It’s marshmAllow not marshmEllow

[MardyBra]

I’m looking at you Alison Hammond. FFS.

Wait, how else would you pronounce licorice though?

I think some people say lickeriss

That's adorable! Honestly I love accents and regional quirks, we should embrace it more.

So do I!
Lots of people get really angry over what is supposedly correct. I just enjoy reading the different ways people say things. It's fascinating.

It's a regional thing. Alison Hammond is from Brum. I grew up in the Midlands and everyone I know says Marshmellow ( but I do know how to spell it 🙂).

YY to the gnashing of teeth over 'marshmellow'; see also 'Hollowe'en'.

Not so fast!

The American A sound isn't the same as the American E sound. In fact, in some American accents the E is pronounced as an I sound - Ellenois for Illinois, for instance. American As are similar to the E sound in 'heavy'.

It's possible the mispronunciation 'mellow' comes from people imitating American pronunciation of the letter A badly.

🤣

It's possible the mispronunciation 'mellow' comes from people imitating American pronunciation of the letter A badly.

This is my thinking too, but I couldn't think of a way to put it so succinctly!

@mathanxiety Ah, i wasn’t clear enough. These aren’t my personal feelings about a delicate matter. It’s the sanctity of the Wikipedia pronunciation guide. I meant that if you pull up the Wikipedia guide of how to read the pronunciation symbols, it says the first pronunciation version “ae” should be pronounced as A in trap, and the second version should be pronounced as the E in dress. So it’s not my opinions (I wouldn’t trust my opinions!). It’s the actual pronunciation guide on Wikipedia that tells you how to pronounce every word on the site, by telling you what all those symbols mean.

@mathanxiety Sigh. That should say, “I wasn’t clear enough, sorry.” Apparently exhaustion is making me forget my manners.

I'm from the south east, and say mallow. Like the plant. I don't say it a lot, to be honest! I've not seen Bake Off yet, but will brace myself, as it will irritate me if it's being pronounced 'mellow'.

I'm from SE originally and now in the SW. I've never heard anyone call it marshmellow. Marshmallow in this household.

My pet peeve is schedule, pronounced skedule.

Its mAllow. Scot here in the North of England, I’ve heard both. But only one is right. 😉 It’ll be sconn v scown again on Bake Off! And of course its sconn.

Marshmallow is an ugly word so I'm changing to marshmellow - sounds so much tastier.

Urgh no, mallow sounds much rounder and chewier.

Could this be an accent thing?

No, it's a being wrong thing!

What's up with people claiming that dictionaries say things that they clearly don't?

The very first entry (UK) in that link says that it's pronounced as "lickeriss"!

And you may not personally have heard anybody pronounce it like that, but that's how I (and all my family and most of my friends) say it in SE England.

Also #TeamMarshmallow!

Maybe this has been covered but what about the toys Squishmallows. Are people calling them Squishmellows?

I've found my people. Of COURSE that at MarshmAllow, but 99.9% of people I've heard staying it say mEllow. It's ridiculous, where the hell did the E come from?

I have noticed another example of this phenomenon.

The presenter of the BBC Radio 4 Today programme- MishAL Husain. Not “Michelle”.
Yet a surprising number of guests whom you would think would know better insist on calling her “Michelle”. I could have sworn that James Naughtie, of all people, did it on Friday.

My theory is this:

1. Some people think her name is Michelle, written and spoken.
2. some people think she spells her name Mishal but pronounces it Michelle
3. Some people are trying to say “Mishal” but it comes out more of an “e” sound.

All of these could also be applied to “Marshmallow”.

I heard this exact thing the other morning and thought she’s a bigger woman than me. I’d be correcting them every time. Just basic manners to get someone’s name right. No excuse when it’s ministers coming on briefed by a team of staff.

I actually vaguely know her from University (friend of a friend). She definitely corrected people back then. I guess there is no time for it when working on air to a tight schedule and it would ruin the flow but, as you say, you’d think people would be properly briefed and/or make the effort to check.