Hot take: I don't like alphabet learning materials using giraffe for "G"

[chelseylynn]

@coldcatsoup I'd support this for sure. It's not even a "real" sound, even the International Phonetic Alphabet represents it as /ks/ rather than its own symbol because it's the consonant sounds /k/ followed by /s/.

 

[hhodgson]

@chelseylynn I would be willing to sell all my Xs to Elon Musk for a healthy sum since he likes them so much; I don't mind writing "ks".

 

[stevenb6]

@hhodgson Aks the X and Elon Musx perplecksing use of it to fleks.

 

[wdkey]

@coldcatsoup Sometimes it's "x like in fox" or "x like in box".

 

[wildcat41]

@coldcatsoup "c" is either an "s" or a "k"

 

[coldcatsoup]

@wildcat41 "church"

 

[amymine712]

@coldcatsoup In which case, c should arguably make a "ch" sound without needing an h there. That way it doesn't feel as redundant.

 

[lastofall]

@pejman I think you mean Xylophone

 

[scarred4life]

@lastofall My daughter has an alphabet book using "xylophone" for x, and the picture is a glockenspiel. I refuse to call it a xylophone.

 

[lastofall]

@scarred4life Is your differentiator that an xylophone has wooden bars while a glockenspiel has metal ones? And things like the fisher price 'Xylophone' are actually glockenspiels too?

 

[scarred4life]

@lastofall Yes. That is the main difference between them.

 

[mcapicola]

@pejman I’ve seen a book do “eXamine” before which makes sense in terms of sound though is a stretch

 

[weston63]

@mcapicola why is it a stretch? “is for” ≠ “starts with”. imo all the ex words should be in (but maybe a more common and important one like Exit)

 

[mcapicola]

@weston63 I always understood alphabet books to be teaching spelling rather than phonics, hence why you get the giraffe-goat issue of OP where both are accurate to spelling but goat is more phonetic. Bit doesn’t matter much.

Examine made a lot of sense since it was a walk in the country

 

[azza1143]

@pejman I have a poster that uses Xoloitzcuintli for X. And I only knew it was a Xolo because I used to have one!

 

[1986kari]

@azza1143 Is that X pronounced like a Sh. Or maybe a CH.

 

[azza1143]

@1986kari Yeah it's a SH sound.

 

[steveyg]

@pejman Xylophone! At least i played with one before.

But Yucca plant or Yak where unknowns to me.

 

[neith1982]

@steveyg The problem with xylophone is the same as giraffe. The x is pronounced like a z.

English is a silly language.

 

[steveyg]

@neith1982 Yeahh in German the x is more pronounced.