H-Deletion: Where’d the H Go?

In this lesson, I want to introduce you to H-deletion in Australian English.

What is H-Deletion?

H-Deletion, also known as H-dropping, is where the H /h/ sound at the start of certain words in English can be deleted, meaning it is not said.

This is something that is very common in many British dialects of English where they always drop H /h/ sound in front of words. For example, many British English accents would pronounce the words ‘hospital’ as ‘ospital’, or ‘hotel’ as ‘otel’.

In other English dialects such as Australian English, the H /h/ sound is pronounced at the start of words, however, it can be deleted in connected speech when English is being spoken.

Note: there are many words in English where H-deletion is the natural pronunciation of the word. For example: honour, hour, honest, heir

What are the rules?

When /h/ is pronounced at the start of a syllable, it is not deleted if it comes at the start of a sentence:

• Horses are big. – /ˈhoːsɪz ɐː bɪg/
• Heroes are great. – /ˈhɪərəʉz ɐː græɪt/
• Her cat is there. – /hɜː kæt ɪz ðeː/
• Hurting people is bad. – /ˈhɜːtɪŋ ˈpiːpl ɪz bæd/

H-deletion can occur where the previous vowel or consonant sound links to the vowel sound that follows the H /h/ sound. This can happen both within words and when linking words.

For example:

Within words:

• Vehicle -> Ve[h]icle
  • ˈviːˌhɪkl – ˈviːəkl
• Anyhow -> Any[h]ow
  • ˈenɪˌhæʊ – ˈenɪˌæʊ
• Hot-headed -> Hot[h]eaded
  • ˈhɔtˈheɹɪd – ˈhɔˈɾeɾɪd*
• Backhand -> Back[h]and
  • ˈbækˌhænd – ˈbæˌkænd*

Between words:

• Grey horses -> Grey‿[h]orses
  • gɹæɪ ˈhoːsəz – gɹæɪ‿ˈj‿oːsəz*
• That hero -> that_[h]ero
  • ðæt ˈhɪəɹəʉ – ðæˈɾ‿ɪəɹəʉ*
• The car’s hers -> The car’s‿[h]ers
  • ðə kɐːz hɜːz – ðə kɐːz‿ɜːz
• It hurts -> it‿[h]urts
  • ɪt hɜːts – ɪɾ‿ɜːts

Note: when the sound coming before the deleted H is a vowel sound, it’ll be linked to the vowel coming after the deleted H with either a /j/, /w/ or /ɹ/ sound.

Note: if the H /h/ sound is stressed, when H-deletion occurs, the stress moves onto the previous consonant sound or the linking sound.

For example:

• Grasshopper – Grass[h]opper
  • ˈgrɐːsˌhɔpɐ -> ˈgrɐːˌsɔpɐ
• Kindhearted – kind[h]earted
  • ˈkɑendˈhɐːɾɪd -> ˈkɑenˈdɐːɾɪd
• Overhand – over[h]and
  • ˌəʊvəˈhænd -> ˌəʊvəˈɹænd

Lastly, based on my Australian English pronunciation, H-deletion doesn’t occur when words starting with H are followed by the Yod /j/ sound. I’ll always say the H /h/ sound in words such as:

• Huge – hjʉːʤ
• Human – ˈhjʉːmən
• Hue – hjʉː

Drilling exercises!

The topics below include drilling exercises for each of the pronunciation points you just learnt.

If you want to “drill down” and practice any or all of these pronunciation points, you can do so with these video exercises in order to solidify your pronunciation of these sounds.

If you can already pronounce these sounds with confidence, skip ahead to the next lesson.

But if you still have a little trouble either remembering the rules or making the sounds themselves, complete these exercises on a regular basis until you’ve nailed the pronunciation.

Tip: shorter and more frequent drilling sessions (e.g. 5 minutes per day) are more effective than longer infrequent sessions (e.g. 1 hour per week).