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The sound of R is represented in three ways:
-
Stroke Ar
-
Stroke Ray
-
R Hook, described
in full on Theory 7 Hooks R L
page
-
Neither of the
strokes can take an initial hook
-
If there is an R in
the longhand, it is nearly always represented in Shorthand – the
exceptions are very few
-
Halving and
Doubling of the strokes is
described in full on those Theory pages.
Stroke Ar
Stroke Ray
Initially
Medially
Finally
After Hay
After W Semicircle
Derivatives
Stroke Rer
Stroke Ard
Prefix Irr-
R not shown
Stroke Ar
-
Has a vowel before
-
Always written
downwards
-
Thickened to add ER
= Stroke Rer
-
Halved and
thickened to add D = Stroke Ard
-
Used for the
short forms "your" and "year"
Stroke Ray
-
Has a vowel after
-
Always written
upwards at an angle of 30° from the horizontal, so it cannot be
confused with Chay when standing alone
-
Used for the
short forms "are" and "our/hour"
If the outline has more
than one stroke, the R is chosen that makes the best join. If both strokes are
equally convenient, then that stroke is chosen which indicates the
vowel: Ar=Vowel before, Ray=vowel after, as reflected in the stroke
names.
A speedy and facile
outline is first priority, vowel indication is a secondary
consideration. These two strokes should not be thought solely in terms of vowel indication (although
that aspect has to be taught first in instruction books) as this results in a large number of perceived "exceptions"
which is untrue and unhelpful. There are probably more words
that choose the R stroke for convenience/facility than for vowel
indication. "Prefers a vowel before/after" is closer to the actual
usage. When creating a new outline, you should try for vowel
indication and if the joins do not work well or the outline is going
too far up or downwards, then you know it is
necessary to use the other R.
Which stroke to use
for each outline has already been decided, of course, but your own decision
will be required for a word that is not in any shorthand dictionary,
as well as hastily writing an (as yet) unknown outline during
dictation.
Initially
1. When there is only one stroke in the outline:
Vowel before,
use Ar:
or ore air/ere/e'er/Ayre/heir err ear ire Ayers art
order sorter* sire sir sear/seer/cere sore *see "sort"
below
swear swore urn earn stern store star steer
Vowel after, use
Ray:
rye rise/rice Roy
ray rays/raise/race row/roe rows/rose/roes roses
rouse/rows rue rues/ruse Reece/Rhys raised/raced roast rust roster
run runs rinses rowan rind rent/rend round rounder
rough/ruff rave reef raft rafter ration Russian
sorrow
sorry series serious cirrus cerise sari Sarah
starry story/storey soirée
serene siren surround
serif/ceriph seraph surf serve/serf conserve starve
S+RT use Ray to make derivatives easier:
sort sorted concert concertina certain certainty
consort consortium serrate serrated resort
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Word starts
with a vowel, and a vowel comes after as well, use Ar. It
is helpful to insert the 2nd vowel for these:
arrow
array awry aria area airy/eyrie* era eerie
*eyrie (eagle's nest) has several
pronunciations
arise
arouse erase iris errs/Erse arrest arrester
Aran/Arran Erin iron*
Irene Aryan Orion
*although the R sound may be slight
in some speakers, having the R stroke distinguishes this from "ion"
around
errand/errant orient oration aeration erosion
The above only applies
when there is no initial attachment, i.e. the vowel starts the word,
compare arrow and sorrow above.
2. When the R is followed by another stroke:
(a) Always use Ray before these strokes, to get a
good join, regardless of vowels:
Tee Dee:
arty artist artistic aright irate erratic aerate*
*the diphone for "aer-" is no longer current usage, but may be found
in some older shorthand dictionaries.
