# Feb-roo-ary or Feb-you-ary- What do you say? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 22, 2006, 8:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feb-roo-ary-or-feb-you-ary-what-do-you-say/385198 "2006-12-22T08:02:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2006, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feb-roo-ary-or-feb-you-ary-what-do-you-say/385198/21 "2006-12-22T15:37:12Z")
[QUOTE=Caught@Work] Feb-ry. Two syllables here. [/QUOTE] Yes – very like the last day of the week, sat-dee. ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2006, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feb-roo-ary-or-feb-you-ary-what-do-you-say/385198/22 "2006-12-22T15:41:11Z")
[QUOTE=FriarTed] A California-born, Idaho-dwelling friend made fun of me for saying “Feb-you-ary”. [/QUOTE] As do I. Southeastern US. Never heard anyone IRL pronounce the first “r,” other than some radio announcers. Merriam-Webster also shows that as the first pronunciation, which would seem to indicate that it’s the more common usage. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2006, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feb-roo-ary-or-feb-you-ary-what-do-you-say/385198/23 "2006-12-22T15:53:45Z")
It’s Feb-roo-arr-ee. You can say “Bruce” and “brutal” right? So why the heck can’t you pronounce the second moth of the year correctly. The “R” is not silent. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2006, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feb-roo-ary-or-feb-you-ary-what-do-you-say/385198/24 "2006-12-22T15:54:52Z")
[QUOTE=Leaffan] It’s Feb-roo-arr-ee. You can say “Bruce” and “brutal” right? So why the heck can’t you pronounce the second moth of the year correctly. The “R” is not silent. [/QUOTE] …or month even… ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2006, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feb-roo-ary-or-feb-you-ary-what-do-you-say/385198/25 "2006-12-22T15:56:21Z")
And on the same thought, Wednesday has a fucking “D” in it. It’s not Wensday. Fuck. ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2006, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feb-roo-ary-or-feb-you-ary-what-do-you-say/385198/26 "2006-12-22T15:58:50Z")
[QUOTE=Leaffan] And on the same thought, Wednesday has a fucking “D” in it. It’s not Wensday. Fuck. [/QUOTE] Fuck – it’s Wensdee for me (and for most people speaking Australian English). So it has a fucking “D” in it, but not two fucking D’s. ---
**Author:** ![gardentraveler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gardentraveler/32/3576_2.png) [@gardentraveler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gardentraveler)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2006, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feb-roo-ary-or-feb-you-ary-what-do-you-say/385198/27 "2006-12-22T16:00:39Z")
Feb-you-ary here (grew up in Michigan, lived in Ohio most of my adult life). I think it’s a simple case of sounds getting glossed over when they’re in unaccented syllables. And for the record, nu-cue-lar makes my skin crawl. GT ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2006, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feb-roo-ary-or-feb-you-ary-what-do-you-say/385198/28 "2006-12-22T16:09:29Z")
[QUOTE=gardentraveler] Feb-you-ary here (grew up in Michigan, lived in Ohio most of my adult life). I think it’s a simple case of sounds getting glossed over when they’re in unaccented syllables. And for the record, nu-cue-lar makes my skin crawl. GT [/QUOTE] Michigan? Well that’s gotta be the pronunciation capital of the world. “It sure is hat today.” “Would you like battle of pap with that?” (I’m kidding folks… Merry Christmas. No ill feelings… OK?) ---
**Author:** ![Eleanor\_of\_Aquitaine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a88e4f/32.png) [@Eleanor\_of\_Aquitaine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eleanor_of_Aquitaine)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2006, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feb-roo-ary-or-feb-you-ary-what-do-you-say/385198/29 "2006-12-22T16:22:05Z")
I pronounce it Feb-you-ary, unless I’m writing the word. Then I carefully pronounce it “Feb-roo-ary” in my head so that I will spell it correctly. ---
**Author:** ![Alive\_At\_Both\_Ends](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/73ab20/32.png) [@Alive\_At\_Both\_Ends](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alive_At_Both_Ends)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2006, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feb-roo-ary-or-feb-you-ary-what-do-you-say/385198/30 "2006-12-22T16:55:57Z")
“Feb-ry” or “Feb-u-ary” (although the real pronunciation is “Throatwarbler Mangrove”.) ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2006, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feb-roo-ary-or-feb-you-ary-what-do-you-say/385198/31 "2006-12-22T17:07:23Z")
