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Original poster

To say it’s “cliquey” not “clicky”

222 replies

Fortunesmiles · 25/05/2023 08:14

Just that, really. I keep seeing things like “the parents at school are very clicky” - no! They form cliques, not clicks. Not normally one to comment on this stuff, but that one really makes me cringe!

OP posts:
bellac11 · 25/05/2023 08:17

I think its because generally people in the UK dont pronounce 'foreign' origin words in the accent in which they are spoken, so people dont say clique, they say click

People dont say choritho, they say choritso

So people think its spelt that way

Personally I cant stand it when words are said with the accent of the country of origin, it sounds ridiculous but then it will lead to people misunderstanding how to spell them

thecatsthecats · 25/05/2023 08:18

It's no wonder they're excluded from the clique if they can't even say it right!

Sigmama · 25/05/2023 08:18

I hate the use of it for any group of friends

Malariahilaria · 25/05/2023 08:20

I don't say click, I say cleek, but not with a faux French accent. I think American English does pronounce it click so that might be why people think it's spelt that way.

SecretVictoria · 25/05/2023 08:22

This has irritated me on 2 threads this morning. It’s the new ‘Chester draws’!

ShinyPikachu · 25/05/2023 08:22

I love when people say clicky because I imagine the group being like bats when they use clicks for echolocation. It's a lot more fun that way. 😁

Fandabedodgy · 25/05/2023 08:25

Click and clique, clicky and cliquey don't even have same pronunciation.

It does grate.

But done many people are dyslexic, type in their phones with their thumbs, don't have English as a first language or haven't had a great education. So I'd never say anything.

Clymene · 25/05/2023 08:25

bellac11 · 25/05/2023 08:17

I think its because generally people in the UK dont pronounce 'foreign' origin words in the accent in which they are spoken, so people dont say clique, they say click

People dont say choritho, they say choritso

So people think its spelt that way

Personally I cant stand it when words are said with the accent of the country of origin, it sounds ridiculous but then it will lead to people misunderstanding how to spell them

They're pronouncing it wrong.

The way to say clique is kleek. It's not 'foreign' to say it like that, it's correct.

minou123 · 25/05/2023 08:26

ShinyPikachu · 25/05/2023 08:22

I love when people say clicky because I imagine the group being like bats when they use clicks for echolocation. It's a lot more fun that way. 😁

I love it when people say clicky because I imagine the group has hip problems.
Like it's a support group for people who can't get out of a chair without thier hips clicking.

I really need to join one of those groups

GulesMeansRed · 25/05/2023 08:26

ShinyPikachu · 25/05/2023 08:22

I love when people say clicky because I imagine the group being like bats when they use clicks for echolocation. It's a lot more fun that way. 😁

Or perhaps a whole group of people with joint problems.

CosyCoffee · 25/05/2023 08:28

Fandabedodgy · 25/05/2023 08:25

Click and clique, clicky and cliquey don't even have same pronunciation.

It does grate.

But done many people are dyslexic, type in their phones with their thumbs, don't have English as a first language or haven't had a great education. So I'd never say anything.

Is there something wrong with typing with thumbs now?

GulesMeansRed · 25/05/2023 08:29

And the "oh it's a foreign word people don't know how to pronounce it" - the same people don't seem to have an issue with words like boutique, unique, antique...

You don't see anyone writing they want a "unick" name for their baby, or are off to watch the Antick Roadshow.

KimberleyClark · 25/05/2023 08:30

bellac11 · 25/05/2023 08:17

I think its because generally people in the UK dont pronounce 'foreign' origin words in the accent in which they are spoken, so people dont say clique, they say click

People dont say choritho, they say choritso

So people think its spelt that way

Personally I cant stand it when words are said with the accent of the country of origin, it sounds ridiculous but then it will lead to people misunderstanding how to spell them

Do you pronounce quiche as qwish then? Or technique as tecknick?

falsepositivenervous · 25/05/2023 08:33

Lol at technick and antick, brilliant way to prove the point!

MILofdoom · 25/05/2023 08:36

Typing with thumbs? What's wrong with that? Christ I'd be here all day if I had to do it otherwise. I don't get that one at all.

I would pronounce it as clicky but should I ever need to type it would be cliquey. I'm not going to try to attempt a foreign spin on it and make myself look a tit.

GulesMeansRed · 25/05/2023 08:39

Personally I cant stand it when words are said with the accent of the country of origin, it sounds ridiculous

But if you have a working knowledge of the language concerned, you just cannot bring yourself to say "choritsoh". Or chorisssssso. Or any other manglings of the word that British people use. And the word clique has been in common use in the UK for much longer than chorizo, or nduja.

falsepositivenervous · 25/05/2023 08:40

MILofdoom · 25/05/2023 08:36

Typing with thumbs? What's wrong with that? Christ I'd be here all day if I had to do it otherwise. I don't get that one at all.

I would pronounce it as clicky but should I ever need to type it would be cliquey. I'm not going to try to attempt a foreign spin on it and make myself look a tit.

I don't think pronouncing the word correctly is "putting a foreign spin" on it. For example, do you call boutiques "but-ticks" so as not to make it sound "foreign"?

eveoha · 25/05/2023 08:41

I rarely use the word ‘clique’ preferring to refer to such groups as a ‘claque’ 👍🏿☘️

ChessieFL · 25/05/2023 08:43

Clicky makes me think they’re all standing around clicking their fingers like the Addams Family song.

My husband says clicky and it really annoys me. Especially as he says it about a group of women who aren’t cliquey at all, they’re just good friends!

crackofdoom · 25/05/2023 08:43

Eveoha

and there are so many cliquey claques out there. Or claquey cliques....

AgnesX · 25/05/2023 08:45

SecretVictoria · 25/05/2023 08:22

This has irritated me on 2 threads this morning. It’s the new ‘Chester draws’!

That's the one drives me bonkers! Nails down a blackboard.

LittleBrownJug · 25/05/2023 08:46

@bellac11 no no no no. Nothing more grating than choritzo … unless it’s ‘jalepeno’ instead of ‘halepeno’

MILofdoom · 25/05/2023 08:47

@falsepositivenervous no I do not. I just feel that adding the Y onto the word in this particular instance when speaking, in my circle of friends would be more appropriate. Each to their own and all that.

GuitarsUnderTheStars · 25/05/2023 08:47

As I would only use it negatively for an unfriendly group, I just call them cunts. Cunts, easy to pronounce for everyone. 😉

Papernotplastic · 25/05/2023 08:49

I don’t think it’s because they’ve seen clique written down and just pronounced it wrong. It’s more likely that they’ve heard the US pronunciation of clique, which is ‘click’, so they spell it that way.