This may sound silly to some, but I need this kind of post to remind me of some words that I usually mispronounce. You see, English isn’t my native language and so despite belonging to a country with reputedly better English speakers than the rest of Asia, I sometimes fall into the convenient trap of pronouncing words as I hear them spoken by others, without asking or confirming. Trust me that you can’t trust your ears all the time.
So here’s the list of words from my own mistakes and those I often hear from others. I asked around and searched online for the proper or standard pronunciation.
Amenable
Say uh-MEE-nuh-bul, not uh-MHE-nuh-bul
Applicable
Accent on the first syllable: A-plih-kuh-bul, not uh-PLIH-kuh-bul
Buffet
When referring to a table covered with food, say buh-FAY, not boo-FAY.
When using the word in all its other meanings, say BUH-feht.
Chic
Say SHEEK, not Chick
Comparable
Say COM-pruh-bul, not com-PAIR-uh-bul
Curriculum Vitae
Say kuh-RIH-kew-lum VEE-tie, not VEE-tay.
Décor
Say day-KAWR
Déjà vu
Say day-zhah-VOO, not day-ja-VOO
Divisive
Say dih-VIE-siv, not dih-VIH-siv
February
Don’t ignore the r so say FEB-roo-err-ree, not FEB-yoo-err-ree.
Formidable
Accent on the first syllable, so say FOR-mih-duh-bul, not for-MID-duh-bul
Forte
When you mean “strong point” as in “Writing is Marianne’s forte,” pronounce as FORT. When you mean “loud” as in a musical direction, pronounce as FOR-tay.
Heinous
Say HAY-nus
Incomparable
Say in-COM-pruh-bul, not in-com-PAIR-a-bul
Interested, Interesting
Say IN-truh-stid, not IN-ter-ess-ted. Say IN-truh-sting, not in-teh-RES-ting
Laboratory
Say LAB-ruh-taw-ree, not la-BO-ruh-toe-ree.
Length
Be sure to pronounce the g so say LENGTH, not LENTH.
Liaison
Say LEE-uh-zahn, not LAY-uh-zhan or lee-YAY-zhan
Niche
Say NITCH, not NEESH
Patronize
Pronounce pa as in pay, so say PAY-truh-nyze, not PA-tro-nyze.
Precedent
Accent on first syllable, so say PRESS-uh-dent, not pruh-SEE-dent
Primer
When referring to a very basic book, say PRIM-mer. For all other meanings of the word, say PRYE-mer
Quasi
Say KWAY-zye, not KWA-zi or KWAY-zi
Rendezvous
Say RAHN-day-voo
Reputable
Accent on the first syllable, so say REH-pyuh-tuh-bul, not reh-PYOO-tuh-bul
Schism
Say SIH-zum, not SKIH-zum
Strength
Pronounce the g so say STRENGTH, not STRENTH
Subpoena
Say suh-PEE-nuh, not sub-PEE-nuh
Substantial, Substantive
Take note of different accent on syllable. Say sub-STAN-shul. Say SUB-stin-tive.
Vice Versa
Say VY-suh VER-suh, not Vies VER-suh
I remember a group of college students who came up to me once to say that a student from a different school, who looked Pinoy from head to toe, repeatedly pronounced “Internet” as “in-nir-net” during a presentation. They asked if it was the right way to say it. I laughed because not only did the pronunciation sound funny to me, but I also imagined how that student said the word with all the “sleng” (slang) she could ‘muster.’ hahaha! Typical of a Pinoy who tries too damn hard to sound American. 😀 My laughter gave away the answer to the students.
Can you add some commonly mispronounced words in this list?
collapsing barrycade 