# H-dropping
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{{Short description|Process of not pronouncing an "h" sound}}
{{DISPLAYTITLE:''H''-dropping}}
{{IPA notice}}
'''''H''-dropping''' or '''aitch-dropping''' is the [deletion](/source/elision) of the [voiceless glottal fricative](/source/voiceless_glottal_fricative) or "''H''-sound", {{IPA|[h]}}. The phenomenon is common in many [dialect](/source/dialect)s of [English](/source/English_language), and is also found in certain other languages, either as a purely historical development or as a contemporary difference between dialects. Although common in most regions of [England](/source/England) and in some other English-speaking countries, and linguistically speaking a neutral evolution in languages, H-dropping is often [stigmatized](/source/social_stigma) as a sign of careless or uneducated speech, due to its strong association with the lower class.
The reverse phenomenon, '''''H''-insertion''' or '''''H''-adding''', is found in certain situations, sometimes as an [allophone](/source/allophone) or [hypercorrection](/source/hypercorrection) by H-dropping speakers, and sometimes as a [spelling pronunciation](/source/spelling_pronunciation) or out of perceived [etymological](/source/etymological) correctness. A particular example of this is the spread of 'haitch' for 'aitch'.
==In English==
===Historical /h/-loss===
In [Old English phonology](/source/Old_English_phonology), the sounds {{IPA|[h]}}, {{IPA|[x]}}, and {{IPA|[ç]}} (described respectively as [glottal](/source/voiceless_glottal_fricative), [velar](/source/voiceless_velar_fricative) and [palatal](/source/voiceless_palatal_fricative) voiceless fricatives) are taken to be [allophone](/source/allophone)s of a single [phoneme](/source/phoneme) {{IPA|/h/}}. This phoneme occurred at the start of syllables, alone or [cluster](/source/consonant_cluster)ed with an approximant, and in coda position. The {{IPA|[h]}} sound appeared in most onsets (except those with an {{IPA|/h/}} and {{IPA|/w/}} cluster, which had {{IPA|[x]}}) and the other two allophones in [syllable coda](/source/syllable_coda)s ({{IPA|[x]}} after [back vowel](/source/back_vowel)s and {{IPA|[ç]}} after [front vowel](/source/front_vowel)s).
The instances of {{IPA|/h/}} in [coda](/source/Syllable_coda) position were [lost](/source/Middle_English_phonology) during the [Middle English](/source/Middle_English) and [Early Modern English](/source/Early_Modern_English) periods, although they are still reflected in the spelling of words such as ''taught'' (now pronounced like ''taut'') and ''weight'' (now pronounced in most accents like ''wait''). Most of the initial clusters involving {{IPA|/h/}} also disappeared (see [H-cluster reductions](/source/H-cluster_reductions)). As a result, in the [standard](/source/Standard_English) varieties of [Modern English](/source/Modern_English), the only position in which {{IPA|/h/}} can occur is at the start of a syllable, either alone (as in ''hat'', ''house'', ''behind'', etc.), in the cluster {{IPA|/hj/}} (as in ''huge''), or (for a minority of speakers) in the cluster {{IPA|/hw/}} (as in ''whine'' if pronounced [differently from ''wine''](/source/Wine%E2%80%93whine_merger)). The usual realizations of the latter two clusters are {{IPA|[ç]}} and {{IPA|[ʍ]}} (see [English phonology](/source/English_phonology)).
===Contemporary H-dropping===
The phenomenon of H-dropping considered as a feature of contemporary English is the omission, in certain [accent](/source/accent_(sociolinguistics))s and [dialect](/source/dialect)s, of this syllable-initial {{IPA|/h/}}, either alone or in the cluster {{IPA|/hj/}}. (For the cluster {{IPA|/hw/}} and its reduction, see [Pronunciation of English ⟨wh⟩](/source/Pronunciation_of_English_%E2%9F%A8wh%E2%9F%A9).)
====Description====
H-dropping, in certain accents and dialects of [Modern English](/source/Modern_English), causes words like ''harm'', ''heat'', ''home'' and ''behind'' to be pronounced ''arm'', ''eat'', ''ome'' and ''be-ind'' (though in some dialects an [h] may appear in ''behind'' to prevent hiatus – see below).
