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100 Most Often Mispronounced Words & Phrases In English by Darkchocolate(f): 6:55pm On Jan 25, 2016 |
There are spelling rules in English, even if they are difficult to understand, so pronouncing a word correctly usually does help you spell it correctly. Here are the 100 most often mispronounced English words ("mispronunciation" among them). Several common errors are the result of rapid speech, so take your time speaking, correctly enunciating each word. Careful speech and avid reading are the best guides to correct spelling. A Don't say: acrossed | Do say: across Comment: It is easy to confuse "across" with "crossed" but better to keep them separate. Don't say: affidavid | Do say: affidavit Comment: Even if your lawyer's name is ''David,'' he issues affidavits. Don't say: Old-timer's disease | Do say: Alzheimer's disease Comment: While it is a disease of old-timers, it is named for the German neurologist, Dr. Alois Alzheimer. Don't say: Antartic | Do say: Antarctic Comment: Just think of an arc of ants (an ant arc) and that should help you keep the [c] in the pronunciation of this word. Don't say: Artic | Do say: Arctic Comment: Another hard-to-see [c] but it is there. Don't say: aks | Do say: ask Comment: This mispronunciation has been around for so long (over 1,000 years) that linguist Mark Aronoff thinks we should cherish it as a part of our linguistic heritage. Most of us would give the axe to "aks." Don't say: athelete, atheletic | Do say: athlete, athletic Comment: Two syllables are enough for "athlete." B Don't say: barbituate | Do say: barbiturate Comment: Don't forget this word contains three others: bar+bit+u+rate Don't say: bob wire | Do say: barbed wire Comment: No, this word wasn't named for anyone named ''Bob;'' it should be "barbed wire," although the suffix -ed, meaning ''having,'' is fading away in the U.S. Don't say: bidness | Do say: business Comment: The change of [s] to [d] before [n] is spreading throughout the US and when the unaccented [I] drops from this word the [s] finds itself in the same environment as in "isn't" and "wasn't." Don't say: a blessing in the skies | Do say: a blessing in disguise Comment: This phrase is no blessing if it comes from the skies. (Pronounce it correctly and help maintain the disguise.) C Don't say: Calvary | Do say: Cavalry Comment: It isn't clear why we say, ''Mind your Ps and Qs'' when we have more difficulty keeping up with our Ls and Rs. Had there been a cavalry in Jesus' time, perhaps Calvary would not have been so tragic. Don't say: cannidate | Do say: candidate Comment: You aren't being canny to drop the [d] in this word. Remember, it is the same as "candy date." (This should help guys remember how to prepare for dates, too.) Don't say: card shark | Do say: cardsharp Comment: Cardsharps probably won't eat you alive, though they are adept at cutting your purse strings. Don't say: carpool tunnel syndrome | Do say: carpal tunnel syndrome Comment: This one is mispronounced (and misspelled) several different ways; we just picked the funniest. Carpal means ''pertaining to the wrist.'' Don't say: caucaphony | Do say: cacophony Comment: There is no greater cacophony [kæ'kafêni] to the ears than to hear the vowels switched in the pronunciation of this word. Don't say: The Caucases | Do say: The Caucasus Comment: Although there are more than one mountain in this chain, their name is not a plural noun. Don't say: chester drawers | Do say: chest of drawers Comment: The drawers of Chester is a typical way of looking at these chests down South but it misses the point. Don't say: chomp at the bit | Do say: champ at the bit Comment: "Chomp" has probably replaced "champ" in the U.S. but we thought you might like to be reminded that the vowel should be [æ] not [o]. Don't say: close | Do say: clothes Comment: The [th] is a very soft sound likely to be overlooked. Show your linguistic sensitivity and always pronounce it. Don't say: coronet | Do say: cornet Comment: Playing a crown (coronet) will make you about as popular as wearing a trumpet (cornet) on your head; reason enough to keep these two words straight. D Don't say: dialate | Do say: dilate Comment: The [i] in this word is so long there is time for another vowel but don't succumb to the temptation. Don't say: diptheria | Do say: diphtheria Comment: The ''ph'' in this word is pronounced [f], not [p]. Don't say: doggy dog world | Do say: dog eat dog world Comment: The world is even worse than you think if you think it merely a "doggy-dog world." Sorry to be the bearer of such bad news. Don't say: drownd | Do say: drown Comment: You add the [d] only to the past tense and past participle. E Don't say: elec'toral | Do say: e'lectoral Comment: The accent is on the second, not the third, syllable and there is no [i] in it; not "electorial." (By the way, the same applies to "mayoral" and "pastoral." Don't say: excape | Do say: escape Comment: The good news is, if you say "excape," you've mastered the prefix ex- because its meaning does fit this word. The bad news is, you don't use this prefix on "escape." Don't say: expresso | Do say: espresso Comment: While I can't express my love for espresso enough, this word was borrowed from Italian well after the Latin prefix ex- had developed into es-. Don't say: excetera | Do say: et cetera Comment: Latin for "and" (et) "the rest" (cetera) are actually two words that probably should be written separately. Don't say: expecially | Do say: especially Comment: Things especial are usually not expected, so