Pronunciations you had wrong!

[WeirdArchitecture]

I am ashamed to admit that I previously struggled with 'froth' and actually pronounced it 'throff' .....there needs to be an eccentricity emoticon, I'm not that daft, I promise!

I also know someone who until her late 40's struggled with 'canopy' and pronounced it 'canape'.

DP was convinced that Moët was 'moway' as opposed to 'mwett/mowet'.

I had also previously pronounced the composer Saint-Saëns as 'san sayens' as opposed to the correct 'sahn sonz'...or something.

Anyone have any amusing ones to share?

How often do they say chasm for this to be an issue?

Surprisingly often. It’s painful.

A funny one from my late dad:

When online shopping first kicked off I made a purchase from Miss Selfrdige on my parent's laptop.
A few days later my dad called me and asked why they had received a receipt in their email for a new fridge.
I said I hadn't ordered a new fridge, what are you talking about? He went on to say the email was from a company called 'Misselfridge'.
(He wasn't yet familiar with email addresses having no spaces between words).

ahem, miss selfridge.

The problem with Moet it’s like a double bluff.

Saying Mow-Ett in a mid range bar is going to attract sniggers and eye rolls, so sometimes I do say Mo-Way because I’m vain enough to want to be perceived to be right, rather than actually right

Persephone - I thought these people were called Purse Phone. Like, "I will just grab my purse and phone".

I've pronounced suduko as 'sodoko' for years 🙄

@YouWereGr8InLittleMenstruators

remuneration as renumeration In my mind, it is related to numbers so made sense to me. Kept seeing it written "wrong" and then the penny dropped.

Yep, I only realised this about 5 years ago too. I'm really picky with pronunciation too yet for years I'd shot myself in the foot with that one!

I get that Moët is from the Dutch family name and therefore the 't' is pronounced but why is it not 'moot' in keeping with oe being a 'oo' sound, is it because of the diaeresis?

Segue is the one that irks me.
We don't say argway (argue) or tongway (tongue) so just why?
Fanshaw has blown me away

@2020in2020

I pronounced “misled” as “My-zuld” had only ever seen it written down and not said out loud before! My family never let me live it down and now we always say it that way

I did exactly this! I knew the correct meaning and was reading a newspaper headline on the tube when the penny dropped 😬

For years I thought awry was pronounced awe-ree. In my teens and early twenties I used to read the Guardian a lot and I recall reading it in there quite a bit. I knew what it meant, but I had however never heard anyone say it. Years later when I did, it took me a while to realise that it was actually the same word.

@Beachsidesunset

You should never mock/be mocked about mispronunciations - it means you've read more than you've watched. Good for you!

I’ve never thought about it that way, but you’re dead right!

Mine were mostly collected from my lovely late mum. When she first bought us cagoules in the 70s, she confidently referred to them as ‘kay-goals’ (emphasis on the ‘kay’), which stuck for a number of years as we didn’t know any different.

Amicable was always a-mick-able (emphasis on the ‘mick’), and I still cringe at hearing myself using that pronunciation in a work meeting - I knew it was totally wrong, it just came out that way automatically!

I know there are loads more which I’ll start to remember …

I really don’t understand how Featherstonehaugh is pronounced Fanshaw?

My friend pronounced Seamus as See-mus

@Thunderpunt

Incognito is one, I always pronounced in in-cog-neeto... although to be fair that's probably because people it's the anglicised version of a forrin word innit

How is it meant to be said then?

In situ . Its pronounced in sit you. Husband insists its in si chew. ITS NOT

what about cholmondley being 'chumley', no excuse for that

@Thunderpunt

Incognito is one, I always pronounced in in-cog-neeto... although to be fair that's probably because people it's the anglicised version of a forrin word innit

Is that not right??

@AngelinaFibres

In situ . Its pronounced in sit you. Husband insists its in si chew. ITS NOT

I have never heard anyone pronounce it your way. In si chew is the only version I have ever heard.

Nuclear. Reporter on BBC said nuke you lar all the way through his piece to camera thing . It's nuke Lee uh with a soft uh

@YouWereGr8InLittleMenstruators

remuneration as renumeration In my mind, it is related to numbers so made sense to me. Kept seeing it written "wrong" and then the penny dropped.

I started working for one of the global big daddy companies, and for the first couple of years thought it was really embarrassing that such a huge company couldn't spell 'renumeration statement' correctly

The one that still catches me out to this day is inevitable.

Inny-vittable anyone?

I used to pronounce Portakabins as poor-TAKKA-bins. Then one day, as an adult, probably in or near my 40s, I was sitting upstairs on a bus. We went by a building site that had Portaloos and Portakabins. And I thought to myself "Portaloos are so clearly called that because they are portable loos. I wonder why they didn't do the same for the name of Portakabins ... OOOOHHHH!"

I struggle with 'rural', the 2 rs in quick succession and the u seem to give me a bit of a speech impediment.

@AngelinaFibres

Nuclear. Reporter on BBC said nuke you lar all the way through his piece to camera thing . It's nuke Lee uh with a soft uh

Am, no, that's just what it is in your accent. In mine it's new-clear, no uh anywhere!

My favourite - trying to explain to an American visitor how to pronounce Towcester.