Cases of H-dropping occur in all English dialects in the [weak form](/source/weak_and_strong_forms_in_English)s of [function word](/source/function_word)s like ''he'', ''him'', ''her'', ''his'', ''had'', and ''have''. The [pronoun ''it''](/source/it_(pronoun)) is a product of historical H-dropping – the older ''hit'' survives as an emphatic form in a few dialects such as [Southern American English](/source/Southern_American_English), and in the [Scots language](/source/Scots_language).[David D. Murison, ''The Guid Scots Tongue'', Blackwodd 1977, p. 39.] Because the {{IPA|/h/}} of unstressed ''have'' is usually dropped, the word is usually pronounced {{IPA|/əv/}} in phrases like ''should have'', ''would have'', and ''could have''. These can be spelled out in informal writing as "should've", "would've", and "could've". Because {{IPA|/əv/}} is also the weak form of the word ''of'', these words are often erroneously spelled as ''should of'', ''would of'' and ''could of''.[{{cite book | last=van Ostade | first=I.T.B. | title=Describing Prescriptivism: Usage Guides and Usage Problems in British and American English | publisher=Taylor & Francis | year=2019 | isbn=978-0-429-55814-6 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gvqzDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT112 | access-date=2020-02-23}}]
====History====
There is evidence of h-dropping in texts from the 13th century and later. It may originally have arisen through contact with the [Norman language](/source/Norman_language), where h-dropping also occurred. [Pun](/source/Pun)s which rely on the possible omission of the {{IPA|/h/}} sound can be found in works by [William Shakespeare](/source/William_Shakespeare) and in other [Elizabethan era](/source/Elizabethan_era) dramas. It is suggested that the phenomenon probably spread from the middle to the lower orders of society, first taking hold in urban centers. It started to become [stigmatized](/source/social_stigma), being seen as a sign of poor education, in the 16th or 17th century.[Milroy, J., "On the Sociolinguistic History of H-dropping in English", in ''Current topics in English historical linguistics'', Odense UP, 1983.][Milroy, L., ''Authority in Language: Investigating Standard English'', Routledge 2002, p. 17.]
====Geographical distribution====
[[File:H-dropping.svg|thumb|250px|H-dropping in the [English language in England](/source/English_language_in_England) (based on Upton and Widdowson, 2006). Dialects in the regions marked ''no /h/'' feature (variable) H-dropping, while those in the regions marked ''/h/'' generally do not, although there is some local variation within these regions.[Upton, C., Widdowson, J.D.A., ''An Atlas of English Dialects'', Routledge 2006, pp. 58–59.]]]
H-dropping occurs (variably) in most of the dialects of the [English language in England](/source/English_language_in_England) and [Welsh English](/source/Welsh_English), including [Cockney](/source/Cockney), [West Country English](/source/West_Country_English), [West Midlands English](/source/West_Midlands_English) (including [Brummie](/source/Brummie_dialect)), [East Midlands English](/source/East_Midlands_English), most of [northern England](/source/English_language_in_northern_England) (including [Yorkshire](/source/Yorkshire_dialect) and [Lancashire](/source/Lancashire_dialect)), and [Cardiff English](/source/Cardiff_English).[{{cite book|title=The Phonetics of Dutch and English|edition=5|location=[Leiden](/source/Leiden)/[Boston](/source/Boston)|publisher=[Brill Publishers](/source/Brill_Publishers)|year=2002|author1-first=Beverley|author1-last=Collins|author2-first=Inger M.|author2-last=Mees|pages=290–302}}] It is not generally found in [Scottish English](/source/Scottish_English) and [Irish English](/source/Hiberno-English). It is also typically absent in certain regions of England and Wales, including [Northumberland](/source/Northumberland), [East Anglia](/source/East_Anglia) and parts of [North](/source/North_Wales) and [West Wales](/source/West_Wales).[{{cite book |title=Approaches to the Study of Sound Structure and Speech: Interdisciplinary Work in Honour of Katarzyna Dziubalska-Kołaczyk |date=21 October 2019 |publisher=Magdalena Wrembel, Agnieszka Kiełkiewicz-Janowiak and Piotr Gąsiorowski |pages=1–398 |isbn=9780429321757|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hh24DwAAQBAJ&dq=h+dropping+north+wales&pg=PT22}}]
H-dropping also occurs in some [Jamaican English](/source/Jamaican_English), and perhaps in other [Caribbean English](/source/Caribbean_English) (including some of [The Bahamas](/source/The_Bahamas)). It is not generally found in [North American English](/source/North_American_English), although it has been reported in [Newfoundland](/source/Newfoundland_English) (outside the [Avalon Peninsula](/source/Avalon_Peninsula)).[[Wells, J.C.](/source/John_C._Wells), ''Accents of English'', CUP 1982, pp. 564, 568–69, 589, 594, 622.] However, dropping of /h/ from the cluster /hj/ (so that ''human'' is pronounced {{IPA|/'juːmən/}}) is found in some American dialects, as well as in parts of Ireland – see [reduction of /hj/](/source/Phonological_history_of_English_consonant_clusters).
