# "Correct" pronounciations that people have given up on **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 11, 2015, 7:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correct-pronounciations-that-people-have-given-up-on/734246 "2015-10-11T07:34:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slow_moving_vehicle/32/291_2.png) [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slow_Moving_Vehicle)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2015, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correct-pronounciations-that-people-have-given-up-on/734246/121 "2015-10-12T22:01:17Z")
> [@stillownedbysetters](#): > > Or you could head back east via Marseilles (mar-sales), IL and Terre Haute (Terra Hawt), IN. Or south to Vienna (VY-eena), Georgia. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2015, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correct-pronounciations-that-people-have-given-up-on/734246/122 "2015-10-12T22:27:44Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > That’s pretty much the standard west coast pronunciation. There might by a tiny vestige of an “uh” in the middle but for most folks it’s almost indistinguishable. I’ve lived on the West Coast all my life and have never heard may-nayze. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2015, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correct-pronounciations-that-people-have-given-up-on/734246/123 "2015-10-12T22:28:46Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > Once when I was driving through California’s central valley, I heard an NPR story where a spokesman kept talking about ‘ammins’. It took me a while to figure out what he was talking about. I found out later that ‘ammin’ is a common pronunciation in some areas, but in 40 years of being a California native, I had never heard it pronounced that way. And I haven’t since. The heart of almond growing country is the town of Chico, and ammin is the default pronunciation there. I know, because I grew up there, and had to learn to re-pronounce it once I moved away. ---
**Author:** ![Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slow_moving_vehicle/32/291_2.png) [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slow_Moving_Vehicle)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2015, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correct-pronounciations-that-people-have-given-up-on/734246/124 "2015-10-12T23:09:48Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > I’ve lived on the West Coast all my life and have never heard may-nayze. Neither have I. But “man-ayze” - with the first syllable pronounced like exactly like the word for a male human - is pretty common. ---
**Author:** ![Lacunae\_Matata](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8491ac/32.png) [@Lacunae\_Matata](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lacunae_Matata)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2015, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correct-pronounciations-that-people-have-given-up-on/734246/125 "2015-10-12T23:11:44Z")
Coupon - from the French for “to cut.” It’s coo-pon. Not cyew-pon. (And I don’t really find it bothersome that some folks change the emphasis on syllables. But ever since my high school journalism teacher pointed this out to me? Drives me buggy. Thanks Mrs. Pool!) And I can’t convince my husband about “forte” = strong = one syllable. Nor “cache” = one syllable. He’s just habituated to pronouncing those words incorrectly. Similarly, my mother insists on pronouncing “concierge” with no final “g”/“zh” sound. She heard once upon a time that French final consonants are never voiced, and remains convinced. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2015, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correct-pronounciations-that-people-have-given-up-on/734246/126 "2015-10-12T23:54:48Z")
I usually commute alone to work. And it’s just as well, because I cannot (and have no reason to) restrain myself from correcting radio announcers when they say “San Peedro,” “Tia-Juana,” and “Noter Dayme.” My family are good enough to tolerate me when I do, but I suspect that a coworker or two might have a problem. And I am uncomfortable with letting people get away with saying “comfterble” in my presence. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correct-pronounciations-that-people-have-given-up-on/734246/127 "2015-10-13T00:19:01Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > I cannot (and have no reason to) restrain myself from correcting radio announcers when they say “San Peedro,” That’s how people who live in San Pedro pronounce it. Including a Hispanic woman I used to work with who lived there. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correct-pronounciations-that-people-have-given-up-on/734246/128 "2015-10-13T00:25:17Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > That’s how people who live in San Pedro pronounce it. Including a Hispanic woman I used to work with who lived there. Well, they can damn well start saying it right. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correct-pronounciations-that-people-have-given-up-on/734246/129 "2015-10-13T01:10:15Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > I’ve lived on the West Coast all my life and have never heard may-nayze. I grew up and lived there for 20+ years and I never heard that either. Reread what I wrote; you’re disagreeing with something I never said. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correct-pronounciations-that-people-have-given-up-on/734246/130 "2015-10-13T02:14:06Z")
I never heard that other thing, either. ---
**Author:** ![california\_jobcase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@california\_jobcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/california_jobcase)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correct-pronounciations-that-people-have-given-up-on/734246/131 "2015-10-13T03:19:08Z")
Too many people mispronounce data. Of course, they should pronounce it correctly, but they don’t! ---
