I believe I am right in saying it should be 'eitch' but people at work pronounce it 'heitch' which really gets on my wick, especially as I work in the glamourous world of reinforced concrete so we have a lot to do with H16 and H20 bars!
People tell me it's 'heitch' because it's 'Harry' and 'Helicopter' etc but I say its 'onor' as in 'honour' and just because it's that letter doesnt mean you spell the name of the letter, for instance, it's not a 'wubbleyou' (W) or a 'lell' (L) or a 'feff' (F) is it!
Who's correct?
I'm from the South, I never pronounce the letter 'H'
It's 'aitch' not 'haytch'
FACT.
HTH 🙂
In 'Henry' it's haitch
In 'an hotel' it's aitch
Aitch, "haytch" is something for the lower classes to say when trying and failing to imitate their social superiors.
Definately not Haytch as I speak the Queens English 🙂 it aytch of course my good man!
feffing 'ell its aitch
It's Aitch.
From the OED
aitch - Name of the letter H; cf. ACHE n.3 Also Comb., as aitch-dropping, -free adjs. Hence aitchless a., that does not aspirate his h's.
defo aitch, and thats from a northern monkey
The name of the letter is 'Aitch' and it's pronounced phonetically. Your colleagues are just putting on 'airs [sic]
reminds me of a question. Name three olympic athletics disciplines that begin with a T?
ay-ch
thank you guys, at least I can now tell them how to speak correctly knowing I have the full backing of the STW masseeve!
I can't remember how I pronounce it now
People who say Haytch either have a speech impediment or are slightly retarded.
From the nursery rhyme I reckon its haitch...but then I am slightly retarded 🙂
I'm a northerner living down south (quite how that qualifies me I don't know!). Having said that I do also happen to have a speech impediment and am slightly retarded, but it's an aitch, not a haitch.