====Social distribution and stigmatization====
H-dropping, in the countries and regions in which it is prevalent, occurs mainly in working-class accents. Studies have shown it to be significantly more frequent in lower than in higher social groups. It is not a feature of [RP](/source/Received_Pronunciation) (the [prestige](/source/prestige_(sociolinguistics)) accent of England), or even of "Near-RP", a variant of RP that includes some regional features.[Wells (1982), pp. 254, 300.] This does not always apply, however, to the dropping of /h/ in weak forms of words like ''his'' and ''her''.
H-dropping in English is widely [stigmatized](/source/social_stigma), being perceived as a sign of poor or uneducated speech, and discouraged by schoolteachers. [John Wells](/source/John_C._Wells) writes that it seems to be "the single most powerful pronunciation [shibboleth](/source/shibboleth) in England."[Wells (1982), p. 254]
====Use and status of the H-sound in H-dropping dialects====
In fully H-dropping dialects, that is, in dialects without a phonemic {{IPA|/h/}}, the sound {{IPA|[h]}} may still occur but with uses other than distinguishing words. An [epenthetic](/source/epenthetic) {{IPA|[h]}} may be used to avoid [hiatus](/source/hiatus_(linguistics)), so that for example ''the egg'' is pronounced ''the hegg''. It may also be used when any vowel-initial word is emphasized, so that ''horse'' {{IPA|/ˈɔːs/}} (assuming the dialect is also non-rhotic) and ''ass'' {{IPA|/ˈæs/}} may be pronounced {{IPA|[ˈˈhɔːs]}} and {{IPA|[ˈˈhæs]}} in emphatic utterances. That is, {{IPA|[h]}} has become an [allophone](/source/allophone) of the [zero onset](/source/zero_onset) in these dialects.
For many H-dropping speakers, however, a phonological {{IPA|/h/}} appears to be present, even if it is not usually realized – that is, they know which words "should" have an {{IPA|/h/}}, and have a greater tendency to pronounce an [h] in those words than in other words beginning with a vowel. Insertion of [h] may occur as a means of emphasis, as noted above, and also as a response to the formality of a situation.[Wells (1982), p. 322.] [Sandhi](/source/Sandhi) phenomena may also indicate a speaker's awareness of the presence of an {{IPA|/h/}} – for example, some speakers might say "a edge" (rather than "an edge") for ''a hedge'', and might omit the [linking R](/source/linking_R) before an initial vowel resulting from a dropped H.
It is likely that the phonemic system of children in H-dropping areas lacks a /h/ entirely, but that social and educational pressures lead to the incorporation of an (inconsistently realized) /h/ into the system by the time of adulthood.[Wells (1982), p. 254.]
===H-insertion===
The opposite of H-dropping, called ''H-insertion'' or ''H-adding'', sometimes occurs as a [hypercorrection](/source/hypercorrection) in English accents that typically drop H. It is commonly noted in literature from late [Victorian times](/source/Victorian_times) to the early 20th century that some lower-class people consistently drop ''h'' in words that should have it, while adding ''h'' to words that should not have it. An example from the musical ''[My Fair Lady](/source/My_Fair_Lady)'' is, "In ['Artford](/source/Hertford), ['Ereford](/source/Hereford), and ['Ampshire](/source/Hampshire), ['urricanes](/source/hurricane) 'ardly '''h'''ever 'appen".[{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gUQpoyfbWJ0 |title=ln Hertford, Hereford and Hampshire hurricanes hardly ever happen|website=[YouTube](/source/YouTube) |date=2009-09-20|accessdate=2024-12-25}}{{cbignore}}] Another is in [C. S. Lewis](/source/C.%26nbsp%3BS._Lewis)'s ''[The Magician's Nephew](/source/The_Magician's_Nephew)'': "Three cheers for the [Hempress](/source/Empress) of [Colney 'Atch](/source/Colney_Hatch)". In practice, however, it would appear that ''h''-adding is more of a stylistic prosodic effect, being found in highly emphasized words, regardless of whether those words are h-initial or vowel-initial in the standard language.