arid arrayed erode eradicate
erudite Urdu aerodynamics*
*see above note re "aer-"
sortie sorority sardine Sardinia sordid
rot rotten rotting rotate ride red/read reading radio
write/right/rite/Wright wrote/rote but
writing written are exceptional, to gain
speedier outlines for these very common words. Note
righting, a different verb
(= to put to rights, to set upright)
ratter rider rattle riddle serried sturdy storeyed/storied
Chay Jay:
arch urchin search research starch artichoke urge origin
serge surge surgeon sturgeon sargeant storage steerage
roach rich richer ratchet ridge region register Roger
Ith Thee:
earth earthed Erith arithmetic orthography orthopaedic
earthen swarthy wrath Rathbone
wreath wreathe writhe
KL GL:
oracle article articulate argol argle-bargle
circle circulate circulation reclaim wriggle raglan
Kway Gway:
request requite Iroquois Uruguay*
*2 pronunciations
Way: Irwin
Darwin doorway Irawadi caraway rewind
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(b) Always use Ar before Em Imp/Imb to get a good
join, regardless of vowels:
army aroma Arum
Aramaic airman ermine
Ormsby ormolu orometry armed armadillo
storm swarm surmise sermon ceremony Sturminster
ram rime/rhyme roam/Rome rum rim ream room
remote remit remain remind reminder Raymond Ryman
remove remedy remade Ramsgate Romney rheumatism
ramble rumble ramp romp rumba
rhombus reimpose
A circle or hook shows up the join, and therefore
Ray can be used before the Em for vowel indication:
rosemary resume raceme
rhizome wearisome worrisome
rhenium ransom random referendum
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(c) Both Ar and Ray join well before the remainder
of the strokes, so vowel indication is possible:
Pee Bee:
eruption arpeggio Orpington orb arbour Arabella urban
rap/wrap rapid report Rupert rob Robert rub rib
rebate rebut rabbit wrapper rubber ripple replace rubble
Kay Gay: ark/arc
arctic erect organ organic argon argue
Eric irksome ericaceous oryx aurochs
rock rug rocker record rigger regard
Eff Vee:
orfe orphan orifice Orford arrive arrival artful
refuse raffia roughen review rougher river reflect
artifice
artificial
artifact
(also spelled artefact) to avoid an invisible junction between a halved Ar
and the Eff.
Ess Zee:
heiress
Orissa arioso racy racist raciest
rosy/Rosie
Sh Zh: Irish
sourish rash rasher rush rouge
Ell: early
oral/aural aerial Ursula
surly sorrel cerulean
sterile sterilisation
sterling starling starlight swirl
rile rail roll/role reel real really royal result
surreal surrealism serial/cereal serialise
= derivatives of real series ceres which all use Ray, compare with
sorrel above
En Ing:
Ernie earner sterner arena ornate aeronaut Arnold
irony arsenal runny Ronnie rennet
risen Ronald
range
syringe surname serenade ring rank
S+R+downstroke use Ray for better joins,
whether or not a vowel follows the R:
syrup stirrup surplus serpent sorbet Surbiton
cerebral surface survey service starvation
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Medially
1. Ray joins better in most combinations. It is faster to write than Ar and,
because there are more downstrokes than upstrokes in Pitman's
Shorthand, using Ray keeps a large number of outlines from descending too far. The choice will
often be more dependent on its join with the next stroke:
party dirty tardy pardon burden
parch birch torch
march larch lurch merge emerge margin
purge spurge barge dirge charge
surcharge
park spark sparkle
Parker bark
barker
Perth birth dearth girth
smartest smirk marble garble gherkin
Martha marsh bargain corny
mark marker America embark empiric
purpose barb barbarous barbecue rhubarb
disturb suburban absorb parade borrowed deride carried
married narrowed parity charity sincerity hilarity
porridge barrage garage garage
(2 pronunciations) marriage
enrage
territory tyranny Pyrenées garrison guerilla
foreknown foreseen forth/fourth foreclose forefinger
boorish cherish garish moorish avaricious ferocious
ferocity
spherical/sphericle* ferried zircon Zurich**
*sphericle, noun = little
sphere, spherule **anglicised pronunciation
authority thoroughly Thor
Thora thoracic southerly
plural spiral viral secretarial ministerial memorial
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2. If the vowel calls for Ar, it is used
where it joins well, mainly before horizontal or upstrokes:
barely bearskin Brierley terseness tiresome
tireless
sparsely scarcely securely doorman determine
similarly requirement diurnal angular binocular
Ar is sometimes used before a right (clockwise) curve to gain a more
flowing outline, despite a vowel following it:
quarrel
squirrel flourish
aneurism neural neuralgia
but
neurotic neurosis
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3. Use Ar before Em, Imp/Imb
for a good join, the same as you would initially, without regard to
vowel indication:
alarm aquarium quorum squirm
harm harem hermetic carman Carmen
drawing-room ante-room entire inter unremitting
barium delirium curium sanatorium
(also spelled sanitorium)
emporium honorarium vivarium Miriam
formal formula formation firearm pharmacy
Ray before Em is unavoidable in a few outlines:
theorem thorium rosarium
sensorium insurmountable*
surmountable
*Such a long outline is not typical
of the system. A non-standard suggested contraction could be to
disjoin or intersect stroke En with "surmountable" and write in 3rd position.