Wisconsin has names you’ll never get right if you didn’t hear them growing up. Michigan has alot of nasties as does all of Canada. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2006, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feb-roo-ary-or-feb-you-ary-what-do-you-say/385198/32 "2006-12-22T17:09:59Z")
[QUOTE=Harmonious Discord] Wisconsin has names you’ll never get right if you didn’t hear them growing up. Michigan has alot of nasties as does all of Canada. [/QUOTE] What are you talking aboot? ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2006, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feb-roo-ary-or-feb-you-ary-what-do-you-say/385198/33 "2006-12-22T17:23:16Z")
Feb roo air ee most often Feb wary sometimes Feb yoo airy if I’m tired. Wed 'nsday vej et uh bull ---
**Author:** ![Priam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/77aa72/32.png) [@Priam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Priam)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2006, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feb-roo-ary-or-feb-you-ary-what-do-you-say/385198/34 "2006-12-22T17:27:22Z")
I live in a linguistics border area, so I flip back and forth on a lot of words. Sometimes it’s pronounced “fehb-you-airy” and sometimes “feh-brew-airy”. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2006, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feb-roo-ary-or-feb-you-ary-what-do-you-say/385198/35 "2006-12-22T17:31:18Z")
Feb u air ee. Some goofball desk clerk character in a Raymond Chandler novel “pronounced it the way it was spelled”, so you know that’s got to be wrong. We’re talking Humphrey Bogart here. Get a grip. ---
**Author:** ![xanthous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/53a042/32.png) [@xanthous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xanthous)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2006, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feb-roo-ary-or-feb-you-ary-what-do-you-say/385198/36 "2006-12-22T20:50:51Z")
I cringe every time I hear someone pronounce it Feb-you-ary. I say Feb-ru-ary because, I dunno, that’s the correct pronunciation. It seems to me that the mispronunciation is widespread, as I heard people say it that way all my life in the midwest, and I still hear people say it that way here on the west coast. I do say Wensday, so I’m no pronuncitation snob, but for some reason Feb-you-ary skeeves me right on out! ---
**Author:** ![lazybratsche](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ba8739/32.png) [@lazybratsche](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lazybratsche)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2006, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feb-roo-ary-or-feb-you-ary-what-do-you-say/385198/37 "2006-12-22T21:06:42Z")
What **Eleanor of Aquitaine** said. I was having a hard time figuring out how I actually pronounced it, until I saw her explanation. If I say them silently, but “sound” correct to me… but saying anything other than FEB-you-airy out loud just seems… unnatural. But, when writing it out, I think FEB-roo-airy. FWIW, I grew up mostly in the Midwest, but spent my most formative years bouncing between there, a couple of brief stops in the South, and several years in the Southwest. I’ve got an odd collection of regionalisms. ---
**Author:** ![Suburban\_Plankton](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suburban_plankton/32/219_2.png) [@Suburban\_Plankton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suburban_Plankton)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2006, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feb-roo-ary-or-feb-you-ary-what-do-you-say/385198/38 "2006-12-23T03:24:04Z")
Feb-roo-ary. I also say Wed-ns-day, and gov-ern-ment ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2006, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feb-roo-ary-or-feb-you-ary-what-do-you-say/385198/39 "2006-12-23T03:40:45Z")
If Noclue or aha posted for “Feb ru ary” I’d ask, “Did your classmates laugh at you in grade school?” 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Quiddity\_Glomfuster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/c4cdca/32.png) [@Quiddity\_Glomfuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quiddity_Glomfuster)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2006, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feb-roo-ary-or-feb-you-ary-what-do-you-say/385198/40 "2006-12-23T04:01:19Z")
‘Feb you airy’ - and I was born in it so I get to pick. It doesn’t bother me to hear ‘Feb roo airy’ but it’s not a pretty mouthful - same goes for ‘Wed nus day’ or ‘War chest er shire’ … oops, guess I’m going too far hee. I have heard (not often, praise Og) ‘Febber airy’. That displeased me. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feb-roo-ary-or-feb-you-ary-what-do-you-say/385198.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feb-roo-ary-or-feb-you-ary-what-do-you-say/385198.md?page=3)