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Merriam-Webster's Advanced Learner's Dictionary

on /ˈɑːn/

wrong /ˈrɑːŋ/

wander /ˈwɑːndɚ/

Merriam dictionary

on \ ˈȯn , ˈän \
wrong \ ˈrȯŋ \
wander \ ˈwän-dər \

The American Heritage Dictionary of English Language

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https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/ (Former is British, Latter is American)

on /ɒn/ /ɑːn/

wrong /rɒŋ/ /rɔːŋ/

wander /ˈwɒndə(r)/ /ˈwɑːndər/

Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary, 9th Edition, app version (Blue is British, Red is American) enter image description here enter image description here
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Oxford Learner's sticks to /ɒ/, while Merriam-Webster Learner's sticks to /ɑ/.

I wonder, for the British who want to pronounce the RP(Received Pronunciation) way, is the exact same /ɒ/ in these three words? For Amercians, is the exact same /ɑ/ in these three words?

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  • Pronunciations vary greatly within America. For example, there is a pronunciation here in New York that is famous (notorious?) for pronouncing the vowel in "on" and "wrong" much like the vowel in "for" (and not like the vowel in "far"). However, even among this city's native speakers there are many different pronunciations.
    – MarcInManhattan
    Jun 11, 2022 at 0:15
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    (You should also write out text rather than link to images if possible. Those links will eventually get broken, the images can't be scanned properly, etc.)
    – MarcInManhattan
    Jun 11, 2022 at 0:20
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    Yes. British RP-speakers use /ɒ/ in all three words. The word "wonder", on the other hand, is pronounced with /ʊ/.
    – Old Brixtonian
    Jun 11, 2022 at 0:20
  • @MarcInManhattan I don't know how to type some IPA. I pasted images through StackExchange, so I hope as long as the website stands, these images will remain.
    – joy2020
    Jun 11, 2022 at 0:25
  • @OldBrixtonian Thanks greatly, it's reassuring to know British RP-speakers use /ɒ/ in all three words. Though I think wonder is pronounced with /ʌ/.
    – joy2020
    Jun 11, 2022 at 0:27

1 Answer 1

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British RP-speakers use /ɒ/ in all three words. The word "wonder", on the other hand, is pronounced with /ʌ/. @OldBrixtonian

People in the western half of the United States are extremely likely to pronounce all three vowels the same. This isn't true for the eastern half, although some people do. I think Merriam-Webster has the philosophy that for a Learner's Dictionary, you should make the pronunciation as simple as possible. @Petershor

I would like to add on that there is no one correct pronounciation or one certain way that all british or american speakers pronounce, it can vary a lot, but in general you can follow the trend I guess.

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    I'm afraid the last part of my comment was wrong. "wonder" is pronounced with a /ʌ/. I've taken the liberty of editing that bit of your answer.
    – Old Brixtonian
    Jun 11, 2022 at 9:19

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