Also allowed in these compound words, to maintain
readability:
countryman ferryman
juryman jury-mast
nurseryman Merriman
artilleryman rearmouse/reremouse
(=bat)
The following are not in the shorthand dictionary, and are suggestions based on the examples above:
cavalryman infantryman pantryman
cameraman quarryman laundryman salaryman
A non-standard suggested alternative
for
"cameraman", for those likely to use it frequently, might be to use
M with R hook i.e. ca-mra-man
The vowel sign should always be inserted for the
plural "-men" and all plurals that are formed only by a change of
vowel.
See Theory 10
Halving/Ray for halved Ray = part port fort etc
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4. Before Kay Gay vowel indication is often
possible:
fork ferric forego
farrago
cork Carrick cargo Garrick
clerk cleric lark lyric
Sark cirque sarcasm circus circuit stark
Syriac Syracuse sirocco stearic resurrect insurrection
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5.
R Hook for
brevity
Some outlines use R Hook, despite the intervening
vowel, to gain an even
briefer outline and/or avoid awkward joins. This is only done when the possibility of
clashes is absent or minimal:
paragraph parallel perimeter perplex permit
barometer herbarium
bacterium thermal term
kerchief kernel/colonel* garter garden garbage target
* "colonel" is the only word whose
outline has an R despite its absence in the longhand – solely to
indicate pronunciation
course cursor curve curl curtain curt court
curtain
garment merger murmur journal jeopardy
fervent verse shirk shark sharp derogatory*
*Outline is in 2nd position, to
accord with the first vowel of the word, not the first vowel shown
in the outline
Such outlines need particular
attention to learn because many of them could be written reasonably
(but longer) within the main rules, and some might otherwise be very
awkward or straggling outlines. Keeping them in your vocabulary
notebook whenever they are encountered is helpful, so they can be
practised further.
More examples in
Theory 2
Vowels/Intervening Vowels and
Theory 7 Hooks R L/Vocalisation
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Finally
1. Vowel indication is straightforward in short
words:
pair/pear parry prayer prairie
bear/bare Barry
tear/tare tarry dare dairy drawer dreary
car carry cure Curie gear Gary
glare glory chore cherry jar Jerry/Gerry
choir/quire query enquire enquiry
fire fiery fore/four forest fur furry
(See "furrier"
below)
flower flowery veer vary severe sovereign* *middle
vowel is not pronounced
lore lorry seller
celery popular popularise
eye-sore ossuary shore sherry assure assurance
czar
azure Azores zero Ezra Israel
(2 pronunciations)
mare Mary mire miry smear
summary
timer Tamara customer customary
miser misery snare narrow laser lacerate
scare
scary solitaire solitary
singer
ringer/wringer bringer hanger
pillar crawler dealer dollar
solar
error arrear airier eerier aurora orrery Ararat
utterer
stutterer caterer secretary, et cetera* *Latin
= "and the rest" not spelled "ect"
freer frier/fryer/friar thrower throatier gatherer
cleverer hoverer manoeuvrer/maneuvrer
(also spelled manoeuverer/maneuverer)
Words with Hook R can also change to Ray when
there is a following vowel:
recover recovery discover discovery prosper prosperous
factor factory
victor victory
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3. After 2 downstrokes use
Ray to keep the outline from descending too far:
prepare despair disappear aspire
stapler taxpayer
ratepayer
horse-power proposer trespasser Shakespeare
(occasionally Shakespere)
babbler
troubler butler
splutterer totterer chatterer
hairdresser discoverer ditherer tax-gatherer treasurer
bookstore downstairs upstairs
endorser
brigadier bugbear blusterer pesterer plasterer
Note: fosterer
to avoid awkward join
After Eff and Vee, Ar gives a more facile outline,
which outweighs having 3 downstrokes:
pacifier testifier defier decipherer justifier
exemplifier baffler
trifler muffler shuffler shoveller
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2. After KR or GR Ray is preferable, for a
