Klryz
Pronunciation guide: IPA symbols, stress and word endings

Vowels

iːseeɪsite / ɛbedæcat
ɑːfatherɒhot (UK)ɔːlawʊput
uːtooʌcupɜːbirdəabout
eɪdayaɪmyɔɪboyaʊnow
əʊ / oʊgo (UK / US)ɪəneareəhairʊətour

Consonants that look unusual

θthinðthisʃsheʒmeasure
tʃchurchdʒjudgeŋsingjyes

p b t d k g f v s z h m n l r w sound as in ordinary English spelling.

Marks

  • ˈ main stress, before the stressed syllable: /ˈwɔːtə/ water · ˌ lighter (secondary) stress: /ˌʌndəˈstænd/ understand
  • ː a long vowel · (r) an r said only in accents that pronounce it (most American, Scottish, Irish)

Common word endings

  • -s / -es (plurals; he/she form of verbs): /s/ after voiceless sounds (cats), /z/ after voiced (dogs), /ɪz/ after s, z, sh, ch, j sounds (buses, watches). Spelling: -es after s, x, z, ch, sh; consonant + y → -ies (city → cities).
  • -ed (past): /t/ after voiceless sounds (walked), /d/ after voiced (played), /ɪd/ after t or d (wanted). Spelling: love → loved, stop → stopped, carry → carried.
  • -ing: make → making, run → running, see → seeing.
  • Irregular: go, went, gone · be, was, been · see, saw, seen · man → men · child → children · mouse → mice.
  • Older (King James) forms: -eth = -s (he loveth = he loves) · -est with “thou” (thou lovest) · spake = spoke.

English Dictionary · 107,383 entries · Sources & licences

canny

/ˈkæni/ adjective, adverb, proper noun

Forms cannier canniest Cannys

  1. adjective Careful, prudent, cautious. “The politician gave a canny response to the reporter’s questions.”
  2. adjective Knowing, shrewd, astute. “The canny lawyer knew just how to get what he wanted.”
  3. adjective Frugal, thrifty. “canny investments”
  4. adjective (Scotland, Northumbria) Friendly, pleasant, fair, agreeable; (sometimes) funny. “She’s a canny lass hor like!”
  5. adjective (Scotland, Northumbria) Gentle, quiet, steady. “a canny horse”
  6. adverb (Northumbria) Very, considerably; quite, rather. “a canny long journey”
  7. adverb (Scotland, Northumbria) Gently, quietly; carefully, skilfully. “he sits very canny”
  8. adjective (proscribed) Natural, normal.
  9. adjective (especially of sound) Sounding as if it is coming through a tin can.
  10. proper noun A surname.

Synonyms

abstemious chary moderate cheap close with a buck economic economical frugal provident husbandly huswifely parsimonious penny-pinching prudent spareful sparing spary thrifty tight tightwad cagey cagy clever

Etymology

Northern English dialect, from can (“to know”) ( + -y), from Middle English can, first and third person singular of cunnen, connen (“to be able, know how to”), from Old English cunnan (“to know how to, be able to”). Compare Scots canny, English cunny, Old English cann (“knowledge, assertion”). More at can, cunning.

Back-formation from uncanny.

can (“more or less cylindrical metal container”) + -y

Webster’s 1913

  1. adjective Artful; cunning; shrewd; wary.
  2. adjective Skillful; knowing; capable. Sir W. Scott.

Etymology [Cf. Icel. kenn skilled, learned, or E. canny. Cf. Kenn.]

Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “canny”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details