Miles ~ How many syllables?

piper09

How many syllables do you think are in the name Miles?  I think it's technically a one-syllable name, but sounds like two to me.  Just curious what others think.  TIA!

bumpuser2505903

I agree, two.

alehayes

I think it's one.  In elementary school we were taught to find out how many syllables a word has by putting our fists under our chins as we speak.  Every time your jaw hits your fist, it's a syllable.  When I did it, it was only one. 

apollonia10

I think technically it's one, but I keep saying My-ulls.

jelina

Just one.

plunderb

One, but I see what you're saying. It's like "fire."

stgn01

only one.

StrawberryAlarmClock

Agreed. One but it comes out with a "y". That's called a glide and it is because the "L" is a liquid and in standard American English and some northern dialects, we voice  (pronounce/keep vocal cords humming)while repositioning our tongue making the semi-consonant "y" sound. You didn't want that much info, did you? LOL 

Be happy you don't live around here. FIL pronounces it "mal"...yes, even the plural. He has four "tars" on his truck, too.  

HAFranklin

Technically, it's one. It's a regional thing to say it with 2. I, personally, say My-ulls, so 2. Same thing with "files".

Zimger

It is one. An accent might make it sound like two but it's still one.

jlsimon56

It's similar to Charles and Grant.  My brother is Grant and it was always so hard to yell at him when I was mad.  Gray-yunt!!  

Miles is our boy name. 

austenreader85

I'm from VA and maybe it's just a southern thing but I'd say it's two.  I probably hold out the i too long instead of rushing to the l. 

I don't get the chin thing, was never taught it.  I tried and this happened:  Pursed lips for the M, opened for the I, jaw half closed and tongue up for the L, closed for the S.  I think that I'm half closing it for the L makes me say it's two syllables.  Someone said it's similar to Anna and Charles, but I say both as two. 

I spent 6 years in speech pathology as a child so I'm slightly familiar with the idea of over analyzing my tongue and mouth positioning when forming word sounds and it keeps coming out as 2 syllables for me!

Leah&JP

Yup, me too.

bamjewell

alehayes:

I think it's one.  In elementary school we were taught to find out how many syllables a word has by putting our fists under our chins as we speak.  Every time your jaw hits your fist, it's a syllable.  When I did it, it was only one. 

THIS! 

ablou

Both.  It depends on my mood. If I were using it in conversation, it would be one.  If I were hollering it up the stairs, it would probably be 2.

mrsbird1129

One.

karen_loy

1

LadyXaverian

How someone's accent affects the pronunciation of a name does not affect how many syllables the name actually has.

Miles has 1.

HungryRunner76

SarahL77:

How someone's accent affects the pronunciation of a name does not affect how many syllables the name actually has.

Miles has 1.

Agreed - Miles is 1 syllable.  There's not really a debate IMHO.

BLPL101

2. My-ulls

Wufroggy79

Midwest, two.

CiderWench

1. Every syllable has one vowel sound.
2. The number of vowel sounds in a word equals the number of syllables.

Miles = 1 syllable because it has only one vowel sound (the long /i/). The /e/ is silent.

AshleyC0117

apollonia10:

I think technically it's one, but I keep saying My-ulls.

Me too. I pronounce it with two. 

LadyXaverian

BLPL101:

2. My-ulls

::Headdesk::

Get hooked on phonics, people.

ObLaDi

2