Discovering you've been pronouncing a word wrong all your life

48 watchers
Sep 2020
11:33am, 12 Sep 2020
67,839 posts
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swittle
segue is surely a corruption of Latin's 'sequ-', from 'sequor', I follow.
Just en passant....
Oct 2022
11:19pm, 24 Oct 2022
2,100 posts
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Steve NordRunner
I heard one of the awful politicians on the radio today say «truce-you-lent» instead of «truck-you-lent». Either way, he was a dice.
Oct 2022
11:39pm, 24 Oct 2022
26,898 posts
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Serendippily
Doner kebab
Not pronounced as a gift
Oct 2022
5:28pm, 26 Oct 2022
10,812 posts
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leaguefreak
It's ok it's a Turkish word and everyone says it wrong in English anyway. Just like everyone puts the emphasis wrong in Galatasaray. You're just differently wrong to most Brits with the doner kebab thing.
Oct 2022
7:44pm, 26 Oct 2022
10,553 posts
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sallykate
I'd like to know when people started to emphasise the first syllable in distribute and contribute. I grew up emphasising the second and will continue to do so.
Oct 2022
8:05pm, 26 Oct 2022
2,107 posts
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Steve NordRunner
I don't know the answer, but the name of this phenomenon is the “recessive accent”.
Oct 2022
10:51pm, 26 Oct 2022
39,983 posts
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Pinks
One of my children made me smile last night when they suggested a name for something as penelope. Only instead of pronouncing it pen-e-lo-pe, they pronounced it pen - elope. I now have visions of pens running away to get married.
Oct 2022
9:39am, 27 Oct 2022
8,671 posts
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Surrey Phil
My mum told us that a waterproof jacket was a 'caggle,' presumably as she had never seen it spelled. It was only after she went into a shop for a new one, the assistant told her, "Madam, it's pronounced kagool." As a result, I now have to slow down and think when I mention one.
Oct 2022
11:01am, 27 Oct 2022
73,865 posts
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Diogenes
The first time I saw Persephone written down I heard it as Percy-phone in my head, until the Penny(lope) dropped
Oct 2022
11:34am, 27 Oct 2022
34,999 posts
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Ocelot Spleens
I got epitome wrong for ages, and gazebo.

About This Thread

Maintained by Good King Carpathius
I saw something the other day questioning why some words ending in 'e' which have that &ap...

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