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Original poster

Words your parents pronounce/use that drive you CRAZY!!!

632 replies

Notsurehwhattdo · 12/12/2023 20:25

My parents say ON-velope. Rather than EN-velope. Cin-a-MAR, rather than Cin-a-ma.

Slightly differently, they also say 'trod on' rather than 'stepped on'. I know it's not incorrect, I just hate the posh way they say trod and think it's a horrible word!

All the above drives me crazy! Aaaaarrrghhhh

Inspired by the theatre thread!

OP posts:
RenoDakota · 13/12/2023 23:42

I say onvelope and cinemar.

Octaviathethird · 14/12/2023 00:10

Catsandcuddles · 12/12/2023 21:10

Pompadoms! (poppadoms)

My mum says this too, drives me mad! Also, pacifically for specifically. Mind you, we say e-yuck instead of yucky because that's how my dd used to say it, so we're just as bad!

VivienneDelacroix · 14/12/2023 00:19

Ladyof2022 · 12/12/2023 23:19

On television on radio and in ordinary daily life everybody pronounces bouillon incorrectly. They all say "bullion" but it's pronounced BWEE ON.

It's neither.
Bou i on

shearwater2 · 14/12/2023 01:07

Macandcheeese · 13/12/2023 21:52

Im NC with my mother now but I hated the way she said everyone 'smirked'. And she'd tell us not to smirk at her if we were being told off (never happened, we were too scared).
Even the sight of the word makes me irrationally angry!

I take your point, but how else would you be pronouncing "smirk"?

ChangeNameLikeIChangeSocks · 14/12/2023 01:21

I thought I was alone in this, and as my parents literally taught me to speak, we should speak in a very similar way.

But I've been paying attention and they have CHANGED how they say certain words.

About ten years ago they suddenly started saying i-BUPE-ophen instead of ibuPROfen.

My small child tried telling my dad last week to stop saying ALL-di, it's AL-di, which he has always said correctly up until last week. My dad speaks German, he should know better!

I think they're mingling with cool kids on cruises and picking up new lingo 😁

ChangeNameLikeIChangeSocks · 14/12/2023 01:26

My son calls sofology Soffloggy, and toolstation Toolfix.
I don't find it annoying though! I refuse to correct him.

caringcarer · 14/12/2023 02:32

My MiL says Mataland instead of Matalan.

She also says satch ets instead of sachet.

caringcarer · 14/12/2023 02:35

Amonthinthecountry · 12/12/2023 21:04

Another prostrate prostate over here! My Mum also pronounces Aretha Franklin’s name as A-Rita because she thinks her actual name sounds too much like Urethra.

This made me howl. 🤣

GilesRupert · 14/12/2023 03:10

'Toff-oo' instead of 't-oh-foo' for tofu.
'E-mass-iated' instead of 'e- may-ciated'.
'All-di' instead of 'Al-di'.

WhatNoUsername · 14/12/2023 04:19

StuntNun · 12/12/2023 20:38

I pronounce all those words the same way @Notsurehwhattdo it must be a regional accent.Grin My mum always says veHicle pronouncing the H which I find a bit strange.

Me too. I think most people I know do (which makes sense as you obviously pick up pronunciations from people around you). I also say thear-ta. I do pronounce the a but it's so quick you can't really hear it.

honeysuckleweeks · 14/12/2023 04:24

user1471554720 · 13/12/2023 21:27

My parents say Vitt instead of vet.

They say com itee to rhyme with tea instead of saying it like commite.

confused. Do you say com mit ?

WhatNoUsername · 14/12/2023 04:32

UrsulaBelle · 12/12/2023 22:05

Oh goodness. I say On velope. I’m Bristolian and it’s how it was pronounced there. Cwa son for croissant too.

My parents, long gone now, used to say Nazzy for Nazi, pitsa for pizza, Cali phonia for California. And they grew up during WW2. 🤷🏼‍♀️ Just old fashioned pronunciation. My dad said ‘otel for hotel too.