**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:** [October 13, 2015, 5:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correct-pronounciations-that-people-have-given-up-on/734246/132 "2015-10-13T05:38:44Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > That’s pretty much the standard west coast pronunciation. There might by a tiny vestige of an “uh” in the middle but for most folks it’s almost indistinguishable. I say it MAN-nayz, but the “man” part is that may-uhn way of saying “man”–which I occasionally use for emphasis. You know, like when saying. “Man! That’s sucks.” ---
**Author:** ![Bad\_News\_Baboon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/5fc32e/32.png) [@Bad\_News\_Baboon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bad_News_Baboon)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 5:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correct-pronounciations-that-people-have-given-up-on/734246/133 "2015-10-13T05:55:28Z")
> [@Abner\_Ravenwood](#): > > Odd, my Central and South American friends pronounce it BIM-boh, with a closed “O.” It was the same for the Bimbo commercials I heard while living in Buenos Aires. > > Similarly, I’ve never heard gringo pronounced “GREEN-goh.” Always “GRIN-goh.” And I’ve heard this plenty of times, being a “gringo feo” according to my Salvadoran ex-girlfriend and her sisters. Honestly, I’m probably the worst when it comes to “writing things the way they sound”. Pronounciation guides in dictionaries always confuse me. To me, a lot of non-native speakers use -ay, whereas my ears hear -eh (example would be guacamole). Suffice it to say, the American pronouncistion is definitely not the same as in Spanish. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 7:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correct-pronounciations-that-people-have-given-up-on/734246/134 "2015-10-13T07:32:29Z")
> [@Bad\_News\_Baboon](#): > > Bimbo is pronounced in Mexican Spanish as Beem-bo. I’m not sure how you mean “as in girl”… Do you mean literally girl or niña? The second has that sound. The main issue here in the US is that Bimbo - pronounced bim-boh, is what you’d call a pretty but stupid woman, especially one with loose morals. Because of that, the name gets snickered at. I mean as in barbie girl, as in “she’s such a bimbo”… and apparently we agree on how to pronounce it. Now, if Bimbo is trying to get a different pronunciation north of the river than everywhere else, that’s a different problem. ---
**Author:** ![Orville\_mogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/aeb1de/32.png) [@Orville\_mogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Orville_mogul)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 9:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correct-pronounciations-that-people-have-given-up-on/734246/135 "2015-10-13T09:28:00Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > Niche is prefereably pronounced “nitch” but “neesh” gets used more often. So it goes. No, the correct (french) pronunciation is indeed ‘neesh’. American here living in a french-speaking country for the past 15 years. All my family is still living in the US, and I cannot tell you the number of times that I have had to consciously make myself pronounce a french loan word the incorrect American way. If I say it the french way my family calls me pretentious. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Orville\_mogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/aeb1de/32.png) [@Orville\_mogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Orville_mogul)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 9:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correct-pronounciations-that-people-have-given-up-on/734246/136 "2015-10-13T09:35:53Z")
> [@Lacunae\_Matata](#): > > Similarly, my mother insists on pronouncing “concierge” with no final “g”/“zh” sound. She heard once upon a time that French final consonants are never voiced, and remains convinced. The one I love is ‘fleur de lis’ , which is the emblem used by the Scouts, with the last word usually incorrectly pronounced as ‘lee’. ---
**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:** [October 13, 2015, 11:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correct-pronounciations-that-people-have-given-up-on/734246/137 "2015-10-13T11:52:41Z")
> [@Orville\_mogul](#): > > The one I love is ‘fleur de lis’ , which is the emblem used by the Scouts, with the last word usually incorrectly pronounced as ‘lee’. I can find people saying that’s wrong, but no indication why. That is not how French orthography normally works–an S at the end of a word is silent. You’d need to add e at the end. If it’s an /s/ sound instead of a /z/ sound, you’d need it to be ce instead of s. Concierge is different. There’s no reason to think that g would not be pronounced. If anyone knows, I’m curious why lis has an irregular French pronunciation. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correct-pronounciations-that-people-have-given-up-on/734246/138 "2015-10-13T12:20:40Z")
I have heard that the “s” is pronounced in “lys” to distinguish it from “lit,” but I have no idea whether that’s true. ---
**Author:** ![fachverwirrt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/94ad74/32.png) [@fachverwirrt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fachverwirrt)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 12:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correct-pronounciations-that-people-have-given-up-on/734246/139 "2015-10-13T12:29:49Z")
I can’t tell you why, but “lis” or “lys” is indeed pronounced [lis]. There are a handful of French words (“fils” is another one) that fit this pattern. As far as I know, the reason is “because”. ---
**Author:** ![fachverwirrt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/94ad74/32.png) [@fachverwirrt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fachverwirrt)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correct-pronounciations-that-people-have-given-up-on/734246/140 "2015-10-13T12:35:26Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > I have heard that the “s” is pronounced in “lys” to distinguish it from “lit,” but I have no idea whether that’s true. I doubt it, given that there’s no attempt to differentiate between other words that sounds the same (like, say “cor” and “corps”, or “cour”, “courre” and “court”). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correct-pronounciations-that-people-have-given-up-on/734246.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/correct-pronounciations-that-people-have-given-up-on/734246.md?page=8)