Earth to Mxsmanic!

Here are a few more pairs distinguished only by vowel length in my accent:

bade - bad /{/ vs. /{:/
merry - Mary /e/ vs. /e:/
sum - psalm /6/ vs. /6:/
Sirius - serious /I/ vs. /I:/
ferry - fairy /e/ vs. /e:/
cut - cart /6/ vs. /6:/
bun - barn /6/ vs. /6:/
widow - weirdo /I/ vs. /I:/
bid - beard /I/ vs. /I:/
piss - pierce /I/ vs. /I:/
mutt - mart /6/ vs. /6:/
duck - dark /6/ vs. /6:/
can (able to) - can (metal container) /{/ vs. /{:/
bum - balm /6/ vs. /6:/
buck - bark /6/ vs. /6:/
span (past tense of spin) - span (life span) /{/ vs. /{:/
come - calm /6/ vs. /6:/
us - arse /6/ vs. /6:/
cuff - calf /6/ vs. /6:/
an - Ann /{/ vs. /{:/
bed - bared /e/ vs. /e:/
head - haired /e/ vs. /e:/
done - darn /6/ vs. /6:/
putt - part /6/ vs. /6:/
cunt - can't /6/ vs. /6:/
cull - Carl /6/ vs. /6:/
hut - heart /6/ vs. /6:/
hush - harse /6/ vs. /6:/

Wait...span is the past tense of spin? I thought it was spun...

<<span (past tense of spin) - span (life span) /{/ vs. /{:/>>

Yeah, that's interesting. For me the past tense of "spin" is "spun".

Likewise, for me, both the simple past and the past participle of "to spin" is "spun"; I have not even heard "span" used in any relation to "to spin" at all, whether as a simple past or a past participle myself.

"Span" is the traditional past tense of "spin" but the traditional past tense "spun" has largely replaced it in NAE.

"Definition
spin (TURN) [Show phonetics]
verb [I or T] spinning, spun, spun, UK ALSO span
1 to (cause to) turn around and around, especially fast:
...
2 head/room spins If your head or the room spins you feel as if it is turning around and around, and you cannot balance:"

Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary
http://www.dictionary.cambridge.org/define.asp?key=76547&dict=CALD

"Span" still lives in AusE & as Aussie Fisher says sounds distinct from the other "span".

<<Wait...span is the past tense of spin? I thought it was spun...>>

american nic, yes, where I come from it is. ''span'' is the past tense of ''spin'' and ''spun'' is the past participle for me. I used to think the same was true for everybody.

Both span and spun sound OK to me.

It's all that cricket of late with Shane Warne spanning the spinning globe causing this linguistic karma. Australia losing a series once in 18 years becomes a national day for England. But as The Falcon Mario Fenech would say, the wheel turns, boys.

<<"Span" is the traditional past tense of "spin" but the traditional past tense "spun" has largely replaced it in NAE.>>

---I meant "traditional past participle"

I've never heard of "span"as the past tense of spin. I use spun

<<''span'' is the past tense of ''spin'' and ''spun'' is the past participle for me.>>

That was a typo. ''span'' is the past participle of ''spin'' for me, and ''spun'' is the past tense.

< ''span'' is the past participle of ''spin'' for me, and ''spun'' is the past tense.>

No. It's the other way around.

It's like the verb to "run". The simple past is "ran" (you don't say "he run to the shops yesterday", but "he ran to the shops yesterday".) The past participle is "run", as in "I have run the race".

But having said that I just found a BBC report on motor racing that uses both "spun" and "span" indiscriminately in the same piece for the simple past. Like most English grammar it is being simplified and ironed out by usage. It's being going on for centuries...

Mxsmanic, where are you? It’s been ages since I saw your last post. Did you move somewhere else? Your comments were of interest to me, though I do not entirely share your grammar-based approach to learning English.

Do you guys know something about his present whereabouts?

Thanks

Paul N.

He still seems to be active over at Google Groups.