wouldn’t call myself a master of the English language but I’m not totally rubbish at it. I know what the word ‘literally’ means and I use it appropriately. I also know the difference between two, too and to and you will never get a text message from me that says ‘ur’ instead of ‘you’re’. Shudder. However sometimes, even if I know the correct way to pronounce a word, I will deliberately pronounce it the wrong way because I couldn’t be bothered making everything awkward. I know it’s lazy and I should care more but sometimes you have to choose your battles and the pronunciation of some words often loses. Here are 5 words you can’t say properly because it makes everything awkward.
Moet
The way everyone says it – Mo-ee
The way we’re supposed to say it – Mo-et
I really, really want to be the person who says this correctly but I just can’t bring myself to say ‘mo-et’ because I feel like Kath from Kath and Kim ordering a ‘cardonay’. I’m sticking with ‘mo-ee’. There’s safety in numbers.
Steve Buscemi
The way everyone says it – Boo-shem-ee or Boo-Schem-ee or Boo-sheem-ee
The way we’re supposed to say it – Boo-sem-ee (That’s how he pronounced it on Jimmy Fallon anyway).
Look I love Steve and he deserves all the fame and fortune in the world but life was so much easier when he was that guy who humped the bomb in Armageddon and no one actually knew his name.
Barcelona
The way everyone says it – Bah-sell-oh-nah
The way we’re supposed to say it – Bath-ell-oh-nah
The first few times I heard someone say Barcelona the proper way (when I was like 8 years old), I genuinely thought they doing a line from a movie where someone’s GBF (gay best friend) was all ‘Oh! Bath-ell-oh-nah!’. Turns out that’s just the way you say it and no one (in Australia) ever says it that way.
Paella
The way everyone says it – pay-ell-la
The way we’re supposed to say it – pie-ay-ah
This one is a fun family favourite at restaurants. Someone will be all ‘Let’s get pie-ay-ah!’ and then someone else be all ‘Oh… I wanted paella.’ and then shit gets really awkward. You have to say pa-ella otherwise no one knows what you’re talking about.
Jojoba
The way everyone says – jo-jo-ba
The way we’re supposed to say it – ho-ho-ba or yo-yo-ba… whatever I just know it’s not jo-jo-ba.
I know it’s not jo-jo-ba but if you say anything other than jo-jo-ba people be all ‘What?’ and then you have to say jo-jo-ba anyway. You might just well just open with jo-jo-ba.
Can you think of any words you purposefully mispronounce just because it’s easier?
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40 Comments
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Omg! Same! Moet and paella are my main ones. I hate myself when I feel like i have say it the wrong way!
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I know right? Massive shame spiral.
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School girl French: If it’s the single word it’s ‘mo eh’. If you say it followed by ‘et Chandon’ it’s ‘mo et’ as you only pronounce the t at the end of a French word if it’s followed by a vowel.
And in some Spanish-speaking parts of South American they call paella ‘pay asia’.
I never know where to draw the line with pronunciation of non- English words. Should we use the native pronunciation or just hang with our local version? Should it be Paris? Or Puh – ree? Should we take offence at the American ‘Melborne’ just because we say ‘Melbin?’
I do think people’s names should always be pronounced the way their owner chooses.
Okay language pedant signing out ?-
Ah, but the last name Moët is Dutch and so the “t” remains 😉
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This is why the whole thing is so confusing! Some people are like ‘It’s mo-et!’ and other people are like ‘It’s mo-ee!’ I’m like – I only speak English so… that’s awkward.
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Croissant. You just can’t say kwas-ant in Aus… has to be cross-ont or someone might punch you in the face :).
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If you’re at my house and you ask for a kwa-sant, you don’t get one.
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I pronouce jojoba ho-ho-ba. I don’t think ppl know what I’m taking bout anyway. I agree with the moet!
The other one is Ralph Lauren. People pronouce it like Sofia LOREN. He’s American not Italian. It’s just plain old Lauren lol.-
Yes! Good one the French-isation of Lauren. It’s just Lauren people.
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Cros-ont. Too funny Kelly. Being English brings its own challenges to Australia – I still can’t bring myself to say yoh-gurt…. And I still don’t know how to say edamamaemanae beans…..
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I can’t yog-hurt. Drives me bonkers.
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Schedule. I still don’t know if it’s shedule or skedule.