clear join. If Ar were used, the outline would quickly
deteriorate into an indeterminate curve:
crier greyer/grayer grower disagreer staggerer swaggerer
3. Use Ray with final hooks, this makes for
a fast and forward-moving outline, and easy derivatives:
spurn burn born borne barn stubborn
turn return Saturn western darn churn
adjourn
sojourn corn acorn fern Farnham
thorn shorn morning mourn learn
deserve preserve observe turf carafe scarf
portion
apportion assertion immersion coercion desertion
Typical derivatives:
burned/burnt
burning burner turner learner sojourner
apportioner referred referee reference preserved preserver
server deserver observer but
carve carver
See also
"served/swerved/server/swerver" in
Distinguishing Outlines
2 Rule
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If a vowel comes
between the R and the N or F/V, Ray is the natural choice:
sporran
barren Turin Darren Karen foreign Sharon
marine
currency tariff sheriff midriff
After a Shun Hook, use whichever joins best:
partitioner practitioner pensioner conditioner
exhibitioner apportioner vacationer motioner commissioner
Where both join well, there is opportunity for
vowel indication:
redemptioner redemptionary extortioner extortionary
missioner missionary confectioner
confectionery*
confectionary**
*
noun=sweets, ** adjective=relating to confections
When only Ray can be used after the Shun Hook, it
may be advisable to insert any final vowel:
stationer stationery* stationary**
petitioner petitionary
probationer probationary
*=paper **=motionless
Mnemonic
for spelling these 2 words
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5. For the sound "-ser" Use Ray
after Kay Kway Gay Eff Vee En to gain a speedier outline (no
examples found for Gway):
kisser causer accuser
crosser cruiser closer successor
boxer taxer mixer fixer vexer
coaxer hoaxer guesser geyser*/geezer
geyser* disguiser
*2 pronunciations
grocer/grosser aggressor glazier quizzer squeezer
professor refuser officer sacrificer
visor reviser adviser*
supervisor
(2 pronunciations)
dancer
*sometimes spelled advisor, and
the adjective is always "advisory"
mincer cancer announcer pronouncer
sincere sensor answer nicer insert insertion
analyser sympathiser
synthesizer
thesaurus tyrannosaurus
After other strokes, Ar is satisfactory and makes it
clear that no vowel follows:
passer pacer opposer baser blazer buzzer/busser
abuser
teaser tracer dossier desire bulldozer chaser Chaucer
chooser juicer
laser loser utiliser lazier cosier/cozier
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6. Use Ray after straight upstrokes, to
maintain direction of writing:
rear reared roar roared uproar
rower*
rosary
*as in rowing boats
racer/raiser/razer*
razor riser theoriser career carrier
*raze = to level to the ground
terrier
barrier superior mirror emperor
Farrar furore*
farrier furrier
(more furry) but
furrier furriery
(fur dealer & fur trade, shorter U
vowel)
– different derivations provide opportunity for
distinguishing outlines
*pronunciation varies
juror adhere adhered abhor abhorred
aware beware glassware Delaware
footwear knitwear underwear where
anywhere
whirr wherry resource reserve peruser
wiser hisser hussar* ewer yore lawyer
*pronounced with a Z sound
bowyer terror
terrorist terrorism compare
tourist tourism
Three plain straight strokes in the same direction
must be avoided, because it would not be clear whether 2 or 3
strokes were meant, so the final stroke uses Ar. The resulting join between Ray and Ar is not
ideal, so care is needed to write accurately:
rarer roarer hurrier hairier
abhorrer adherer
but horror horary
Note the following where the hook or circle shows
the junction:
harasser rehearse
rehearser resorter
referrer reverter heronry hero-worship
The above outlines need not invade
the line above, because they are written at a shallow angle.
Invading the line above is not critical, because that line is
already written; descending too far is more to be avoided because
you will have to jump over the lower part of that outline when
writing on the next line.
