[Mesorah] Hirhurim: Oh, Oy, Ow

[Michael Hamm]

R' Micha Berger:
> Which has me wondering... Did Litvaks disambiguate between cheilam and
> tzeirei? And if so, how?

I have heard a postwar Lubavitcher pronounce a cholam as /ej/ (as in
the English word 'safe'), and a tzere, too, and could not tell any
difference between them.  (On the other hand, I didn't hear a minimal
pair.)   When asked whether he pronounces them the same, he insisted
he does not, and demonstrated differing pronunciations.  (That is, he
distinguished them when asked, but they sounded the same to my
untrained ears when in the wild.)

Michael Hamm