words that should be easy to pronounce but you can't pronounce

Message Bookmarked
Bookmark Removed
Not all messages are displayed: show all messages (208 of them)
pwnd.

briania (briania), Tuesday, 3 August 2004 17:38 (twenty years ago) link

Play that fongy music, white boy.

Michael White (Hereward), Tuesday, 3 August 2004 17:39 (twenty years ago) link

Who pronounces it Gluster? That's just weird. (also I think these are falling out of the realm of "easy to pronounce")

ailsa (ailsa), Tuesday, 3 August 2004 17:41 (twenty years ago) link

I know someone who can't pronounce "drawer."

jaymc (jaymc), Tuesday, 3 August 2004 17:43 (twenty years ago) link

I thought it was Glauwster.

Jordan (Jordan), Tuesday, 3 August 2004 17:46 (twenty years ago) link

"OMGWTF"

Jordan (Jordan), Tuesday, 3 August 2004 17:46 (twenty years ago) link

pumpkin = punkin

Je4nne ƒury (Jeanne Fury), Tuesday, 3 August 2004 17:49 (twenty years ago) link

I thought it was Glauwster.

According to this thread (Strangely Pronounced Place Names), it's Gloster.

ailsa (ailsa), Tuesday, 3 August 2004 17:56 (twenty years ago) link

i can say "saturday" just fine, but for some reason i trip over it if it's immediately followed by "night live".

fortunately this does not come up very often

mookieproof (mookieproof), Tuesday, 3 August 2004 18:47 (twenty years ago) link

mirror (meer)
innards (in ahds)

isadora (isadora), Tuesday, 3 August 2004 20:14 (twenty years ago) link

My sister's idiot friend:

library (libarry)
picture (pitcher)
have (of) in conjugations

Come to think of it, many of the 'gluster' utterers are Yorkshiremen.

Michael White (Hereward), Tuesday, 3 August 2004 20:31 (twenty years ago) link

My friend says "sam-wij" for "sandwich." My aunt says "shtreet" for "street." Both make me want to punch walls.

Je4nne ƒury (Jeanne Fury), Tuesday, 3 August 2004 20:33 (twenty years ago) link

I actually had an ENGLISH PROFESSOR that said LahBarry instead of library. His degree? In "LahBarry Science."


!

roxymuzak (roxymuzak), Tuesday, 3 August 2004 21:03 (twenty years ago) link

my grandmother had two problem words "Burgular" and "Cutle-ry" My only error is pronouncing the "w" in sword. It started as a joke when i was 5 or 6 and i can't shake it.

Anthony (Plato Guy), Tuesday, 3 August 2004 21:15 (twenty years ago) link

Subtly. Sut-lee? Sub-tilly? Supt-lee?

The Dreaded Rear Admiral (Leee), Tuesday, 3 August 2004 21:32 (twenty years ago) link

months, or anything else that ends in "nths"

oops (Oops), Tuesday, 3 August 2004 21:52 (twenty years ago) link

this kid i knew in high school had trouble with certain contractions--instead of "wouldn't" or "shouldn't" he said "wunt" and "shunt". he couldn't say "couldn't" right either...

mookieproof (mookieproof), Tuesday, 3 August 2004 22:01 (twenty years ago) link

I can't park the car properly. It's always pahk the cah.

New Englandish.

jim wentworth (wench), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 02:50 (twenty years ago) link

i cannot pronounce statutory no matter how hard i try. this is an important issue for me since i have to say it numerous times daily at work and i am also studying law. people think i'm even more ditsy than i actually am.

gem (trisk), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 03:12 (twenty years ago) link

After years of work in coffee shops, I'd become actively annoyed when people would order 'expresso' rather than 'espresso.' I've got trouble saying 'Claude Debussy' - he always comes out "Clawedee Deebyousee," and Prokofiev always ends up 'Prokofovich.'

x j e r e m y (x Jeremy), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 03:19 (twenty years ago) link

I used to similarly foul up and say "Profokiev."

roxymuzak (roxymuzak), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 03:21 (twenty years ago) link

i also have trouble with archipelago. you don't have to say that out loud very often though so that's ok.

gem (trisk), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 03:22 (twenty years ago) link

I keep pronouncing 'orchid' like 'orchard'. Shits me to tears.