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7. Hook R is used for a slurred vowel (generally an
unaccented syllable), Ar and Ray for a clearly sounded vowel:
offer fir ferry, rougher refire
refer reverse/refers
river
revere reverie, proffer prefer, prover proverb
deafer defer, advert divert, divers*
diverse**
*= people who dive, or
several/some (archaic)
**= various, assorted, different
8. After doubling + N hook, use whichever joins
the best:
plunderer ponderer tenderer wanderer saunterer
mutterer/motherer smotherer
murderer adventurer
orderer
charterer flatterer flounderer thunderer
luckier
liqueur – using Ar would result in an illegible outline.
See also
Theory 2
Vowels/Intervening vowels
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After Hay
Use Tick Hay before Ar:
hire hair here/hear harp
harpoon harper herb herbal
hark hearken Harvey harvest Harvard
hoarse horse horsy
horn horned hornet hernia harness harsh
hurl hurled heart/hart hurt harder
herder hoarder
Use downward Hay before Ar if forming a
derivative:
high higher hoe hoer
Use Upward Hay before Ray:
harrow hurry hearth Herrick Hereford Harwich
herald Harrap hairiness harangue hieroglyph
Dot Hay has no effect on which R stroke to use:
warhorse unhurt unheard light-hearted
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After W Semicircle
W Semicircle behaves similarly to Circle S at
the beginning of an outline:
wire wear/ware weir warm worse
warn worn war warrior
wiry
wary worry weary wart wort
warren warrant warden Warwick worth
world warmer
warehouse wiriness
wired ward wardrobe weird wearer
W Semicircle + Ray is speedier before downstrokes,
despite absence of vowel after the R:
warp war-paint war-path wire-puller
Worsborough warble wirable war-office worship warship
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Derivatives
A final Ar may change to Ray in a derivative, to
avoid awkward joins or a descending outline:
bare bare-faced bareness
bare-headed force
forceful
moor moorhen moorfowl persevere perseverance
sparing sparingly boring boringly
retiring retiringly
adoring adoringly adoration glaring glaringly
jarring jarringly enduring enduringly endurance endurable
admiring admiringly admiration
admirable
enquiring enquiringly
stirring stirringly stern sternmost
reassuring reassuringly reassurance inspire inspiration
discern discerning discernment
ornament
unerringly
clear clearness
clearance
If there is a hook between the two strokes, the other R stroke
may join better:
arch archer orchard search searcher urge urger
lard larder quart quarter fort fortress
earth Arthur forth/fourth farther war warfare
roam/Rome roamer/Romer romp romper warm
warmer
origin orange arrange rearrange arid Arundel
Note: arm armour/armor
armourer/armorer armoury/armory
Ar is more legible for -rful, despite 3
downstrokes:
powerful powerfully prayerful tearful
fearful
sire seer
(prophet)
compare sigher
seer
(one who sees) sayer sower/sewer
(one who sews)
which are 2-syllable derivatives and therefore more readable
retaining their original stroke Ess. This is in contrast to single
syllable derivatives, which generally change their form as necessary
e.g. said, seen, sown, sawn, sighed (to be discussed on a
later page.)
suer/sewer* (drain)
sewage
(contents)
sewerage
(the drainage system)
*2 pronunciations given.
"Suer" is a 2-syllable derivative and would
therefore keep the stroke Ess whichever vowel sign is used. "Sewer" (drain) is not a
derivative, but uses stroke Ess because of the triphone, and also
to form its derivatives conveniently, i.e. sewerage,
sewage. (Latin: ex + aquaria = ex + ewer =
sewer)
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Stroke Rer
This is a thickened Ar, always written downwards:
-
Its central vowel is
always unaccented and never vocalised
-
Only used to replace
a final stroke Ar in derivatives
-
Never starts an
outline, must have another stroke or an attachment (tick,
circle, semicircle, loop) before it
poor poorer bore borer fair fairer
hire hirer
hear hearer wear wearer explore explorer
sourer storer swearer
but airer
airers Note:
sourest
Stroke Ard
Ar is halved and thickened for the addition of D:
-
No vowel may come between the R and D sounds.
