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

backstop

/ˈbæk.stɒp/ noun, verb, proper noun

Forms backstops backstopping backstopped back-stop

  1. noun An object or a person put in the rear or in the back of something to reinforce, hold, support.
  2. noun A default arrangement that holds if all else fails.
  3. noun (baseball) A wall or fence behind home plate.
  4. noun (baseball, slang) A catcher; the position of catcher.
  5. noun (rounders) The player who stands immediately behind the striking base.
  6. noun (cricket, dated) The longstop.
  7. noun (cricket, dated) The wicket-keeper.
  8. noun (espionage) Something serving to bolster or support a cover story etc.
  9. verb (transitive) To serve as backstop for.
  10. verb (transitive) To bolster, support.
  11. proper noun (UK) A proposed seamless border between Ireland and Northern Ireland in the event of Brexit.

Synonyms

catcher

Etymology

From back + stop.

Webster’s 1913

  1. noun In baseball, a fence, prop. at least 90 feet behind the home base, to stop the balls that pass the catcher; also, the catcher himself.
  2. noun In rounders, the player who stands immediately behind the striking base.

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