The only one that caused arguments was dad pronouncing donkey 🫏 to rhyme with monkey 🐒 No idea where that came from. 🤷🏼‍♀️

I'm with you with on-velope. But doesn't donkey normally rhyme with monkey? How do you say it?

WhatNoUsername · 14/12/2023 04:46

QueenOfMOHO · 13/12/2023 09:05

Pragnant instead of pregnant, to be fair, he had previously suffered a stroke .

DH says "dump" instead of tip or recycling centre.

"Dump" is a perfectly legitimate word for the Tip. We use both Dump and Tip.

WhatNoUsername · 14/12/2023 04:49

TheFeistyFeminist · 13/12/2023 09:53

I've picked up some regional variation as I'm a largely RP speaker and my husband is (gasp) Northern.

I think eggsams for exams is in that category.

My mother was raised London-but-snobbish and says things like Onvelope and Cinemarh. Despite her best attempts at making me have a telephone voice I say ENvelope and Cinema (short a).

Then there's the category of "silly things we say differently in our family" like kipper tie for cup of tea. Thank you Jasper Carrott.

I was raised in London but very much working class and I say On-velope and cine-MAR. As did everyone I knew.

RedRobin100 · 14/12/2023 04:51

My MiL calls Covid, CoviK and has all along. I don’t understand how or why..

my mum says vey-gan instead of veegan. Annoys me but not as bad as CoviK

they both call my female dog HE and male cat SHE

🤷🏻‍♀️

RedRobin100 · 14/12/2023 04:52

No monkey is pronounced more like munkey

RedRobin100 · 14/12/2023 04:54

WhatNoUsername · 14/12/2023 04:32

I'm with you with on-velope. But doesn't donkey normally rhyme with monkey? How do you say it?

Show quote history

No monkey is more like Munkey with a U sound

donkey very much used the O sound

garlictwist · 14/12/2023 05:02

I think it's her accent but my MIL always pronounces the "shire" bit of a county as "sheer" so she comes to visit us in "York-sheer". I hate it.

WhatNoUsername · 14/12/2023 05:09

@CantDealwithChristmas

"Oh that reminds me of Morrissey's famous mispronunciation of 'plagiarise' in 'Cemetary Gates' off The Queen is Dead album."

Hilariously just asked Siri to play this and he pronounced Cemetery as "See-metry". Probably because Morrissey also spelt "Cemetry" wrong but made me laugh in the context of this thread!

GenXQuestion · 14/12/2023 05:10

GladioliandSweetPeas · 12/12/2023 20:58

My Mum says "Witherspoons" and "distructions" and she's an intelligent woman, believe it or not

My mum also says "Witherspoons".

Selttan · 14/12/2023 05:14

ILL-Legal instead of Illegal and Essington instead of Essendon.

Lucky not used too often but drives me nuts.

Spencer0220 · 14/12/2023 05:29

What a great thread!

Mine has many , today she has a diabetic. Not diabetes

Pro-Tee-ahhhnn instead of protein.

Spencer0220 · 14/12/2023 05:31

Itslegitimatesalvage · 12/12/2023 20:43

My mum mispronounces so many words. So so many. I have to bite my tongue through every conversation because she makes herself sound stupid and she isn’t, but she just sounds so stupid. I could never say that in public, only anonymously. I hated it as a teen as my friends made fun of it and I can’t stand it as an adult because I have to correct it for my kids. Ugh. Hate hate hate!

I'm with you

neveradullmoment99 · 14/12/2023 05:40

Sand witch...grrrr!

neveradullmoment99 · 14/12/2023 05:41

RedRobin100 · 14/12/2023 04:51

My MiL calls Covid, CoviK and has all along. I don’t understand how or why..

my mum says vey-gan instead of veegan. Annoys me but not as bad as CoviK

they both call my female dog HE and male cat SHE

🤷🏻‍♀️

My mym says covis🤣🤣🤣