ASK A QUESTION Pronunciation of "again"
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9 Answers
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I'm British, and here both pronunciations are used. However, I think the first pronunciation is more common (especially in the south, where I live). But some different accents do use the second pronunciation.
Unfair representations of us portray us as all having posh accents (Where someone says 'again' as in 'ten'). But this is not the case.
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Pues eso depende del acento, ¿no? Yo he escuchado una amplia variedad de pronunciaciones de nativos de varios países y regiones.
La gente del Sur de Estados Unidos lo pronuncia de manera distinta a los de Manhattan, quienes pronuncian distinto de los nativos de Brooklyn, quienes pronuncian distinto de los californianos, quienes pronuncian distinto de los jamaiquinos...
- Pues lo curioso es que lo he oído de dos formas distintas en la misma persona. :) - cogumela Jan 31, 2012 flag
- Ah, ahí lo tienes, pues. Si ni siquiera una persona se puede poner de acuerdo consigo misma... :-) - Gekkosan Jan 31, 2012 flag
- Make sure you aren't confusing the word "again" with the phrase "a gain." As in, "Today there was a gain in the markets." - unifiedac Jan 31, 2012 flag
- Now that would be one heck of a confusion, don't you think? Here I've been thinking for years that people have been talking about repeating something, when they were actually meant an increase! :-) - Gekkosan Jan 31, 2012 flag
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I'm trying to think of some words that rhyme with it.
Most people in the United States (minus heavy accents) would pronounce it so the "gain" part rhymes with:
When, ten, hen.
British people pronounce the "gain" more like:
Lane, rain, pain.
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Hi Cogumela! Here in the U.S. we use the "əˈgɛn" pronunciation. I believe "əˈgeɪn" is used in the U.K. I hadn't used phonetics much, but found this website to be helpful for hearing (and figuring out) the difference: Phonetics: The Sounds of American English.
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I am a native speaker from Texas. I believe the first pronunciation is typical in the U.S., and especially in the South. The second pronunciation seems more British to me.
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The Oxford dictionary is going to focus on the proper English pronunciation (Great Britain). The basic pronunciation in the United States is "uh-ghen" with a lazy first syllable. My Mexican wife always complains bout the laziness of many syllables. =)
It is rare to hear "uh-gain," even in parts of the south.
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Hola Cogu, perhaps I have confused you a little. The usual English (ie in England) pronunciation is "agayn" but with my Northern English accent (Yorkshire) I tend to say "agen"
- It wasn't you, Billy. The B B C! - cogumela Jan 31, 2012 flag
- Yeah, and I've heard "egin", and "egehn" adn "aggeeen"... - Gekkosan Jan 31, 2012 flag
- ;) - cogumela Jan 31, 2012 flag
- Oh, and according to Unified, I have probably heard "a gain", too!! Better to stick with Spanish, I reckon - Gekkosan Jan 31, 2012 flag
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Here's what I find funny:
I've heard modern singer / songwriters compose song lyrics in a standard rhyming pattern. They have used "again" and rhyme it with words like plane, train, pain, etc. (Poets in the English language have traditionally done this for centuries.)
And they they sing the song, but pronounce "again" in the common American English standard that rhymes with ten, hen, pen, etc. 
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Do you know that is a hard one. If you ask me how it 'should' be said I would say again, rhyming with pain, but I just tried recording a short sentence as naturally as I could and it felt more natural to say agen, rhyming with ten.
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