What does the Pacific Northwest English dialect sound like?

When thinking about the dialects of the United States, most would not consider the Pacific Northwest (PNW) region to have a specific dialect. Though regions like Boston, New Jersey, or the South are known for their regional dialects, the Pacific Northwest dialect is considered to be more neutral. The biggest cities in the PNW are Portland, OR and Seattle, WA. In this article, we look at how their local dialects, or lack thereof, differ from other regions of the country.

Phonology

First, let’s talk about the phonetics of the Pacific Northwest dialect. Phonetics are the sounds that compose words, and these can vary between dialects. Portland locals raise the sound of “a” and “e” vowels. For example, “baig” for “bag”, or “aig” for “egg”. This most often occurs in words with a hard “g” sound following the vowel. Though it is not unique to the Pacific Northwest, it is especially common in this area.

Second, we look at homophones, another area of distinction for the Pacific Northwest dialect. Homophones are words that have different meanings but may share very close pronunciations. Small differences in pronunciation, combined with speaker context, can influence which meaning the listener perceives.

As an example, the words “caught” and “cot” sound very similar, but have different meanings. Some regions of the country have slightly different pronunciations for both words, but the Pacific Northwest dialect differs. Although these words have different meaning, they share identical pronunciation in the PNW. However, the Pacific Northwest dialect does not make this distinction: words labeled as “homophones” are often pronounced exactly the same way.

Another dialect characteristic that is especially common in the PNW is the dropping of the final “g” in “ing” words or gerunds. A prime example of this final “g” drop is Bill Gates, a Seattle, WA native. Here are additional examples.

Vernacular

The Pacific Northwest vernacular may not have as many distinctive terms and phrases as Boston or southern accents, but there are several hints that indicate that you are interacting with a Pacific Northwest local. For example, PNW locals often use the term “filberts” in place of “hazelnuts”. A French saint named Philbert held his feast day on August 20th, right at the peak of the hazelnut season. Because Oregon is the  largest producer of hazelnuts in the US, Oregonians have adopted the the name “filbert”.

Slightly more likely to pop up in daily PNW conversation are the phrases “the coast”, “parking strip”, and “the mountain is out”. When you and your friends take a weekend trip to see the Pacific Ocean, you’re going to “the coast”, but not “the beach”. The constantly windy and chilly coastal weather at the coast might have some influence on that one.

Finally, “parking strip” references the strip of grass between the sidewalk and the street, and “the mountain is out” is used when noting if Mt. Hood is visible on the horizon.

We also have the Pacific Northwest to thank as the birthplace of the words “black ice”, “cabin fever”, and “Sasquatch”. Perhaps they were inspired by the landscape?

The Bottom Line

Although the PNW dialectical differences are far from stereotyped, these subtle characteristics are worth listening for, both culturally and linguistically. For more information on American English, check out our YouTube channel. If you’re a Portland, OR local, come join us at our Meetups, classes at Portland Community College, and Intel seminars for employees!

If you missed us last week, check out our last post, Can an Accent Have a Negative Impact on Your Interview?.

Related information

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More reading:
http://archive.kuow.org/post/do-pacific-northwesterners-have-accent
https://www.pbs.org/speak/seatosea/americanvarieties/pacificnorthwest/
https://www.babbel.com/en/magazine/pacific-northwest-english/

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