To think you don't pronounce it Grem?

[NapQueen]

It's Grayum. Or Grayam. Or Graem.

Why pronounce Graham/Graeme as Grem?

The same person also says Restrawww instead of Restaurant.

And Ay-Mex. It's Amex. It's written on the bloody thing.

[NobodyInParticular]

And Theatre, that is a 2 and a third syllable word.

[TiggyOBE]

Eyve got mie own wae of spelling and prownounceiation. Ey kall it Tigglish. Eym not gowing toooooo stik toooooo yor rulz!

[LifeIsGoodish]

Dobb-eez.

The double-b forces the short o. A single b would allow the split vowel di-graph (aka Magic E) to force a long o: Dobies=Doe-beez. Compare 'bonnet' and 'boner'.

[NobodyInParticular]

What I will never get though is the Lloyd Grossman style long 'A' unnecessarily. Like saying Pasta as Parsta.

[LifeIsGoodish]

[LifeIsGoodish]

Tiggy

[iklboo]

Grayam (north west).

My mum says 'yiss' for yes. Which is slightly annoying, even if she is my mum. Also 'armonia' (ammonia) and 'Cali-foe-nia'

[LifeIsGoodish]

What about Mirena?

Mi' Renna?
My Reena?

Stress first or second syllable?

[NobodyInParticular]

Has 'armonia' appeared on the baby names board yet?

[CotswoldStrife]

Gray-am, Ay-mex, Ay-sos, Pry-mark and Dob-bees here. (NW)

There's a sentence I didn't think I'd write!

[cardibach]

Moreno
Mi-ray-na

[cardibach]

Damn auto correct! Mirena not Moreno

[Smidge001]

Tiggy it's pronunciation not pronounciation. Nun. It's my pet hate. Heard Steve Wright in the afternoon saying 'pronounciation' today on the radio. Grr. It's not a word!
Completely happy for you to have your own language of course, but just in case you didn't know, that particular word is wrong

[ItsASunnyDay]

Mirena - mih-ree-na

[Pooka]

Ooh ooh! Can I try (and get wrong)?

Is it Loz an-jel-ees
And
Mon-tann-uh (with stress on tann)?

I never connected the am-ex with AMerican EXpress. Durr...Though am so rubbish now at saying letter names because have been brainwashed by phonics/helping DC with phonics that have been pronouncing it correctly anyway...

[Smidge001]

When I was in Australia a radio show was running a quiz with a prize to go to Las Vegas. Except they constantly called it Los Vegas. Really annoyed me.
Los Angeles. Las Vegas. Simples.

PS how are you supposed to pronounce Los Angeles and Montanna then? I've only ever heard both said the same as pooka said. How else can you pronounce them?

[dodobookends]

Los Angeles and Montana will be pronounced differently by Americans anyway, depending on whether they're from the deep south, the mid-west, Boston, Noo Yawk, or anywhere else come to think of it.

Oh and yes, I do know how to pronounce New Orleans

[GreatFuckability]

how do you say Montana incorrectly?!

i'd say 'Los AN-jell-is' for Los Angeles. those most british people do the 'eez' thing on the end.

As an aside, Los Angeles is the only time i don't hear Americans do the long O in those Los. Carlos= Car-lows vs our Car-Los for example. I wonder why.

[TiggyOBE]

Inew vatt Smiggge. Ver ar siylent ohs in "prownounceiation". Ver furred and forf wons. Ver forf won iz allso invizzzabull.

[KoalaDownUnder]

Re: the 'pasta' debate.

I know that English people think it's pronounced PAS-tuh (short 'a', as in 'cat').

It's really not. Italians pronounce the 'a' words like 'pasta' and 'basta' (meaning 'enough') with a long-ish 'uh' sound. Not a short 'a'.

m.youtube.com/watch?v=Oq3U-aCPSoo

(Am crap at links, but hope this works)

The American/Australian 'PAHS-tuh' is closer than the bloody 'PAS-tuh' thing the Brits insist on!

[CaoNiMao]

In my experience (not trying to start a class war) Graham is one of those names that can either be proper working class, or vair posh. E.g. my WC father is Graham pronounced "Grey-um" while a friend of mine is a hedge fund manager Graham pronounced "Grem".

[UsedToBeAPaxmanFan]

It's the same with "Ralph". Everyone pronounces it as its spelt, i.e. with the "l" except posh people, who say "Rafe". Most odd.

My American FiL pronounces aluminium as "a-loo-minnum". Drives me batty. There's a second "i" in it for God's sake!!! And don't get me started on MiLs pronunciation of "herbs".......

[ceeveebee]

North American spelling of aluminium is aluminum ie no second i!