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thik

Dialect
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

A regional West Country English dialect word for "that" or "this one"; used in rustic dialogue to capture authentic local speech.

Detailed Definition
This spelling represents a local West Country pronunciation and spelling rather than standard modern English. In the poem, it helps reproduce the rural speech 'Melia used before her social transformation.
Example
Example in poetry:
Thomas Hardy’s Dorset speakers use “thik” for “that,” as in “And thik oon”; “Thik tree” points to a particular tree in regional speech; “Thik maid” preserves a local voice rather than standard “that girl”; Dialect spelling can establish place, class, and a speaker’s individuality
Additional Notes
“Thik” is unfamiliar because it is a dialect spelling of “that,” appearing in “thik oon.”; Found in the poem, The Ruined Maid by Thomas Hardy
Also Known As
thick dense heavy
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