# How do you pronounce "niche"? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 25, 2015, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pronounce-niche/738546 "2015-11-25T14:51:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanub/32/132_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUB)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2015, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pronounce-niche/738546/21 "2015-11-25T19:10:06Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > Neesh or nitch are both fine. I think we should teach the controversy. 🙂 The conTROVersy? ---
**Author:** ![Buck\_Godot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/buck_godot/32/6573_2.png) [@Buck\_Godot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buck_Godot)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2015, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pronounce-niche/738546/22 "2015-11-25T19:50:39Z")
I would probably pronounce it nitch, in conversation, but reading it I would pronounce it neesh, as the spelling would remind me to not be a vulgar barbarian. ---
**Author:** ![DrCube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a3d4f5/32.png) [@DrCube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrCube)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2015, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pronounce-niche/738546/23 "2015-11-25T20:18:45Z")
Nitch. Keesh. ---
**Author:** ![Sangahyando](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f14d63/32.png) [@Sangahyando](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sangahyando)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2015, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pronounce-niche/738546/24 "2015-11-25T20:28:39Z")
> [@Katriona](#): > > Reminds me of that poem often attributed to Dorothy Parker: > > Upon my honor > I saw a Madonna > Standing in a niche > Above the door > Of the prominent whore > Of a prominent son of a bitch. Or the verse offering by Anon: There was a fair Abbess of Chichester Who made all the saints in their niches stir. Her form, though obscured, The old Adam lured – Made the Bishop of Chichester’s breeches stir. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2015, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pronounce-niche/738546/25 "2015-11-25T20:39:02Z")
> [@WOOKINPANUB](#): > > The conTROVersy? Yeah, just put it on the shedule. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2015, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pronounce-niche/738546/26 "2015-11-25T20:40:57Z")
“Nitch,” otherwise I feel pretentious, like pronouncing Paris “Pare-ee”. ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2015, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pronounce-niche/738546/27 "2015-11-25T21:06:39Z")
Actually, I pronounce niche as ‘neech’, but I feel ‘nitch’ is a related but separate word. A nitch is an actual, physical place. A place that a real, physical \*object \*fits into perfectly (kind of related to ‘notch’ or ‘nook’) . A neech is a job, a role, a career position etc. that a person’s \*personality \*fits into perfectly (i.e. finding one’s niche). And I don’t say ‘neesh’ because it sounds gay… 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Cazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cazzle/32/75_2.png) [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2015, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pronounce-niche/738546/28 "2015-11-25T21:17:18Z")
Neesh. I’m discovering the nitch pronunciation here for the first time. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2015, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pronounce-niche/738546/29 "2015-11-25T21:19:55Z")
> [@Kamino\_Neko](#): > > Quickie, duh. > > It’s neesh. > > Though ‘Nietzsche’ has its charms. Nitchy is pitchy. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2015, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pronounce-niche/738546/30 "2015-11-25T21:23:08Z")
Knee chu Though I tend to avoid saying it because I’ll either sound pretentious or wrong or both. ---
**Author:** ![HowSoonIsThen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e56c9b/32.png) [@HowSoonIsThen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HowSoonIsThen)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2015, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pronounce-niche/738546/31 "2015-11-25T21:37:51Z")
I compromise and pronounce it either nish or neetch. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2015, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pronounce-niche/738546/32 "2015-11-25T21:50:53Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > How do you pronounce quiche? KEE-chay. A big group of Maya Indians living in central and Western Guatemala. As for “niche”: I usually say “neesh” (as in, a “niche market”), but in ecology contexts I’ve been taught to say “nitch.” ---
**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:** [November 25, 2015, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pronounce-niche/738546/33 "2015-11-25T21:58:47Z")
I tend towards using neesh for the adjective and nitch for the noun. Though, when reading, I always see neesh, as nitch makes no sense since the word ends in an e, not an h, and there is no t, which seems to be required in English. And of course you say year-ro. Where in the world can you say it wrong and not be immediately thought of as a dunce? Just don’t say either word with an affected accent or make a big deal out of your pronunciation, and it won’t sound pretentious. In a casual American accent, they sound fine. ---
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2015, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pronounce-niche/738546/34 "2015-11-25T22:10:16Z")
None of this is as alarming as the common American pronunciation of the word “buoy”. That’s just _wrong_ 😉 ---
**Author:** ![CT\_Damsel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dfb087/32.png) [@CT\_Damsel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CT_Damsel)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2015, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pronounce-niche/738546/35 "2015-11-25T22:15:47Z")
I say neech it rhymes with leech ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2015, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pronounce-niche/738546/36 "2015-11-25T22:20:06Z")
Either (or ither). ---
**Author:** ![Wallaby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/dc4da7/32.png) [@Wallaby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wallaby)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2015, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pronounce-niche/738546/37 "2015-11-25T22:28:15Z")
Tom-ay-to/Tom-ar-to - fair enough. But has anyone, ever, in the entire history of human speech - ever said ‘pot-ar-to’? ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2015, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pronounce-niche/738546/38 "2015-11-26T00:12:02Z")
We can compromise on “nish”! I don’t know. I myself probably say “neesh” or “nish” more than “nitch”–but if I heard any of them, I’d know what you meant. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2015, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pronounce-niche/738546/39 "2015-11-26T00:16:29Z")
I’m kinda wondering if some people aren’t saying how they say (type) it is how they say it. Like “neesh” or “nitch”. Think of “new”. Now think of “knee”. Note the difference. I suspect alot of folks that are saying “neesh” or “nitch” actually mean something more along the lines of “kneesh”. Just a random thought. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2015, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pronounce-niche/738546/40 "2015-11-26T00:24:29Z")
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