4 ms·

> It's a lot more simple than everyone is making it out to be. > > An herb. Erm...

• dm2 12y ago
  It depends on how you pronounce it. In the US the "h" is silent and it's pronounced "erb".
  • nodata 12y ago
    So Herbie (the car) was 'erbie? Cockney-style?
    • dm2 12y ago
      no, it was pronounced "her-bee" but herbal is pronounced "err-bul". Again, this is only for US English, not sure about UK. A Herbie toy. An herbal tea.
      • fluidcruft 12y ago
        I agree that "err-bul" for herbal is quite common in the US. However, "erb" for herb is not.
        • gknoy 12y ago
          It might be a regional dialect. Growing up in the west coast, I have never heard "her-bal tea", but rather always heard "er-bull tea". Hearing the "h" sound in "herb" (as I do whenever I hear British (and Australian?) speakers speak) was always very jarring, until I realized that it was just that they pronounce that class of words differently than we do. It's possible that in the eastern or southern US, they say the H in "herb".
          • dublinben 12y ago
            I'm not aware of any American dialect of English that aspirates the h in "herb."
            • Locke1689 12y ago
              http://www.foodnetwork.com/videos/drying-herbs-96752.html http://www.foodnetwork.com/videos/drying-herbs-96752.html Whew, that was easy. Next time, try some of the 100 million people living on the east coast.
              • ScottBurson 12y ago
                I listened to that video, and did not hear any aspirated 'h's in 'herb' or 'herbal'. Your snark is rude and uncalled-for.
  • jessaustin 12y ago
    This isn't universal in USA.
    • dm2 12y ago
      What part of the US pronounces the H in herb?
      • deleted 12y ago
        [deleted]
      • jessaustin 12y ago
        I don't know that it's a regional variation, but about half of the people in my family pronounce the "h", including me most of the time. My sense is almost that dropping the "h" is an "educated" thing, and those who don't drop it are unconsciously tweaking the whole concept.
        • dm2 12y ago
          What part of the country do you live in if you don't mind me asking? I'm just curious so that I can try to imagine the accent. I live in the southeast, we say things like reckon, yall, and wander, but "erb" is still the accepted way to pronounce herb 'round here.
    • pessimizer 12y ago
      As far as I know, it is. We try to make French words sound French.
      • gadders 12y ago
        That would be "herbe".