Which Describes How You're Feeling All the Almanac (Autumn Almanac), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 03:23 (twenty years ago) link

A transposition of sounds of two or more words, especially a ludicrous one, such as Let me sew you to your sheet for Let me show you to your seat. (dictonary.com)

On a very tangential note - I once worked for a guy named A1an R0se. I pointed out to him that his name was a spoonerism (anagram, transposition, what-have-you) for Anal Sore. He got really, really, disproportionately fucking mad.

x j e r e m y (x Jeremy), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 03:26 (twenty years ago) link

Maybe he was tormented as a kid by a group of intelligent bullies.

oops (Oops), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 05:53 (twenty years ago) link

Nukeyoular

Abu grabbagabbagabba hey-you know that prison camp


George W. Bush (AaronHz), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 06:39 (twenty years ago) link

S'il vous plait.

I was actually better than most of the people in my class at pronunciation (not at other stuff though), but that one phrase just never felt right to me.

Dan I. (Dan I.), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 07:50 (twenty years ago) link

I get humiliated when trying to pronounce humiliated.

oops (Oops), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 07:53 (twenty years ago) link

Fith and sicth. My mum does this too, though, so it's her fault.

Markelby (Mark C), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 11:52 (twenty years ago) link

my mother pronounces the word "parsley" "parz-lee" rather than "pass-lee" and for years I did too, until someone put me right on the matter.

MarkH (MarkH), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 12:07 (twenty years ago) link

duty to do.

CharlieNo4 (Charlie), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 12:12 (twenty years ago) link

I remember someone from the US (tho I don't remember who) reacting in horror when an English person said they were going to wipe the dew off their window.

MarkH (MarkH), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 12:16 (twenty years ago) link

Worry. I need to stop myself saying war-ry and say wuh-ry instead. But now as I'm typing it out I'm not sure either is right. I also say odditer instead of auditor because as a kid I first heard the word from a Glaswegian accountant. (I have a London accent.)

beanz (beanz), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 12:17 (twenty years ago) link

Gatport Airwick always trips me up.

NickB (NickB), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 12:28 (twenty years ago) link

Itinerary, sixth, paella, subtly and like Liz my workplace often gets very garbled on the phone - 'SusxLngwidjInstoot' kind of.

Archel (Archel), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 12:32 (twenty years ago) link

my mother pronounces the word "parsley" "parz-lee" rather than "pass-lee" and for years I did too, until someone put me right on the matter.


?!??!?!?

ken c (ken c), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 12:45 (twenty years ago) link

i learnt to say that word from Simon and Garfunkel and they say "PARRRRSLEY!"

ken c (ken c), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 12:45 (twenty years ago) link

and S&G are like my yardstick for measuring correct pronunciation.

ken c (ken c), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 12:46 (twenty years ago) link

But they are poxy Americans!

Liz :x (Liz :x), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 12:47 (twenty years ago) link

but i like americans!

ken c (ken c), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 12:48 (twenty years ago) link

i also say "possibilidees" rather than possibilities

e.g. while i look around for my possibilidees.

ken c (ken c), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 12:51 (twenty years ago) link

and chaainsahhhhhh rather than chainsoaw

ken c (ken c), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 12:51 (twenty years ago) link

Iron.

oops (Oops), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 18:30 (twenty years ago) link

Wennsday instead of Wedensday.

Michael White (Hereward), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 18:35 (twenty years ago) link

or even Wednesday.

Michael White (Hereward), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 18:35 (twenty years ago) link

Does anyone pronounce it some other way besides "Wennsday"? Not around my parts they don't.

oops (Oops), Wednesday, 4 August 2004 18:36 (twenty years ago) link

seven months pass...
why can't anyone pronounce "nuptials" right? nup - shulls. not nup - shoe - ulls.

jbr (Jody Beth Rosen), Friday, 4 March 2005 00:09 (nineteen years ago) link

hmmm, i hear it with a "ch" rather than an "sh"...

gygax! (gygax!), Friday, 4 March 2005 00:25 (nineteen years ago) link

Me too.

Michael White (Hereward), Friday, 4 March 2005 00:31 (nineteen years ago) link

aubade

Amateur(ist) (Amateur(ist)), Friday, 4 March 2005 00:35 (nineteen years ago) link

'Canada Day'--my brain wants to eliminate the middle 'da', so I end up overemphasizing it and going 'Can-NUH-DUH-day'.

lazulum, Sunday, 28 April 2013 19:08 (eleven years ago) link

Puyallup, Washington

You pronounce it 'pwee-AWL-up'. But this is non-obvious. Humptulips is much easier.

