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{{Information page}}
The various English dictionaries use different and sometimes conflicting [[International Phonetic Alphabet|IPA]] transcriptions for English. For example, the transcription {{IPA|/i/}} may be used for the vowel of ''sit
Most dictionaries transcribe a specific dialect or accent, such as the [[Received Pronunciation]] (RP) of the [[Oxford English Dictionary]], or a narrow range of dialects. Wikipedia's IPA key, on the other hand, is intended to cover RP, [[General American]], Australian, and other national standards. As such, Wikipedia transcribes {{IPA|/r/}} where it is found in rhotic dialects, but also the vowel distinctions found in non-rhotic dialects, without distinct UK and US transcriptions. Specific dialects may also be transcribed—local pronunciations of place names are often useful, for example—but they are normally written in addition to a more universal pronunciation.
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==Alternative pronunciations==
When dictionaries give alternative pronunciations, they may mean that people disagree. For example, some people pronounce ''[[bath]]'' {{IPA|/bæθ/}}, with the vowel of ''bat
However, often variant transcriptions reflect distinctions between accents, and these we do not need to transcribe, since our IPA key already covers such distinctions. For example, Merriam-Webster transcribes ''merry'' as "{{IPA|/ˈmɛri/}}" and ''marry'' as "{{IPA|/ˈmɛri, ˈmæri/}}". The two transcriptions of ''marry'' are meant to show that some people pronounce it the same as ''merry;'' it does ''not'' mean that there are two pronunciations of ''marry'' among those who either do or do not make this distinction (see [[Mary–marry–merry merger|''Mary–marry–merry'' merger]]). It would not be possible to have the song lyric "You say ''marry'' and I say ''merry''", because only those people who say those words differently would be able to sing it. Therefore on Wikipedia we would only have one transcription for each: ''merry'' {{IPAc-en|ˈ|m|ɛr|i}}, ''marry'' {{IPAc-en|ˈ|m|ær|i}}. Since the IPA key defines the orthographic conventions of {{IPAc-en|ɛr}} and {{IPAc-en|ær}} according to basic English words, readers who do not make the ''marry–merry'' distinction will see {{IPAc-en|ɛr}} and {{IPAc-en|ær}} as being equivalent, much as the spelling pronunciations ''YOU-clid'' and ''EWE-clid'' for "Euclid" would be seen as equivalent.
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Consonants vary little between dictionaries. The ones which do are those in the words:
:''rich, char'' {{IPA|/r ~ ɹ ~ (r) ~ (ɹ) ~ ∅/}};
:''which
:and ''new
Wikipedia editors have decided to go with {{IPAc-en|r|ɪ|tʃ}}, {{IPAc-en|tʃ|ɑːr}}, {{IPAc-en|hw|ɪ|tʃ}}, {{IPAc-en|nj|uː}} for these words.
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==Stress==
Stress need not be included in the notation of a monosyllabic word since it is self-evident. In phrases, however, it is advised to include stress even of a monosyllabic word because a lack of stress may indicate a different pronunciation than intended. For example, in the name [[Zack de la Rocha]], ''Zack'' and ''Rocha'' have stress, but ''de la'' does not: {{IPAc-en|ˈ|z|æ|k|_|d|ɛ|l|ə|_|ˈ|r|oʊ|tʃ|ə}}. It would therefore convey an incorrect pronunciation to leave the stress mark off ''Zack
OED2 does not indicate stress on monosyllables, but uses the stress mark to disambiguate disyllables: ''higher'' ({{IPA|ˈhaɪə(r)}}) vs. ''hire'' ({{IPA|haɪə(r)}}). On WP, the distinction is made with the aid of the syllabification mark: {{IPAc-en|ˈ|h|aɪ|.|ər}}, {{IPAc-en|h|aɪər}}.
Dictionaries also disagree on secondary stress. Generally, any stressed syllable prior to the last is marked as secondary ({{IPAc-en|ˌ|z|æ|k|_|d|ɛ|l|ə|_|ˈ|r|oʊ|tʃ|ə}}), and that convention is followed here. However, several dictionaries also mark full (unreduced) vowels as having secondary stress when they come after the primary stress, even though they are not actually stressed: ''cerebrate
==References==
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