-
Can stand alone
(unlike Rer which cannot)
-
Never has a final vowel after it
-
Used for the short
forms "yard" and "word"
aired erred sired sword surd soured stirred
starred steered sward
hired heard/herd poured prepared
repaired aspired
barred/bard bored/board beard blared
absurd tired retired dared desired
card cord/chord cored
curd cured cleared acquired charred jeered
fired ford feared fjord veered
revered
shard sherd shared shored showered assured
assuredly*
*Exceptional, in that a vowel is
allowed after the Ard stroke, being lightly-sounded
marred mired admired nard nerd
un-aired
Use halved Ray to avoid illegible joins:
geared gored glared lard larding lording
leered layered lowered laird*
Lord**
lord** (short form)
*best always vocalised
**If personal name, use full outline,
as context cannot help = Lord's Cricket Ground, Mr Lord
If title or noun, use short form = Lord Nelson, The Lord's Prayer
Where stroke Ard is not convenient, used halved
Ray:
boarding-house
boarding-school
If there is a final vowel after the RD sound, use full strokes:
hard
hardy bird birdy tarred tardy
word wordy weird weirdo Note also hairdo
Any vowel sign following it (i.e. the next
syllable) is written against the
next stroke:
harden hardened ordain ordained inordinate ordinary
Dot Ing: herding hoarding boarding but
Harding Arding
as stroke Ing is preferable for proper names.
Ard is used for the past tense of outlines with a
doubled stroke + N hook:
ponder pondered tender tendered
splinter splintered counter countered
An outline using R Hook or doubling uses halving for "-ered", rather than Ard, as the syllable is
mostly unaccented:
bicker bickered better bettered puckered occurred incurred
lacquered honoured mannered ushered hammered badgered
father fathered matter mattered mutter/mother muttered mothered
order ordered
enter entered compare:
inter interred deter deterred where the accent
is on the last syllable.
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Prefix Irr-
This prefix means either a negative (same as
"un-") or "in/into". Pairs of such outlines need to be distinctive
as most of the time they will be unvocalised. This is achieved by changing the R stroke
if possible, or adding an additional R stroke. This
method is only concerned with producing pairs of different outlines
and avoiding bad joins, not with showing the meaning of the prefix or
any attempt to reflect the two R's in the longhand:
1. Change Ray to Ar,
this accords with normal vowel indication:
relevant irrelevant
replaceable irreplaceable
retrievable irretrievable religious irreligious
2. If the Ray cannot
be changed because a bad join would result, then add Ar to the
beginning. No vowel sign comes between the two R strokes:
radiate irradiate reclaimable irreclaimable
redeemable irredeemable reducible irreducible
rational irrational
3. If the outline
already uses Ar, then repeat the Ar:
remissible irremissible
remediable irremediable*
*Note
the use of the halved stroke, to prevent further descent of the
outline
Some are not part of a
pair, so they follow normal rules:
irrigate irritate irruption iridium*
iridescence*
irascible*
*Single R, from "iris" and "ira"
(Latin=anger). Iridium also pronounced "eye-ridium"
Contractions:
recoverable irrecoverable regular irregular regularly irregularly
responsible/responsibility irresponsible/irresponsibility,
respective irrespective,
removable irremovable
These are normal
outlines: removably responsibly irresponsibly responsibilities*
*Aways
vocalising the outlines for "response" and "responses" would give additional
insurance against misreading.
If
unsure about an "irr-" word during dictation, add the extra
initial Ar anyway, whether it is correct or not – it will be
perfectly legible. Avoiding hesitation during dictation is the
highest priority, but the outline should be looked up and drilled at
the first opportunity, so that you are always using the shortest
outline available.
These and similar
negatives are also described on
Theory 18 Prefixes page.
R not shown
Suffixes -ward -wort -wart -yard. These are
unvocalised when used as suffixes.
See Theory 10
Halving page for description and examples.
Follow normal rules if writing as whole words:
ward wort wart yard*
*short form
The following outlines omit the R as even in the
longhand the R is redundant and unpronounced:
Worcester/Wooster Worcestershire
worsted = woollen cloth, named
after UK town of Worstead
The adjective/adverb
worse worst and verb
worst*
worsted*
are pronounced as normal and so the R is
shown in their outlines. * =
to get advantage over, defeat
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