WebAIM - Web Accessibility In Mind

E-mail List Archives

Re: best practice for Americanized foreign words

for

From: John Northup
Date: Jul 20, 2021 12:10PM

I think this could turn into a never-ending battle for screen reader pronunciation. Consider the word "content." With emphasis on the first syllable, it's a noun. Emphasize the second syllable and it's either a verb or an adjective.

I think screen reader users are generally accustomed to this.

I myself would tend toward pure HTML and let the chips fall where they may:
<span lang="fr">très</span>

Of course this would only change pronunciation in the screen reader if the user had the French language installed--but as a coder, I've done my job.

All the best,

John B. Northup
Director of Evaluations, WebAIM
Institute for Disability Research, Policy and Practice
Utah State University