The Cockney H

In Cockney pronunciation, the initial "H" sound is omitted from words that start with "H". house, hat, hammer become 'ouse, 'at, 'ammer.

This h-dropping shows up in clues that need to delete an H for the solution.

Example:
THC 9473 (Gridman): Cockney fish is making a mistake (6)
fish = HERRING. "Cockney" signals dropping the H, which gives the answer ERRING.

H-Dropping Clue Characteristics

• The clue mentions "Cockney" or a geographical area where Cockney English could be spoken (e.g. East End, Albert Square), to indicate the dialect.

• This device is not too frequently used: once a month perhaps in most daily publications.

• The dialect opens up fresh homophone possibilities; you will often come across the cockney H in combination with homophone clues - such as OAKS{~cockney HOAX} or EIGHT{~cockey HATE}.

  Guardian 24523 (Pasquale): Smart-arse having no room for Cockney, we hear (4-3)
  no room = NO HALL. "Cockney" indicates dropping the H, which gives NO ALL. "we hear" indicates a homophone, which gives the answer KNOW-ALL.

Related Posts:

• Deletions
• Homophones
• Spoonerisms

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