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In words of Romance origin, ⟨ g ⟩ is usually soft before ⟨ e ⟩, ⟨ i ⟩, and ⟨ y ⟩ and hard otherwise, although it is soft in algae, gaol, and an alternate pronunciation of vegan.

There are many English words of non-Romance origin where ⟨ g ⟩ is hard though followed by ⟨ e ⟩ or ⟨ i ⟩ ( e. g. get, gift ), and a few in which ⟨ g ⟩ is soft though followed by ⟨ a ⟩ ( margarine ).