Some English words borrowed from [French](/source/French_language) may begin with the letter {{angbr|h}} but not with the sound {{IPA|/h/}}. Examples include ''heir'', and, in many regional pronunciations, ''hour'', ''hono(u)r'' and ''honest''. In some cases, [spelling pronunciation](/source/spelling_pronunciation) has introduced the sound {{IPA|/h/}} into such words, as in ''humble'', ''human'', ''hotel'' and (for most speakers) ''historic''. Spelling pronunciation has also added {{IPA|/h/}} to the [British English](/source/British_English) pronunciation of ''herb'', {{IPA|/hɜːb/}}, while [American English](/source/American_English) retains the older pronunciation {{IPA|/ərb/}}. [Etymology](/source/Etymology) may also serve as a motivation for H-addition, as in the words ''horrible'', ''habit'' and ''harmony'': these were borrowed into Middle English from French without an {{IPA|/h/}} (''orrible, abit, armonie''), but as all three derive from Latin words with an {{IPA|/h/}}, they would later acquired an {{IPA|/h/}} in English as an etymological "correction".[{{cite web|url=http://www.askoxford.com/worldofwords/wordfrom/aitches/?view=uk |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120719222025/http://www.askoxford.com/worldofwords/wordfrom/aitches/?view=uk |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 19, 2012 |title=World of words - Oxford Dictionaries Online |publisher=Askoxford.com |access-date=2013-08-01}}] The name of the letter H itself, "aitch", is subject to H-insertion in some dialects, where it is pronounced "[haitch](/source/haitch)". (In [Hiberno-English](/source/Hiberno-English), "[haitch](/source/haitch)" is frequent amongst Roman Catholics, consistent with their not being H-dropping dialects and distinguishing them from their Protestant neighbours.){{citation needed|date=October 2025}} Various dialects of [Newfoundland English](/source/Newfoundland_English) exhibit the same pattern.[{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-11642588 |title='Haitch' or 'aitch'? How do you pronounce 'H'? |work=BBC News |date=28 October 2010 |access-date=2017-06-19}}]
===List of homophones resulting from H-dropping===
The following is a list of some pairs of English words which may become homophones when H-dropping occurs. (To view the list, click "show".) See also the list of H-dropping homophones in Wiktionary.
{| class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"
|+ class="nowrap" | Homophonous pairs
! {{IPA|/h/}}
! {{IPA|/∅/}}
! IPA
! Notes
|-
| ha || ah || {{IPA|ˈɑː}}
|-
| habit || abbot || {{IPA|ˈæbət}} || With [weak vowel merger](/source/weak_vowel_merger).
|-
| hacked || act || {{IPA|ˈækt}}
|-
| hacks || axe; ax || {{IPA|ˈæks}}
|-
| had || ad || {{IPA|ˈæd}}
|-
| had || add || {{IPA|ˈæd}}
|-
| hail || ail || {{IPA|ˈeɪl}}
|-
| hail || ale || {{IPA|ˈeɪl}} || With [pane-pain merger](/source/pane-pain_merger).
|-
| Haim || aim || {{IPA|ˈeɪm}}
|-
| hair || air || {{IPA|ˈɛə(r), ˈeɪr}}
|-
| hair || ere || {{IPA|ˈɛə(r)}} || With [pane-pain merger](/source/pane-pain_merger).
|-
| hair || heir || {{IPA|ˈɛə(r), ˈeɪr}}
|-
| haired || erred || {{IPA|ˈɛə(r)d}} || With [pane-pain merger](/source/pane-pain_merger).
|-
| Hal || Al || {{IPA|ˈæl}}
|-
| hale || ail || {{IPA|ˈeɪl}} || With [pane-pain merger](/source/pane-pain_merger).
|-
| hale || ale || {{IPA|ˈeɪl, ˈeːl}}
|-
| hall || all || {{IPA|ˈɔːl}}
|-
| halter || alter || {{IPA|ˈɔːltə(r)}}
|-
| ham || am || {{IPA|ˈæm}}
|-
| hand || and || {{IPA|ˈænd}}
|-
| hanker || anchor || {{IPA|ˈæŋkə(r)}}
|-
| hap || app || {{IPA|ˈæp}}
|-
| hare || air || {{IPA|ˈɛə(r)}} || With [pane-pain merger](/source/pane-pain_merger).
|-
| hare || ere || {{IPA|ˈɛə(r), ˈeːr}}
|-
| hare || heir || {{IPA|ˈɛə(r)}} || With [pane-pain merger](/source/pane-pain_merger).
|-
| hark || arc || {{IPA|ˈɑː(r)k}}
|-
| hark || ark || {{IPA|ˈɑː(r)k}}
|-
| harm || arm || {{IPA|ˈɑː(r)m}}
|-
| hart || art; Art || {{IPA|ˈɑː(r)t}}
|-
| has || as || {{IPA|ˈæz}}
|-
| hash || ash || {{IPA|ˈæʃ}}
|-
| haste || aced || {{IPA|ˈeɪst, ˈeːst}}
|-
| hat || at || {{IPA|ˈæt}}
|-
| hate || ate || {{IPA|ˈeɪt}}
|-
| hate || eight || {{IPA|ˈeɪt}} || With [pane-pain merger](/source/pane-pain_merger) and [wait-weight merger](/source/wait-weight_merger).
|-
| haul || all || {{IPA|ˈɔːl}}
|-
| haunt || aunt || {{IPA|ˈɑːnt}} || With [trap-bath split](/source/trap-bath_split) and [father-bother merger](/source/father-bother_merger).
