-shire
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See also: shire
English[edit]
Etymology[edit]
See shire.
Pronunciation[edit]
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /-ʃə/, /-ʃɪə/, /-ʃaɪə/ (see usage notes)
- (General American) IPA(key): /-ʃɚ/, /-ʃɪ(ə)ɹ/, /-ʃaɪɚ/ (see usage notes)
Suffix[edit]
-shire
- A combining form used in the names of British counties.
Usage notes[edit]
While multiple pronunciations are given above for this suffix, they are not freely interchangeable. In normal usage, most counties take /-ʃə(ɹ)/, though /-ʃɪə(ɹ)/ is also possible. However, in the names of some Scottish counties, it is sometimes pronounced as /-ʃaɪə(ɹ)/ (Scottish English /-ʃʌɪɹ/), reflecting the local pronunciation. Speakers of Scottish English may extend this pronunciation to all county names; it is also quite common in American English for county names (but not for American locales named after them).
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- “-shire”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.