# Another pronunciation poll

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-pronunciation-poll/582152>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [May 16, 2011, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-pronunciation-poll/582152 "2011-05-16T23:05:05Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\
**Post date:** [May 19, 2011, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-pronunciation-poll/582152/21 "2011-05-19T01:37:32Z")

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> [@Ignatz](#):
>
> Now that that’s solved, how does one differentiate its pronunciation from that of the Normandy town, Caen?

I thought that was pronounced “Kayen”, almost like “Cayenne”.

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**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\
**Post date:** [May 19, 2011, 8:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-pronunciation-poll/582152/22 "2011-05-19T08:13:26Z")

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> [@Sunspace](#):
>
> I thought that was pronounced “Kayen”, almost like “Cayenne”.

Wikipedia gives it as [kɑ̃], as if it were spelled _kan_ or _ken_. You know, almost rhyming with non, the French word for _no_. I guess it makes sense, since there is no second N, and both \<en\> and \<an\> make the same [sound](http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/File:Fr-en.ogg).

While I’m normally not for using an accent to say foreign words in English, I make an exception for a few sounds, and nasalized vowels are one of them. I guess you could also say something that sounded like “kong,” but it still sounds silly. I cannot see pronouncing the \<n\> as an actual [n], nor treating the vowel like a diphthong.

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**Author:** ![Ximenean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/aca169/32.png) [@Ximenean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ximenean)\
**Post date:** [May 19, 2011, 10:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-pronunciation-poll/582152/23 "2011-05-19T10:10:53Z")

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Anyone going to try Reims? 😃

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**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\
**Post date:** [May 19, 2011, 11:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-pronunciation-poll/582152/24 "2011-05-19T11:23:08Z")

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> [@BigT](#):
>
> Wikipedia gives it as [kɑ̃], as if it were spelled _kan_ or _ken_. You know, almost rhyming with non, the French word for _no_. I guess it makes sense, since there is no second N, and both \<en\> and \<an\> make the same [sound](http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/File:Fr-en.ogg).
> 
> While I’m normally not for using an accent to say foreign words in English, I make an exception for a few sounds, and nasalized vowels are one of them. I guess you could also say something that sounded like “kong,” but it still sounds silly. I cannot see pronouncing the \<n\> as an actual [n], nor treating the vowel like a diphthong.

Caen is a tricky one. (Also, if you pronounce it wrong, it can sound like _con_, which is slightly rude.) I’d pronounce it by starting to say “call” but cutting the vowel off very short and then nasalising it.

As for Rheims… in English we give up altogether and say “reems”. In French, the closest I can get is that it rhymes with _vin_ (in French) but you pronounce the final “s”, softly.

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