|-
| hawk || auk || {{IPA|ˈɔːk}}
|-
| hawk || orc || {{IPA|ˈɔːk}} || In [non-rhotic](/source/non-rhotic) accents.
|-
| hay || A || {{IPA|ˈeɪ}}
|-
| hay || eh || {{IPA|ˈeɪ}}
|-
| he || E || {{IPA|ˈiː}}
|-
| head || Ed || {{IPA|ˈɛd}}
|-
| heady || Eddie || {{IPA|ˈɛdi}}
|-
| heady || eddy || {{IPA|ˈɛdi}}
|-
| heal || eel || {{IPA|ˈiːl}} || With [fleece merger](/source/fleece_merger) or [meet-meat merger](/source/meet-meat_merger).
|-
| hear || ear || {{IPA|ˈɪə(r), ˈiːr}}
|-
| heard || erred || {{IPA|ˈɜː(r)d, ˈɛrd}}
|-
| hearing || earing || {{IPA|ˈɪərɪŋ, ˈiːrɪŋ}}
|-
| hearing || earring || {{IPA|ˈɪərɪŋ}}
|-
| heart || art; Art || {{IPA|ˈɑː(r)t}}
|-
| heat || eat || {{IPA|ˈiːt}}
|-
| heathen || even || {{IPA|ˈiːvən}} || With [th-fronting](/source/th-fronting).
|-
| heather || ever || {{IPA|ˈɛvə(r)}} || With [th-fronting](/source/th-fronting).
|-
| heave || eve; Eve || {{IPA|ˈiːv}}
|-
| heave || eave || {{IPA|ˈiːv}}
|-
| heaven || Evan || {{IPA|ˈɛvən}}
|-
| heaving || even || {{IPA|ˈiːvən}} || With [weak vowel merger](/source/weak_vowel_merger) and [G-dropping](/source/G-dropping).
|-
| hedge || edge || {{IPA|ˈɛdʒ}}
|-
| heel || eel || {{IPA|ˈiːl}}
|-
| heinous || anus || {{IPA|ˈeɪnəs}} || With [pane-pain merger](/source/pane-pain_merger).
|-
| heist || iced || {{IPA|ˈaɪst}}
|-
| Helen || Ellen || {{IPA|ˈɛlən}}
|-
| Helena || Eleanor || {{IPA|ˈɛlənə}} || In [non-rhotic](/source/non-rhotic) accents.
|-
| Helena || Elena || {{IPA|ˈɛlənə}}
|-
| hell || L; el; ell || {{IPA|ˈɛl}}
|-
| he'll || eel || {{IPA|ˈiːl}}
|-
| helm || elm || {{IPA|ˈɛlm}}
|-
| hem || M; em || {{IPA|ˈɛm}}
|-
| hen || N; en || {{IPA|ˈɛn}}
|-
| herd || erred || {{IPA|ˈɜː(r)d, ˈɛrd}}
|-
| here || ear || {{IPA|ˈɪə(r), ˈiːr}}
|-
| here's || ears || {{IPA|ˈɪəz, ˈiːrz}}
|-
| heron || Erin || {{IPA|ˈɛrən}} || With [weak vowel merger](/source/weak_vowel_merger).
|-
| herring || Erin || {{IPA|ˈɛrən}} || With [weak vowel merger](/source/weak_vowel_merger) and [G-dropping](/source/G-dropping).
|-
| he's || E's || {{IPA|ˈiːz}}
|-
| [Heuston](/source/Heuston) || [Euston](/source/Euston_(disambiguation)) || {{IPA|ˈjuːstən}}
|-
| hew || ewe || {{IPA|ˈjuː, ˈ(j)ɪu}}
|-
| hew || yew || {{IPA|ˈjuː, ˈjɪu}}
|-
| hew || you || {{IPA|ˈjuː}}
|-
| hews || ewes || {{IPA|ˈjuːz, ˈ(j)ɪuz}}
|-
| hews || use || {{IPA|ˈjuːz, ˈjɪuz}}
|-
| hews || yews || {{IPA|ˈjuːz, ˈjɪuz}}
|-
| hex || ex || {{IPA|ˈɛks}}
|-
| hex || X; ex || {{IPA|ˈɛks}}
|-
| hey || A || {{IPA|ˈeɪ}}
|-
| hey || eh || {{IPA|ˈeɪ}}
|-
| hi || aye; ay || {{IPA|ˈaɪ}}
|-
| hi || eye || {{IPA|ˈaɪ}}
|-
| hi || I || {{IPA|ˈaɪ}}
|-
| hid || id || {{IPA|ˈɪd}}
|-
| hide || I'd || {{IPA|ˈaɪd}}
|-
| high || aye; ay || {{IPA|ˈaɪ}}
|-
| high || eye || {{IPA|ˈaɪ}}
|-
| high || I || {{IPA|ˈaɪ}}
|-
| higher || ire || {{IPA|ˈaɪə(r)}}
|-
| hike || Ike || {{IPA|ˈaɪk}}
|-
| hill || ill || {{IPA|ˈɪl}}
|-
| hinky || inky || {{IPA|ˈɪŋki}}
|-
| hire || ire || {{IPA|ˈaɪə(r), ˈaɪr}}
|-
| his || is || {{IPA|ˈɪz}}
|-
| hit || it || {{IPA|ˈɪt}}
|-
| hitch || itch || {{IPA|ˈɪtʃ}}
|-
| hive || I've || {{IPA|ˈaɪv}}
|-
| hoard || awed || {{IPA|ˈɔːd}} || In [non-rhotic](/source/non-rhotic) accents with [horse-hoarse merger](/source/horse-hoarse_merger).