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This! 🙂
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I hedge my bets and use them interchangeably ?
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Ok curiosity got the better of me and I googled! Apparently there is two pronunciations with the Sk sound being the non-US version and the Sh sound bring the US version! Clear as mud 🙂
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I thought the sk- sound was the US version and the sh- one the UK one! Or at least that’s how they pronounce it in my part of the UK. I wonder if that’s different again in other English-speaking countries..
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Oops sorry you’re right, I put them the wrong way around! ?
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I always say Sk- the sh sound makes me feel like I’m an old lady for some reason.
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Chorizo. When I ask for it at the service deli in Coles as “choritho”, I want to punch my own face but I can’t not say it.
I also have a problem with the Adelaide suburb of Greenwith which is pronounced as it’s spelt but I feel it should be “Grenith” like in England.
And if your name is Grant, I will call you Graahhnt, because I’m South Australian and that’s how we do.
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That’s like the suburb in Canberra called Manuka. We ‘Mahn-i-ka’ which should actually be ‘Mahn-oo-ka’ but we’re snobs and won’t say it like that. That’s also how the Queen pronounces it and she’s right about everything.
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If you ask me for directions I’ll tell you the best rowt not the best root. Just can’t do it. Also, I’m just never going to say moist – there’s only one way to say it and it makes me uncomfortable.
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Moist should be removed from the English language. Hate it so much.
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The dog breed of shitzu. It’s a Chinese word and you know, Carly, that mum would correct me on the pronunciation whenever it pops up in conversation, but if I say ‘shherz-ze’ to anyone in normal society, they would think I’m having a fit… I just can’t do it.
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Oh my god totally! No one says shitzu that way you’re supposed to but thats a good thing otherwise people in Australia won’t know what you’re saying.
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Yes! But sometimes mispronouncing something deliberately just makes it even more awkward! I cringe every time someone says “crutch” rather than “crotch” or “dry reaching” rather than “dry retching” because they are too embarrassed (or worried about being considered vulgar) to pronounce them correctly.
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Yes! Dry reaching – that’s a weird one. My mum use to say dry reaching until I realised that was wrong.
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As the late, great Freddie Mercury sings in Killer Queen: “…She keeps Mo-et and Chandon in her pretty cabinet…”
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You’ve got to trust Moet right?
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Yes! Nobody believes me if I say moet. Thank you!
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Hailz, tell them to google it. There are heaps of “how to pronounce” websites and even the Moët website explains how to say it.
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“Bowie”, as in David Bowie – I work with a bunch of English, Scots and Irish and they all pronounce it differently. But since I’m the non-native speaker of the bunch most of them have an opinion on how I should say it. The funny thing is the other night I saw a Bowie interview where he said he wasn’t sure how to pronounce it either anymore because everyone had their own version!
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Yes! Bowie has been a mental one this week – I’ve heard so many people say his name wrong!
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I have literally never ever heard anyone say Jo-Jo-ba. Only ho-ho-ba. We must have all learned it from a shampoo ad!
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I’ve heard heaps of people saying jo jo joba although I admit much less since the shampoo ad.
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All the Mexican foods! Tortilla (Tor tee ya), jalapeño (halapenyo) and quesadilla (case a dee ya) ….Although I must confess that my partner and I deliberately call them Quasi-Dillos because it’s more fun to say! ?
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HAHA, my husband and I also call them tortillas, kweeza-dillas and jarleppanoze. Not in public though!
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It is easier to go with the flow, but I persist in correct pronunciation. My theory is, the more people who do continue with correct version, might help spread it, so it is not lost forever. I worked as a proofreader for several years, so am a bit anal about pronunciation, spelling and grammar. One of my pet peeves (and there are many) is when people pronounce “anythink, somethink, nothink”. There is no “k” there people! I am going to calm down and breathe now. xx
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Oh lord yes! I don’t correct people on stuff like that though – I think it’s condescending to occurrent adults on their pronunciation and I think it’s also too late. I will say ‘It’s capsiCUM not capsiCUN!’ it just never ends well.
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Goodness, no – I wouldn’t correct people. Though I did always correct my children, who hated it at the time, but thank me for it now.
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Advocado. arks instead of ask has me screaming inside. I arksed a Chilean workmate how he pronounces llama – jjjama and also yama is used
