# Intentionally mispronounced words **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 3, 2004, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intentionally-mispronounced-words/253375 "2004-07-03T16:13:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Fox\_Paws](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/85e7bf/32.png) [@Fox\_Paws](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fox_Paws)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2004, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intentionally-mispronounced-words/253375/1 "2004-07-03T16:13:22Z")
We all know of people who frequently mispronounce particular words. President Bush is infamous for “nukular” instead of nuclear; my dad says “mute” point rather than moot point; some people “aks” me questions; etcetera. We all do this once in a while on accident. But what words do _you_ mispronounce _intentionally_? Whether it’s to be ironical, or to drive a friend or family member crazy, or just because you’re too lazy to do it correctly. Why do I ask, you ask? Well, I’m doing it in honor of my new username, **Fox Paws** , a play on “faux pas.” I also like to mangle oars d’vors (hors d’oeuvres) and chipottle (chipotle, correctly pronounced as “chee-pote-lay”). In fact, I like to mispronunciate (sic) several Spanish words in honor of my father, who is famous for mutilating that language. What words and phrases do you intentionally garble, and why? Any funny stories associated with your intentionally mispronunciations? ---
**Author:** ![LifeOnWry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/96bed5/32.png) [@LifeOnWry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LifeOnWry)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2004, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intentionally-mispronounced-words/253375/2 "2004-07-03T16:24:40Z")
Horizontical. It started as a verbal typo, and stuck. ---
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2004, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intentionally-mispronounced-words/253375/3 "2004-07-03T16:28:26Z")
A couple of years ago a friend of mine’s family went to spain. Everywhere he went he’d say “Grassy Arse” to people. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2004, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intentionally-mispronounced-words/253375/4 "2004-07-03T16:58:23Z")
I do this all the time with French words (“faux pas” rhymes with “hawks pass”)—I figure, if they didn’t want them to be pronounced that way, they shouldn’t have spelled them that way. 😛 Any classical music fans here familiar with the Czech composer Smegma, or the old German conductor Fartwiggler? ---
**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:** [July 3, 2004, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intentionally-mispronounced-words/253375/5 "2004-07-03T18:00:04Z")
My favorite is Radio Snack. For those outside the US, Radio Shack is a chain of stores selling electronic stuff. Target discount stores had an ad years ago with a French chef hawking cooking gear at “Tar-zhay.” Ever since, that the way I say it. ---
**Author:** ![MidnightRadio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ecd19e/32.png) [@MidnightRadio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MidnightRadio)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2004, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intentionally-mispronounced-words/253375/6 "2004-07-03T18:37:33Z")
> [@AskNott](#): > > Target discount stores had an ad years ago with a French chef hawking cooking gear at “Tar-zhay.” All of my friends say that and it drives me nuts. ---
**Author:** ![MissGypsy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8491ac/32.png) [@MissGypsy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MissGypsy)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2004, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intentionally-mispronounced-words/253375/7 "2004-07-03T18:40:49Z")
My ex-husband always did the hors-de-vors (hors d’oeuvres) thing, too. I ask my SO to bring me a fudgicle (rather than fudgsicle, and I’m still not sure about the spelling) from the freezer, but that’s because I saw it on an episode of “Laverne & Shirley” when I was about 8 and thought it was hilarious. Somehow, the pronunciation stuck with me. ---
**Author:** ![Helena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c68b51/32.png) [@Helena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Helena)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2004, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intentionally-mispronounced-words/253375/8 "2004-07-03T18:44:03Z")
We use “snuftocate” for “suffocate.” I’m not sure how that started. ---
**Author:** ![SolGrundy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbce88/32.png) [@SolGrundy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SolGrundy)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2004, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intentionally-mispronounced-words/253375/9 "2004-07-03T18:47:33Z")
I say “lieberry” and “nukeular” and “irregardless” and “jewlery”, as well as “ATM Machine” and “PIN Number”. I started just to be a jerk and make fun of the people who say them. Now it’s gotten to be a habit. ---
**Author:** ![FatBaldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecd19e/32.png) [@FatBaldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FatBaldGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2004, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intentionally-mispronounced-words/253375/10 "2004-07-03T19:13:35Z")
I always pronounce hors d’oeuvres as “horse doovers.” I’ve also been known to say “viola” instead of “voila,” and frequently come up with “absotively, posolutely.” ---
**Author:** ![Fox\_Paws](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/85e7bf/32.png) [@Fox\_Paws](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fox_Paws)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2004, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intentionally-mispronounced-words/253375/11 "2004-07-03T19:26:02Z")
Some more I’ve thought of: [ul] [li]Pasketti (a Fox Vixen favorite)[/li][li]Hypotheoretically[/li][li]Underbrella (my sister used to say this, and it has stuck within our family)[/li][li]Loaf Meat[/li][/ul] ---
