Peter T. Daniels wrote:

>
> /eh/ and /ey/ respectively, if you know about Smith-Trager phonemic
> notation; I have not been able to discover what the standard phonetic
> representation of the New York distinction between <can> 'be able' /k&n/
> and 'food container' /kehn/; the latter is the usual Midwestern
> pronounciation of both vowels, but not even in Chicago does <can> rhyme
> with <cane> /ey/.

I've lived the the Midwest all my life, specifically southeastern Michigan.

Everyone around here says /k&n/ for "food container" and /kehn/ for
"be able to," except the contraction <can't> is /k&nt/.

--Ph. D.