In honour of the Janks, Bible translators in Venezuela, who will be with us this Sunday:
Thigh, Breast or Door? The Joys of Learning a Tonal Language
Hey, can you go close the thigh? Oh, I mean the…breast? Nope…the door...that’s it…the door!
How could we get these words so mixed up? Let us just tell you that they have the exact same consonants and vowels. And if they have the exact same consonants and vowels then they are the same word that has several different meanings…right?
How could we get these words so mixed up? Let us just tell you that they have the exact same consonants and vowels. And if they have the exact same consonants and vowels then they are the same word that has several different meanings…right?
Wrong.
We have now officially entered into the realm of tonal languages where meaning is differentiated not just by different vowels and consonants but also by the pitch of one’s voice. So (we think) “door” is said with a higher pitch where “breast” starts low and then goes to a high pitch on the second syllable. “Thigh” starts low and then the pitch drops off. And these changes in one’s voice determine what the word means.
Go to this missionary page and read the rest of the article and listen to the sound recording to see if you could tell the difference between thigh, breast and door.
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