Aimless, Sunday, 28 April 2013 19:14 (eleven years ago) link

pull a yup?

the late great, Sunday, 28 April 2013 19:19 (eleven years ago) link

until recently i had no idea people were saying "segue" when i heard "seg-way".

sleepingsignal, Sunday, 28 April 2013 19:28 (eleven years ago) link

i always thought it was c'est guaix

Aimless, Sunday, 28 April 2013 19:30 (eleven years ago) link

Speaking of the Northwest, I'm glad I don't live in Oregon because I can't say it. Always comes out "organ" or "or-gon."

Josefa, Sunday, 28 April 2013 20:29 (eleven years ago) link

i can't say "water" normally i can only say it with a gross long island /new jersey accent, "wuh-dda". (shudders) i've tried to correct it.

Pat Finn, Sunday, 28 April 2013 21:14 (eleven years ago) link

maybe it's more like "whugh-der" but still, it's wrong

Pat Finn, Sunday, 28 April 2013 21:14 (eleven years ago) link

I panic inwardly a little when I have to say "schedule" because I can never remember if sked- or shed- is the British pronunciation. I pick at random and worry people will jump to conclusions about my class and/or education from my choice. This is bad with other words with an older/French pronunciation vs a less pedantic pronunciation as neither option seems 100% safe, but I guess that's off-topic-ish.

For some reason "duplicate" I end up saying as doo-plicate so as not to say jew-plicate, even though I can successfully say dyu- without angst in other du- words.

When I say "thanks" the th- sound sometimes gets rushed and I feel like I just said "nanks" instead.

I have a very slow mouth, I think. I trip over lots of words, though usually not consistently, and just crash on and hope nobody noticed.

susuwatari teenage riot (a passing spacecadet), Sunday, 28 April 2013 21:29 (eleven years ago) link

the hardest word of all is PATHS. there is way too much going on there. any word beginning with a P is difficult, especially a P and then certain vowel sounds-- pussy is really hard to say too!-- and anything ending in THS. how do you know how long to say the th and the s?? i feel like i go on forever. paathhhhssssszzz. having to do readings during mass in grade school and the microphone just blowing up in your face on the plosives-- a reading from the aPOSTle PAUL's letter to the philiPPPPPPians or whatever has probably caused some deep anxiety forever.

ehkarl, Sunday, 28 April 2013 22:00 (eleven years ago) link

Oh yeah re "ths", "tenths" is bad. "Tense". "Tennuths". "Tenthuhs-uh". For some reason "months" is easier. We should all go back to saying "tithes" iirc

susuwatari teenage riot (a passing spacecadet), Sunday, 28 April 2013 22:13 (eleven years ago) link

four years pass...

something

infinity (∞), Wednesday, 31 January 2018 17:40 (six years ago) link

two years pass...

How to pronounce “midwifery”? Is there a US/UK split?

Time Will Show Leo Weiser (James Redd and the Blecchs), Saturday, 1 August 2020 18:00 (four years ago) link

Mid WHIFF ur ee in U.S.

I can't say "google." Most people say GOO-gle. But I segment the word weirdly, and catch on the second hard g, and so it comes out GOOG-ull. When I try to say 'googling' it comes out GOOG-ling.

america's favorite (remy bean), Saturday, 1 August 2020 18:11 (four years ago) link

I hear differing opinions from yours, remy,

Time Will Show Leo Weiser (James Redd and the Blecchs), Saturday, 1 August 2020 21:28 (four years ago) link

Rural :'(

Scampidocio (Le Bateau Ivre), Sunday, 2 August 2020 08:46 (four years ago) link

When I was a child I always had problems with the 'unvoiced th' /θ/ sound - and that is a problem for an English speaker! And it carried over into adulthood so I sometimes found myself having to think about pronouncing words before I said them - I'm OK now though, sorry, though.

Sonny Shamrock (Tom D.), Sunday, 2 August 2020 09:34 (four years ago) link

I was tongueties as a kid so although it was operated on when I was 6ish I strugged to articulate some words and still have mental blocks on. I tend to refactor sentences around them if I can so "you should" becomes "you ought to", "just because" becomes "mainly because" anything involving the dishwasher avoids the name of the machine itself, I pronounce "schedule" the american way with a hard "k" sound. Lots of other examples I'm no longer even conscious of. ( there's another one... "conscious" becomes "cognisant"!)

thomasintrouble, Sunday, 2 August 2020 09:49 (four years ago) link

My pronunciation of "Minneapolis" often gets an extra syllable like "Indianapolis"

Vinnie, Sunday, 2 August 2020 11:02 (four years ago) link


You must be logged in to post. Please either login here, or if you are not registered, you may register here.