OR notes - balance

Notes for -or- representing /ə/

1. chorizo
   The Macmillan English Dictionary has this transcription, but the audio sample, /ɒr/ (which is both common and acceptable).
2. collaborator
   This is not excluded together with other words ending "-or" because of the /ə/ in the third syllable.
3. corpora, corporate, corporation, and corporatism
   This sound is in the second syllable. See/ also under /ᴐ:/.
4. correlative
   The Macmillan English Dictionary transcription and audio sample have this vowel sound, but a common alternative is /əʊ/ (followed by /r/).
5. corroborate, corroboration, and corroborative
   This sound occurs in both "or" syllables.
6. elaborate
   The -or- syllable represents /ə/ in both the adjective (last syllable /ət/) and the verb (last syllable /eɪt/).
7. extempore
   See con amore note (exceptional "-ore" words [link to /ᴐ:/ section]).
8. for
   When unstressed. See also under /ᴐ:/.
9. forbad[e]
   For both spellings of this irregular past, the Macmillan English Dictionary gives the transcription /æ/ but gives the (same) audio sample with /eɪ/ in the second syllable. This seems to be a mistake - though it is a common one.
10. forlorn
    The Macmillan English Dictionary transcription and audio sample have this vowel (with /ə/ in the first syllable) but many speakers use /ᴐ:/ in both syllables.
11. forsake, forsaken, and forsook
    The Macmillan English Dictionary has this transcription, but the audio sample uses /ᴐ:/ (a common and perfectly acceptable variant).
12. importune
    Note that in the derivative "importunate" (not listed by the Macmillan English Dictionary ) the -or- represents the sound /ᴐ:/.
13. incorporate
    This sound is in the third syllable. See also under /ᴐ:/.
14. Monsignor
    The Macmillan English Dictionary transcription and audio sample have this vowel sound, but a version with /ᴐ:/ is common (especially in a Spanish context - "Monsignor Quixote", for example).
15. neighbor
    This escapes the usual exclusion of words ending "-or" as the agent-making suffix does not work in the usual way. Whereas an actor acts and a director directs, a neighbor does not *neighb.
16. oration
    The Macmillan English Dictionary transcription and audio sample have this vowel sound, but /ɒ/ is common.
17. sorority
    This sound is in the first syllable. See also /ᴐ:/.
18. uncorroborated
    Both instances of -or- represent this sound, although /ə/ is acceptable in the second syllable. 

Notes for -or- representing /ɜ:/

1. worsted
   This is the past simple and past participle of the verb "to worst". The Macmillan English Dictionary does not list the verb "worst" ; nor does the Collins English Dictionary. The Cambridge Advanced Learners' Dictionary lists it, but calls it "old-fashioned". The past simple of this verb is more common, I would guess, than the present, as "worsted in an argument" is a (relatively) common collocation.

Notes for -or- representing /ɒ/

1. arboriculture
   The Macmillan English Dictionary has this sound in the audio sample, but the transcription has /ə/ (presumably a mistake - I have never heard it in any other context).
2. chorale
   The Macmillan English Dictionary has this transcription, but the audio sample uses /ə/ (which is both common and acceptable).
3. forehead
   This is also sometimes pronounced with /ᴐ:/
4. forex
   The Macmillan English Dictionary has this transcription, but the audio sample uses /ᴐ:/.
5. horrendous
   The Macmillan English Dictionary has this transcription, but the audio sample uses /ə/.
6. hydrochloric acid
   The Macmillan English Dictionary transcription and audio sample have this vowel sound, but some speakers use /ᴐ:/ (reflecting its relation to "chlorine").
7. phantasmagoria
   The Macmillan English Dictionary transcription and audio sample have this vowel sound, but some speakers use /ᴐ:/ which the Cambridge Advanced Learners' Dictionary identifies as the American English pronunciation - although it is common also in British English.

Notes for -or- representing /ʌ/

1. thoroughbred
   This is the sole representative of several other words that use "thorough-" as a prefix.

Notes for -or- representing no sound

1. factory
   This is included here because it is questionable whether it can be regarded as a derivative of "factor". And in that it is (if only historically) so derived, the sense of "factor" in question is largely a businessman (sic - certainly, in the 16th century [when the word was coined], a man) of the past.
   
   The Macmillan English Dictionary transcription and audio sample have this vowel sound, but a pronunciation with /ə/ is not uncommon.
2. mayor, mayoral, mayoralty, mayoress
   It is arguable whether this -or- represents no sound. Rather, the "-ayor" spelling in these words represents the sound /eə/.

Notes for -or- representing /ʊ/

1. Worcester, Worcestershire
   The Macmillan English Dictionary does not list this word, although it does list the tradename Worcester Sauce. The link is to the Collins English Dictionary.
2. worsted
   This is the noun (a sort of cloth). For the verb see under /ɜ:/.
   

Notes for -or- representing /əʊ/

1. forecastle
   This escapes the usual exclusion of "fore-" compounds because of its non-standard pronunciation. Reflecting this pronunciation (/'fǝʊksǝl/), the spelling "fo‘c‘sle" is often used.