|-
| hoard || oared || {{IPA|ˈɔː(r)d, ˈoə(r)d, ˈoːrd}}
|-
| hoarder || order || {{IPA|ˈɔː(r)də(r)}} || With [horse-hoarse merger](/source/horse-hoarse_merger).
|-
| hocks || ox || {{IPA|ˈɒks}}
|-
| hoe || O || {{IPA|ˈoʊ, ˈoː}}
|-
| hoe || oh || {{IPA|ˈoʊ, ˈoː}}
|-
| hoe || owe || {{IPA|ˈoʊ}} || With [toe-tow merger](/source/toe-tow_merger).
|-
| hoes || O's || {{IPA|ˈoʊz, ˈoːz}}
|-
| hoister || oyster || {{IPA|ˈɔɪstə(r)}}
|-
| hold || old || {{IPA|ˈoʊld}}
|-
| holed || old || {{IPA|ˈoʊld}} || With [toe-tow merger](/source/toe-tow_merger).
|-
| holly || Olly || {{IPA|ˈɒli}}
|-
| hone || own || {{IPA|ˈoʊn}} || With [toe-tow merger](/source/toe-tow_merger).
|-
| hop || op || {{IPA|ˈɒp}}
|-
| hopped || opped || {{IPA|ˈɒpt}}
|-
| hopped || opt || {{IPA|ˈɒpt}}
|-
| horde || awed || {{IPA|ˈɔːd}} || In [non-rhotic](/source/non-rhotic) accents.
|-
| horde || oared || {{IPA|ˈɔː(r)d, ˈoə(r)d, ˈoːrd}}
|-
| horn || awn || {{IPA|ˈɔːn}} || In [non-rhotic](/source/non-rhotic) accents.
|-
| horn || on || {{IPA|ˈɔːn}} || In [non-rhotic](/source/non-rhotic) accents with [lot-cloth split](/source/lot-cloth_split).
|-
| hotter || otter || {{IPA|ˈɒtə(r)}}
|-
| how || ow || {{IPA|ˈaʊ}}
|-
| howl || owl || {{IPA|ˈaʊl}}
|-
| how're || hour || {{IPA|ˈaʊə(r), ˈaʊr}}
|-
| how're || our || {{IPA|ˈaʊə(r), ˈaʊr}}
|-
| [Houston](/source/Houston) || [Euston](/source/Euston_(disambiguation)) || {{IPA|ˈjuːstən}}
|-
| Hoyle || oil || {{IPA|ˈɔɪl}}
|-
| hue || ewe || {{IPA|ˈjuː, ˈ(j)ɪuː}}
|-
| hue || U || {{IPA|ˈjuː, ˈ(j)ɪuː}}
|-
| hue || yew || {{IPA|ˈjuː, ˈjɪuː}}
|-
| hue || you || {{IPA|ˈjuː}}
|-
| hues || ewes || {{IPA|ˈjuːz, ˈ(j)ɪuz}}
|-
| hues || U's || {{IPA|ˈjuːz, ˈ(j)ɪuz}}
|-
| hues || use || {{IPA|ˈjuːz, ˈjɪuz}}
|-
| hues || yews || {{IPA|ˈjuːz, ˈjɪuz}}
|-
| Hugh || ewe || {{IPA|ˈjuː, ˈ(j)ɪuː}}
|-
| Hugh || U || {{IPA|ˈjuː, ˈ(j)ɪuː}}
|-
| Hugh || yew || {{IPA|ˈjuː, ˈjɪuː}}
|-
| Hugh || you || {{IPA|ˈjuː}}
|-
| Hughes || ewes || {{IPA|ˈjuːz, ˈ(j)ɪuz}}
|-
| Hughes || U's || {{IPA|ˈjuːz, ˈ(j)ɪuz}}
|-
| Hughes || use || {{IPA|ˈjuːz, ˈjɪuz}}
|-
| Hughes || yews || {{IPA|ˈjuːz, ˈjɪuz}}
|-
| hurl || earl || {{IPA|ˈɜː(r)l}} || With [fern-fir-fur merger](/source/fern-fir-fur_merger).
