge with the SQUARE set. Clear [kliε] also merges with SQUARE.

/i/ is very common in the sequence erV as in Algeria, hero, Liberia, Nigeria, period, series, serious, serum, zero. A spelling-derived /e/, which may be seen as the tensing of an underlying /ε/ through the E-Tensing rule, occurs in other erV words like cafet[e]ria, crit[e]ria, [e]ra, imp[e]rial, minist[e]rial, Presbyt[e]rian. Another spelling-derived realization, /ea/, occurs in words like [erea] area, [kçrea] Korea.

When the second member of the NEAR diphthong is the agentive or comparative -er, the diphthong is rendered in CamE as /ia/. We thus have [kaʃia, karia] cashier, carrier, and [elia, pritia, silia] earlier, prettier, sillier. And when the second member in Wells’ set results from Vowel Reduction, it is restructured in CamE to a vowel suggested by the strong form or the spelling; e.g. gymnas[iu]m, nutr[iε]nt, per [iɔ] d, illustr [iɔ] s, mater[ia]I.

The above realizations of the NEAR vowel in CamE warrant the re-arrangement of Wells’ set into several sets. The label NEAR will be maintained for words in orthographic ear and eer, pronounced /iε, iə/ in CamE. The label SPHERE will be used for words with orthographic ere, pronounced /ε, iε, iə/. zEro will be adopted for words in erV, pronounced /i, e/. carrIER will be chosen for agentives and comparatives in ier, pronounced /ia/. And cordIAl will be chosen for words where the second member of Wells’ NEAR diphthong results from vowel reduction, and the sequence may be pronounced /ia, iε, iɔ, iu/ depending on the spelling.