Can you tell Canadian accent from American accent?

Koreasparkling   Tue Dec 25, 2007 8:03 am GMT
As a non-native speaker of English, I can tell American accent from British accent because they are noticeably different. (Not to mention Aussie accent and Kiwi accent)

However, Canadian accent and American accent are very similar and they sound almost the same to me.

If you are from North America(either Canada or USA), can you distinguish Canadian accent from American accent?
Guest   Tue Dec 25, 2007 8:33 am GMT
It depends. I'm from California and I can't distinguish western Canadian (British Colombian) accents from my own (for the most part), but I can clearly distinguish more eastern Canadian accents (from the California accent). However, that doesn't mean if I can tell that someone with one of those accents is American or not, since many Americans also have those accents.
Guest   Tue Dec 25, 2007 8:35 am GMT
Typo corrections:

*British Columbian
*doesn't mean THAT I can tell
Guest   Tue Dec 25, 2007 8:36 am GMT
Correction of correction:

*doesn't mean that I can tell IF
John   Tue Dec 25, 2007 9:34 am GMT
Yes, I can spot a Canadian accent quite easily. One of the most noticeable features of a Canadian accent relative to an American one is in words like "home" or "about", When Canadians say these words it often sounds a lot to me like they are saying "Hoom" or "a-boot". But not all Canadians talk the same and not all Americans can pick out a Canaddian accent. *Most* BE speakers, however, cannot usually tell the the difference though.
Milton   Tue Dec 25, 2007 11:20 am GMT
yes
Canadian accents have CR (Canadian raising), and many times (increasingly) CVS (Canadian vowel shift) with /Q/ vowel instead of General American /A/: Don /DQn/, doll /dQl/, dollar /dQl@r/, top /tQp/, not /nQt/, Tom /tQm/, Donna /dQn@/.
But it definitely depends on a speaker, speakers with minimal CR and CVS are very difficult to distinguish from WestCoast US American English speakers, or some Low back merged Back East Speakers (like those from Erie, PA)
Travis   Tue Dec 25, 2007 4:15 pm GMT
Canadian Raising is not a distinctive feature of English dialects in Canada, as it actually extends a good ways into the northern US, particularly in the case of Canadian Raising of /aI/. Furthermore, Canadian Raising, especially Canadian Raising of /aI/, is spreading southwards at this point, and shows no signs of stopping anytime soon.
K. T.   Tue Dec 25, 2007 8:43 pm GMT
If they talk long enough, yes probably I can tell the difference. I notice some of what John mentioned.
Guest   Tue Dec 25, 2007 9:29 pm GMT
No difference. I don't know
Guest   Tue Dec 25, 2007 9:46 pm GMT
Yes.
I was recently in Venice and ran into a lady at the baggage pickup there. She was speaking to another man in English and I joined the conversation when she asked if I would assist her when her baggage came down. After speaking with her for a few seconds, I asked her if she were Canadian (she sounded to me like Sue Johanson from Sex-Talk). She said she was, and that she was from BC. I told her: I could tell; I am from the US (the other man, who was not a native English speaker was somewhat astonished that I was able to).

I agree, Canadians do sound more like Americans, but I can even tell from which region of the US people are from. The Canadian accent is no different than other regional US accents, and oftentimes they overlap (like in the Upper Midwest and upper parts of NE).
Guest   Tue Dec 25, 2007 10:09 pm GMT
Guest, you must be some kind of genius if you can tell which part of the country one comes from just on the basis of hearing one's accent. On my ears, most American accents sound the same.
Guest   Tue Dec 25, 2007 10:18 pm GMT
People who have an ear or who can mimic can pick out sounds and imitate them like a parrot.
Morgan   Wed Jan 02, 2008 12:16 am GMT
I am from Southern California. In "america" there are many types of accents. The canadian accent is very different from most of the accents people from the United States have. The Canadian accent most resembles a minnesotan, or mid-western accent.

People who think that all Americans sound the same are ignorant. People from the south, usually, sound nothing like people from Chicago. Texans can get angry when someone says they are from anywhere but Texas. Also different people from around the country use different slang terms. A common southern slang term is "Y'all".

If you ever get the chance to spend time in the different regions of the country and spend time with its people, then you will be able to eventually tell the difference between a canadian and someone from the U.S.
Uriel   Wed Jan 02, 2008 7:00 am GMT
I've met Canadians who don't have the "aboot" thing going on, and they are impossible to distinguish from Americans. But the ones who DO have it are easier to tell. Of course, there are also some Americans who have this feature, so there's really no foolproof answer.....in other words, there are plenty of times when it's just better to ask!
Milton   Wed Jan 02, 2008 3:16 pm GMT
Canadians call they currency DOLLAR /dQl@r/, with a back, rounded vowel.
Most Americans call it DOLLAR /dAl@r/ with a central (or back) unrounded vowel (although /Q/ pronunciation can be heard in theValley Girl dialect, Pittsburghese and the old Boston dialect)...