|-
| [Huston](/source/Huston_(disambiguation)) || [Euston](/source/Euston_(disambiguation)) || {{IPA|ˈjuːstən}}
|-
| Hyde || I'd || {{IPA|ˈaɪd}}
|-
| whore || awe || {{IPA|ˈɔː}} || In [non-rhotic](/source/non-rhotic) accents with [horse-hoarse merger](/source/horse-hoarse_merger) and [pour-poor merger](/source/pour-poor_merger).
|-
| whore || oar || {{IPA|ˈɔː(r), ˈoə(r), ˈoːr}} || With [pour-poor merger](/source/pour-poor_merger).
|-
| whore || or || {{IPA|ˈɔː(r)}} || With [horse-hoarse merger](/source/horse-hoarse_merger) and [pour-poor merger](/source/pour-poor_merger).
|-
| whore || ore || {{IPA|ˈɔː(r), ˈoə(r), ˈoːr}} || With [pour-poor merger](/source/pour-poor_merger).
|-
| whored || awed || {{IPA|ˈɔːd}} || In [non-rhotic](/source/non-rhotic) accents with [horse-hoarse merger](/source/horse-hoarse_merger) and [pour-poor merger](/source/pour-poor_merger).
|-
| whored || oared || {{IPA|ˈɔː(r)d, ˈoə(r)d, ˈoːrd}} || With [pour-poor merger](/source/pour-poor_merger).
|-
| who's || ooze || {{IPA|ˈuːz}}
|-
| who's || [Ouse](/source/Ouse_(disambiguation)) || {{IPA|ˈuːz}}
|-
| whose || ooze || {{IPA|ˈuːz}}
|-
| whose || [Ouse](/source/Ouse_(disambiguation)) || {{IPA|ˈuːz}}
|}
==In other languages==
{{Unreferenced section|date=April 2025}}
Processes of H-dropping have occurred in various languages at certain times, and in some cases, they remain as distinguishing features between dialects, as in English. Some [Dutch dialects](/source/Dutch_dialects), especially the southern ones, feature H-dropping. The dialects of [Zeeland](/source/Zeeland), [West](/source/West_Flanders) and [East Flanders](/source/East_Flanders), most of [Antwerp](/source/Antwerp_(province)) and [Flemish Brabant](/source/Flemish_Brabant), and the west of [North Brabant](/source/North_Brabant) have lost /h/ as a phonemic consonant but use [h] to avoid hiatus and to signal emphasis, much as in the H-dropping dialects of English.[{{OED|h}}] H-dropping is also found in some [North Germanic languages](/source/North_Germanic_languages), for instance [Elfdalian](/source/Elfdalian) and the dialect of [Roslagen](/source/Roslagen), where it is found already in [Old East Norse](/source/Old_Norse). Also the [Low Saxon](/source/West_Low_German) speaking area around [Zwolle](/source/Zwolle), [Kampen](/source/Kampen%2C_Overijssel), [Steenwijk](/source/Steenwijk), [Meppel](/source/Meppel) and [Hoogeveen](/source/Hoogeveen) have h-dropping, the former island of [Urk](/source/Urk) has it too as do some regions in [Groningen](/source/Groningen).
When dealing with Greek, this process is called [psilosis](/source/psilosis). The phoneme {{IPA|/h/}} in [Ancient Greek](/source/Ancient_Greek) of [Classical Athens](/source/Classical_Athens), occurring predominantly at the beginnings of words and originally written with the letter H and later as a [rough breathing](/source/rough_breathing), had been lost by that period in most [Ionic](/source/Ionic_Greek) dialects and from all Greek dialects during the late [Hellenistic](/source/Hellenistic)/Roman era. Hence it not a phoneme of [Modern Greek](/source/Modern_Greek) being approximated in foreign loanwords by {{IPAslink|x}} or {{IPAslink|ç}} (or {{IPA|/∅/}}).
