Mispronounced Words

[sp1814]

Perspectus Global, an 'insights agency' (no, me neither) has published the results of a recent survey into the top ten most irritating mis-pronounced words.

https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/mispronounced-words-top-10_uk_60d2efbae4b0c101fc825732

1. Pacifically instead of specifically – 35%
2. Probly instead of probably – 28%
3. Expresso instead of espresso – 26%
4. Specially instead of especially – 25%
5. Artick instead of arctic – 19%
6. Nu-cu-lar instead of nuclear – 19%
7. Tenderhooks instead of tenterhooks – 18%
8. Ex-cet-ara instead of etcetera – 18%
9. Ass-essory instead of accessory – 15%
10. Triath-a-lon instead of triathlon – 9%

I'm guilty of five.

How many (if any) are other AB'ers guilty of?

[JimF]

"Almond has come to us via the French aumond."

I'm pretty sure it hasn't...

[Jackdaw33]

What I am saying is that the French word, 'aumond' doea not have an L.

[JimF]

The French for 'almond' is 'amande', not 'aumond'.

https://www.collinsdictionary.com/spellcheck/french-english?q=aumond

[Jackdaw33]

Mea maxima culpa, of course it is.

[JimF]

Ne t-en fais pas, mon pote!

[Tuvok]

Why do the English say

draw-ring

for drawing etc?

And don't get me started again on the advert for Surf when the woman says serf (rhymes with Perth) instead of rhyming with smurf!

[JimF]

"draw-ring"

Do a Google search for the intrusive R.

[jno]

specially and especially are, technically, slightly different words

https://www.vocabulary.com/articles/chooseyourwords/especially-specially/

But personally I'm happy with either of them.

Some of the others aren't exactly mispronunciations, they happen because people have real difficulty saying things like "thl" or "rct".

[Tuvok]

I can think of a few Scottish placenames that flumox a lot of folk.

And Loch is NOT pronounced Lock!

[brainiac]

The one that drives me up the wall is mischievous being pronounced
MIS CHIEV I OUS

I've even heard GRIEV I OUS

Oh, and 'unchartered waters'

[jno]

Atheist, INTegral or inTEGral?

[THECORBYLOON]

"Almond is pronounced Armond", I say, "amund" but I think my sister says, "almund"

[Canary42]

I sympathise with some folk who can't help mis-pronouncing certain sounds, for example, Jonathan Ross when referring to a high ranking member of the Government ;-)

[sanmac]

My wife, who was a nurse for 37 years, always used to say "potazzium" instead of "potassium".

[TriWorldHub]

Wow, these mispronunciations are quite common! 😅 Interestingly, I've heard a few of these myself. It's a good reminder of how important clear communication is. Speaking of which, if you're explore the world of triathlon and looking to elevate your skills, check out TriWorldHub's coaching services: https://triworldhub.com/camps/ ; 🏊‍♂️🚴‍♂️🏃‍♂️