don't confuse these words. F Don't say: Febyuary | Do say: February Comment: We don't like two syllables in succession with an [r] so some of us dump the first one in this word. Most dictionaries now accept the single [r] pronunciation but, if you have an agile tongue, you may want to shoot for the original. Don't say: fedral | Do say: federal Comment: Syncopation of an unaccented vowel is fairly common in rapid speech but in careful speech it should be avoided. Don't say: fillum | Do say: film Comment: We also do not like the combination [l] + [m]. One solution is to pronounce the [l] as [w] ("film" [fiwm}, "palm" [pawm]) but some prefer adding a vowel in this word. Don't say: fisical | Do say: fiscal Comment: In fact, we don't seem to like any consonants together. Here is another word, like athlete and film that is often forced to swallow an unwanted vowel. Don't say: flounder | Do say: founder Comment: As verbs, both words have similar meanings with "flounder" meaning to make a lot of errors or to have trouble moving; however, to "founder" is to totally fail. Don't say: foilage | Do say: foliage Comment: Here is another case of metathesis, place-switching of sounds. Remember, the [i] comes after the [l], as in related "folio." Don't say: For all intensive purposes | Do say: For all intents and purposes Comment: The younger generation is mispronouncing this phrase so intensively that it has become popular both as a mispronunciation and misspelling. Don't say: forte | Do say: fort Comment: The word is spelled "forte" but the [e] is pronounced only when speaking of music, as a "forte passage." The words for a strong point and a stronghold are pronounced the same: [fort]. H Don't say: Heineken remover | Do say: Heimlich maneuver (or manoeuvre, Br.) Comment: This term is mispronounced many different ways. This is just the funniest one we have heard. This maneuver (manoeuvre) was named for U.S. surgeon Henry Jay Heimlich (1920- ). Don't say: heighth | Do say: height Comment: The analogy with "width" misleads many of us in the pronunciation of this word because we try to end the word with the "th" sound. The initial [h] and the final [t] is always pronounced. Don't say: hi-archy | Do say: hierarchy Comment: Remember, hierarchies go higher than you might think. This one is pronounced "higher archy" and not "high archy." I Don't say: in parenthesis | Do say: in parentheses Comment: No one can enclose an expression in one parenthesis; at least two parentheses are required. Don't say: interpretate | Do say: interpret Comment: This error results from the back-formation of "interpretate" from "interpretation." But back formation isn't needed; we already have "interpret." Don't say: irregardless | Do say: regardless Comment: "-Less" already says ''without'' so there is no need to repeat the same sentiment with "ir-." J Don't say: jewlery | Do say: jewelry Comment: The root of this word is "jewel" and that doesn't change for either "jeweler" or "jewelry." The British add a syllable: "jewellery" Don't say: jist nor dis | Do say: just Comment: As opposed to the adjective "just," this word is always unaccented, which encourages vowel reduction. However, it sounds better to reduce the [ê] rather than replace it with [i]. K Don't say: Klu Klux Klan | Do say: Ku Klux Klan Comment: Well, there is an [l] in the other two, why not the first? Well, that is just the way it is; don't expect rationality from this organization. L Don't say: lambast | Do say: lambaste Comment: Better to lambaste the lamb than to baste him remember, the words rhyme. "Bast" has nothing to do with it. Don't say: Larnyx | Do say: larynx Comment: More metathesis. Here the [n] and [y] switch places. Mind your [n]s and [y]s as you mind your [p]s and [q]s. Don't say: Laura Norder | Do say: law and order Comment: The sound [aw] picks up an [r] in some dialects (also "sawr" and "gnawr". Avoid it and keep Laura Norder in her place. Don't say: leash | Do say: lease Comment: Southern Americans are particularly liable to confuse these two distinct words but the confusion occurs elsewhere. Look out for it. Don't say: libel | Do say: liable Comment: You are liable for the damages if you are successfully sued for libel. But don't confuse these discrete words. Don't say: libary | Do say: library Comment: As mentioned before, English speakers dislike two [r]s in the same word. However, we have to buck up and pronounce them all. Don't say: long-lived | Do say: long-lived Comment: This compound is not derived from ''to live longly'' (you can't say that) but from ''having a long life'' and should be pronounced accordingly. The plural stem, live(s), is always used: "short-lived," "many-lived," "triple-lived." |
Re: 100 Most Often Mispronounced Words & Phrases In English by kossyablaze(m): 7:03pm On Jan 25, 2016 |
▄︻̷̿┻̿═━一
8 gunshts For u! |
Re: 100 Most Often Mispronounced Words & Phrases In English by aare07(m): 7:15pm On Jan 25, 2016 |
Kudos to you |
Re: 100 Most Often Mispronounced Words & Phrases In English by Slimzjoe(m): 7:23pm On Jan 25, 2016 |
Darkchocolate do Cross-check that Last one |
Re: 100 Most Often Mispronounced Words & Phrases In English by ADENIKETINA2015(f): 8:15pm On Jan 25, 2016 |
FP tinz Don't say t(h)ins, say Things Don't say Lain , say Rain Don't say Fis, say Fish Don't say zampion, say Champion #OneNigeria |
Re: 100 Most Often Mispronounced Words & Phrases In English by ADENIKETINA2015(f): 8:16pm On Jan 25, 2016 |
Nice piece. Taking the gospel to IBADAN & the North |
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