**Author:** ![Vision\_of\_Love](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Vision\_of\_Love](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vision_of_Love)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2004, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intentionally-mispronounced-words/253375/12 "2004-07-03T19:30:59Z")
I pronounce “probably” like “probaly” or “prolly” in casual conversation. It’s such a nasty word to pronounce. The correct version I only use when necessary, or when I’m writing/typing, of course. ---
**Author:** ![picker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/picker/32/13969_2.png) [@picker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picker)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2004, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intentionally-mispronounced-words/253375/13 "2004-07-03T19:34:12Z")
I often pronounce _milk_ as _myuk_. Something i picked up from my grandfather, who was born and raised deep in the Smokey Mountains. **Althea** absolutely hates it when I do this, as the pronunciation drives her crazy. Of course, courtesy of my grandfather (or Pappy, as I knew him), I also tend to ‘reckon’ and ‘figure’ a lot. That and a southern accent that grows exponentially worse as I drink tends to make me the subject of a lot of jokes up in the land of cheese. P ---
**Author:** ![Kat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b19c9b/32.png) [@Kat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kat)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2004, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intentionally-mispronounced-words/253375/14 "2004-07-03T19:44:57Z")
I pronounce rhinoceros as rhino-saurus. ---
**Author:** ![Antigen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/848f3c/32.png) [@Antigen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antigen)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2004, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intentionally-mispronounced-words/253375/15 "2004-07-03T20:49:31Z")
I like to call them shit-take mushrooms. I call my local IGA “igga”. With one of my friends, the conversation often includes words like “liberry” and “edumacation”. We think it’s amusing. People who overhear us think we’re nuts. A typo once produced the word “Congrtas”, and now I say it like that sometimes, with people who are in on the joke. Has to be delivered forcefully, in a low manly voice, preferably with an accent like a Russian general or something, for it to have its full effect. I’ll also put em **pha** sis on the wrong syl **la** ble a lot, just to be weird. Especially with people’s names. ---
**Author:** ![1010011010](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/1/ea666f/32.png) [@1010011010](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/1010011010)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2004, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intentionally-mispronounced-words/253375/16 "2004-07-03T20:50:54Z")
My family pretty consistently mispronounces the following when talking amongst themselves (family reunions, etc.) but we say them correctly if talking to someone else (that I’ve observed anyway). Filet Mignon (fill-ET MIG-non), hors d’oeuvres (whores doovers), Pina Colada (Penis Colossus- really just Uncle Dan while he’s drunk on this one), lobster (la-bob-ster)… it’s becoming pretty obvious my family goes out to resaurants when we’re all together, isn’t it? Not quite on topic, but I have a cousin whose personal term for Crown Royal whiskey and Coca-Cola (I.E Crown’n’Coke) is “RC Cola”. Incidentally, Crown Royal and Royal Crown is one of the more foul mixed drinks and an abuse of whiskey… pretty obvious my family drinks at these restaurants, to, eh? Despite claims that it’s incorrect, I will continue to pronounce “often” with a hard T (Oft-en) until I die… even if some linguist/pedant finds it offen-sive. I also contract “I imagine” into I’magine… both writing and speaking. ---
**Author:** ![yellowval](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/919ad9/32.png) [@yellowval](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yellowval)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2004, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intentionally-mispronounced-words/253375/17 "2004-07-03T20:51:55Z")
My favorite word to mis-pronounce is “crouton.” I pronounce it “crau-ton” with emphasis on the second syllable. It’s from the episode of “The Cosby Show” when Dr. Huxtable takes Rudy and her little friends to a fancy restaurant. ---
**Author:** ![yellowval](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/919ad9/32.png) [@yellowval](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yellowval)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2004, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intentionally-mispronounced-words/253375/18 "2004-07-03T20:53:56Z")
[QUOTE=yellowval] with emphasis on the second syllable.QUOTE] What I meant was, with emphasis on the first syllable. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![SparrowHawk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ac8455/32.png) [@SparrowHawk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SparrowHawk)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2004, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intentionally-mispronounced-words/253375/19 "2004-07-03T20:58:17Z")
And here I thought those things were rhinosterhorses. Courtesy my niece **Sakura** , who called dinosaurs “dinohorses.” ---
**Author:** ![Askia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Askia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askia)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2004, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intentionally-mispronounced-words/253375/20 "2004-07-03T21:07:23Z")
I’ve been taking my students to pick apples every fall for the past three years. It has been recently brought to my attention that I have a tendency to say “apple orchid” instead of “apple orchard.” Hoo-boy. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/intentionally-mispronounced-words/253375.md?page=2)