Why do British pronounce clerk as Clark?

It was spelled both clark and clerk. Because the word clerk was pronounced with (är) rather than (ĕr) in the south of England, the vowels in the word did not become (ûr).
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Why do British people say Clark?

Originally Answered: Why do the British pronounce clerk as Clark? Well, in most British accents, it's actually closer to “clahk”. But most English spelling conventions were created before the “Great English Vowel Shift”. Almost all English common words use the “wrong” vowel.
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How do British people pronounce clerk?

In the 18th century, AH says, people began “r”-dropping in southern England and “clerk” came to be pronounced klak. This pronunciation spread to educated speakers elsewhere and you're likely to hear it today on the BBC. (With a broad “a” and the “r” muted, it sounds almost like “clock.”)
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Why do Brits pronounce Derby as Darby?

The pronunciation came about because of the famous British inland pirate. When asked what he's looking for inland, he said "Dar be treasure". It's not that neatly divided. Some areas of Britain say darbee, some say derbee.
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Why do British people pronounce lieutenant that way?

According to military customs, a lower ranking soldier walks on the left side of a senior officer. This courtesy developed when swords were still used on the battle field. The lower ranked soldier on the "left" protected the senior officers left side. Therefore, the term leftenant developed.
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How to Pronounce Clerk



Why do British say bloody?

Bloody. Don't worry, it's not a violent word… it has nothing to do with “blood”.”Bloody” is a common word to give more emphasis to the sentence, mostly used as an exclamation of surprise. Something may be “bloody marvellous” or “bloody awful“. Having said that, British people do sometimes use it when expressing anger…
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Why do Brits say hiya?

'Hiya' or 'Hey up' – these informal greetings both mean 'hello' and are especially popular in the north of England. 'What about ye?' is popular in Northern Ireland and is another way of saying 'How are you?' 'Howay' is popular in the north east of England and means 'let's go' or 'come on'.
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How do you say clerk in Australia?

Break 'clerk' down into sounds: [KLAAK] - say it out loud and exaggerate the sounds until you can consistently produce them.
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How do you pronounce Derby in Australia?

Derby, WA / TAS

In most of Australia, when you're talking about sport, derby is pronounced darby. Not so in WA where it's pronounced phonetically – DER-be – and the same goes for the popular Kimberley tourist town of Derby.
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How do you pronounce Clark?

Pronunciation
  1. IPA: /klɑː(ɹ)k/
  2. Audio (Southern England) 0:01. (file)
  3. Rhymes: -ɑː(ɹ)k.
  4. Homophone: clerk.
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What does Clark mean?

Clark is an English language surname, ultimately derived from the Latin with historical links to England and Ireland clericus meaning "scribe", "secretary" or a scholar within a religious order, referring to someone who was educated. Clark evolved from "clerk".
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Why do we say Colonel instead of Colonel?

Why is the word “colonel” pronounced with an “r” sound when it is not spelled with an “r”? “Colonel” came to English from the mid-16th-century French word coronelle, meaning commander of a regiment, or column, of soldiers. By the mid-17th century, the spelling and French pronunciation had changed to colonnel.
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How do Brits pronounce Ralph?

(In Northern England – or at least in Northumberland – "Ralph" apparently used to be pronounced /ra:f/, very roughly so that it rhymed with the contemporary American pronunciation of "half" and "calf".)
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Is it pronounced Derby or Derby?

Derby means a horse race, a contest open to all comers or a sporting event between two local teams. In British English, derby is pronounced dar-bee. In American English, derby is pronounced dur-bee.
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How do locals pronounce Jervis Bay?

Jervis is pronounced /jar-vuhs/ in the UK, and so Jervis Bay on the southern NSW coast was pronounced /jar-vuhs/ by Sydneysiders who thought they knew the English pattern. The locals said /jer-vuhs/ but this was disregarded as ignorance.
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How do you pronounce BLI BLI in Queensland?

Bli Bli (/ˈblaɪblaɪ/) is a rural town and locality in the Sunshine Coast Region, Queensland, Australia.
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How do you pronounce Lake Cathie?

To the continual annoyance of most locals, many visitors to Lake Cathie pronounce the name of their town correctly. It is pronounced Cat-eye not Cathy as all of us have heard at one time or another. Long time resident Sally Pead was largely responsible for the naming of the area.
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Is Clark the same as clerk?

It was spelled both clark and clerk. Because the word clerk was pronounced with (är) rather than (ĕr) in the south of England, the vowels in the word did not become (ûr).
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Is it pronounced hearth or hearth?

It's pronounced HueHueHue. Especially if you are a paladin and you bubble-HueHueHue. Örcasms: Hearthstone is a game, and everyone pronounces it properly.
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What does Cheerio mean in British?

Definition of cheerio

chiefly British. —usually used as a farewell and sometimes as a greeting or toast.
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Why do British say oy?

Oi is an interjection used in British English to get the attention of another person or to express surprise or disapproval. "Oi" was first documented in the 1930s and is particularly associated with working class and Cockney speech. It is effectively a local pronunciation of "hoy", an older expression.
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