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#31 |
polaroid of perfection
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: West Yorkshire
Posts: 24,185
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I was always taught that Vitae (in Curriculum Vitae) was correctly pronounced "Vy-Tee". I have heard other people say "Vee-Ty" so often now that I am beginning to doubt my memory and stick to saying CV.
Re: jewellery/ jewelry. Most common pronounciation I've heard is "JEWL-ry", although I have heard "JEWL-uh-ry" & accepted it as correct. "Jew-ELL-er-ree"? No, never ![]() I had a History teacher who used to say "Commonist" instead of "Communist", which drove me crazy - we were studying the Russian Revolution so it came up quite often. And I was 15 (not the most tolerant age). My biggest frustration is "pacific" instead of "specific". Surprisingly common. |
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#32 |
Pump my ride!
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: Deep countryside of Surrey , England
Posts: 1,890
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There's a dispersed section of English who substitute 'g' with 'k' on certain words, such as 'somethink, 'nothink' and 'anythink' I met someone called Kevin who did this - nice chap otherwise....
Then, of course there's the way we can totally demolish the pronunciation of some words, especially the names of places and peoples' names: Chalmondley - is pronounced Chummley Beauchamp Place is pronounced Beecham Place Beauvoir is pronounced Beaver (reminds me of a joke - maybe not now, though) I'm sure there's more....
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Always sufficient hills - never sufficient gears |
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#33 |
Pump my ride!
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: Deep countryside of Surrey , England
Posts: 1,890
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Of course - what about those '-ough' words:
As the woodsman thought: 'I've had enough of sawing through these boughs' - visitors to our shores just don't stand a chance!
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Always sufficient hills - never sufficient gears |
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#34 |
polaroid of perfection
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: West Yorkshire
Posts: 24,185
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If you're going to bring proper nouns into it how about
Caius College, Cambridge (Keys) Magdalen College, Oxford (Maudlin) Not that I'd judge anyone to be ignorant for pronouncing these incorrectly. Unless they lived in either city. |
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#35 | |
Goon Squad Leader
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: Seattle
Posts: 27,063
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The word: February
The problem: Feb-yoo-airy *sigh* Quote:
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Be Just and Fear Not. |
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#36 |
Slattern of the Swail
Join Date: Jul 2004
Posts: 15,654
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i was born in Feb. and I say "Febuary" because, #1) whoever named it that obviously meant FebUary, to rhyme with January, #2) people look at you funny when you do say the extra R, and, most importantly, #3) saying "FebRUary" sounds gay.
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#37 | |
Goon Squad Leader
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: Seattle
Posts: 27,063
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Quote:
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Be Just and Fear Not. |
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#38 | |
Pump my ride!
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: Deep countryside of Surrey , England
Posts: 1,890
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Quote:
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Always sufficient hills - never sufficient gears |
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#39 |
Slattern of the Swail
Join Date: Jul 2004
Posts: 15,654
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I think I'm being picked on.
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#40 |
Pump my ride!
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: Deep countryside of Surrey , England
Posts: 1,890
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How could you possibly think such a thing???
(your turn, BigV)
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Always sufficient hills - never sufficient gears |
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#41 |
Icy Queen
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: Southeast Alaska
Posts: 700
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Oh I thought of another one.
Association. It's not aso-she-ashion. And with the salmon thing. Living in salmon central up here, I can say that it is true that the L in salmon is silent, however it is still present. It sounds silly when someone pronounces it sammin. When it's pronounced correctly, you don't say the L, but it does effect the way it comes out. Hard to explain.... but you all are smart enough to know what I mean, right? |
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#42 |
Goon Squad Leader
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: Seattle
Posts: 27,063
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I think Brianna has bravely attempted to "catch a bullet" for me on two recent occasions. In both cases, I was referring to myself, and Brianna has wondered aloud if I was picking on her. I speak only for myself, but clearly: no.
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Be Just and Fear Not. |
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#43 | |
go ahead, abbrev. it
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: Lawrence, KS
Posts: 2,623
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Quote:
drought is it: drowt or drowth? |
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#44 |
™
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: Arlington, VA
Posts: 27,717
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My daughter is in first grade, and has a spelling test each week. So far, she has had an easy time of it, because all the words she has studied each week follow rules. Once you learn the rule, you know how to spell them. Well, last week, she had to study the long O words. "OW" "OA" and "O" with an "E" at the end. As she was struggling over the word list, she was looking to me to explain it. I found myself coming up empty, and telling her she just has to memorize the stupid words. She had a hard time of it. I mean really, why are the long O's in "coach" "slow" and "froze" all spelled differently? Why? Just because. That's why. What a stupid system.
Just come up with one rule already! How about "O" followed by a silent "E"? "coach" could be "coche" "slow" could be "sloe" "froze" could stay the same Much simpler. Maybe more immigrants would learn English. |
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#45 |
dar512 is now Pete Zicato
Join Date: May 2003
Location: Chicago suburb
Posts: 4,968
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Languages aren't designed. They evolve. English is a bit of Old English, some French, and some German. And smaller bits of a lot of other languages. English is a rather promiscuous language.
Read The Mother Tongue: English and How It Got That Way. It covers all that and is an entertaining read as well. In it you'll find the bit of trivia that the Irish (or was it the Scotch) have a word that means the itch you get in your upper lip just before taking a drink of whiskey.
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"Against stupidity the gods themselves contend in vain." -- Friedrich Schiller |
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