The phoneme {{IPA|/h/}} was lost in [Vulgar Latin](/source/Vulgar_Latin), the ancestor of the modern [Romance languages](/source/Romance_languages). Already in the Imperial period, there is attested evidence for early h-loss. [French](/source/French_language), [Spanish](/source/Spanish_language), and [Romanian](/source/Romanian_language) acquired a new initial {{IPA|/h/}} in medieval times, but they were later lost in the first two languages in a "second round" of H-dropping. Some varieties of Spanish have yet again acquired {{IPA|[h]}} from {{IPA|/x/}} (from earlier [retraction](/source/Fronting_(phonetics)) of {{IPAslink|ʃ}} and {{IPAslink|ʒ}}), which as of now is stable. [Brazilian Portuguese](/source/Brazilian_Portuguese) acquired {{IPA|[h]}} from {{IPAslink|ʁ}} which is now the stable form in most of the country, though it has other allophones.
It is hypothesized in the [laryngeal theory](/source/laryngeal_theory) that the loss of {{IPA|[h]}} or similar sounds played a role in the early development of the [Indo-European languages](/source/Indo-European_languages).
In [Maltese](/source/Maltese_language), {{IPA|/h/}} existed as a phoneme until the 19th century. It was then lost in most positions, sometimes lengthening the adjacent vowel. Chiefly word-finally it was merged with {{IPAslink|ħ}}. The latter phoneme, in turn, may now be pronounced {{IPA|[h]}} by some speakers, chiefly in the syllable onset.
[Modern Hebrew](/source/Modern_Hebrew) is in the process of losing {{IPA|/h/}}; the phoneme is either replaced by {{IPA|/ʔ/}} (word-initially) or entirely absent (in all other positions) in the speech of contemporary young speakers.
In [Tagalog](/source/Tagalog_language), {{IPA|/h/}} is sometimes elided into an immediately succeeding vowel, such as ''huwag'' from {{IPA|/huˈwaɡ/}} to {{IPA|/ˈwaɡ/}} and ''sabihin'' from {{IPA|/saˈbihin/}} to {{IPA|/saˈbin/}}.
Many dialects of [Persian](/source/Persian_language) spoken in [Afghanistan](/source/Afghanistan) (i.e. [Dari](/source/Dari)) do not realize the phoneme {{IPA|/h/}}, except in high-prestige literary words or in hyper formal speech. The deletion of the phoneme {{IPA|/h/}} may cause a preceding short vowel to be reinterpreted as a long vowel, likely due to phonological rules in Dari prohibiting short vowels and long vowels from being equal in length.[Rees, Daniel A. "Towards Proto-Persian". Georgetown University 2008] For example, {{lang|fa|قهر}} (''qahr'' {{IPA|/qahɾ/}}, "anger") is often realized as ''qār'' {{IPA|/qɑːɾ/}} (as if it was written like {{lang|fa|قار}}), and {{lang|fa|فهمیدن}} (''fahmīdan'' {{IPA|/fahmiːdan/}}, to understand) is often realized as {{lang|fa|فامیدن}} (''fāmīdan'' /fɑːmiːdan/). Between vowels, the phoneme {{IPA|/h/}} may be replaced by a glide ({{IPA|/j/}} or {{IPA|/w/}}) resulting in words like {{lang|fa|خواهش}} (''x(w)āhiš'' {{IPA|/xɑːhɪʃ/}}, "I want") being realized as {{lang|fa|خایش}} (''xāyš'' {{IPA|/xɑːjʃ/}}) or, in dialects that no longer distinguish āy and ay, this may be further reduced to ''xayš'' {{IPA|/xajʃ/}} (as if spelt {{lang|fa|خیش}}).
The modern [Javanese language](/source/Javanese_language) typically does not have initial and intervocalic {{IPA|/h/}} in its native words, except between the same vowels. For instance, in modern Javanese, the word for "rain" is ''udan'', from Old Javanese ''hudan'', which ultimately comes from Proto-Austronesian ''*quzaN''. The letter "ꦲ" in traditional Javanese script, which had the value {{IPA|/ha/}} in Old Javanese is now used in most cases to represent {{IPA|/a/}} and {{IPA|/ɔ/}} in its base form. In modern Javanese, initial and intervocalic {{IPA|/h/}} appears only in loanwords from Indonesian and English. Since the Javanese people have been exposed to Dutch for far longer than they are with Indonesian or standard literary Malay (which only started somewhere after 1900 and amplified after 1945, excluding [Surinamese Javanese](/source/Surinamese_Javanese)), many of the words borrowed from Dutch have also lost the phoneme, such as ''andhuk'' {{IPA|/aɳˈɖ̥(ʰ)ʊʔ/}} "towel" from Dutch ''handdoek''.
==See also==
*[Phonological history of English](/source/Phonological_history_of_English)
*[Phonological history of English consonants](/source/Phonological_history_of_English_consonants)
*[Aspirated h](/source/Aspirated_h)
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{History of English}}
Category:Phonology
Category:English phonology
Category:Sound changes
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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [H-dropping](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H-dropping) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H-dropping?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.