"jag-wire" is simply not an acceptable pronunciation, right?

In My Humble Opinion
1

Now, as far as word definitions and usage goes, I definitely have strong descriptivist leanings.

But, you can’t just pronounce any old word like a tardo and call it gravy.

Or maybe I’m too harsh. . .I know that people have problems with formations like “nuclear”, but does this same problem really apply to jaguar?

Sure, it’s wort of a mouthful, but saying “jag-wire” does not alleviate the mouthful part of it (that g-w combination).

Shit, give it a go with jag-wore or something and then work on the real pronunciation.

Am I missing something? Is it really that tricky?

2

You live in a city where people say amBAlance for ambulance and wooder for water.

I have ceased to be surprised by odd pronounciations of words, but then again I work with a group of people almost exclusively from West Baltimore.

3

You’re right about ambalance.

This was brought on by this week’s AFC wild card games, and that means we’ll be hearing it a lot more over the next week. Mike Ditka is especially bad about it.

4

Does ANYONE pronounce it “jag-wire”? I’ve never heard that.
Everyone I know pronounces it “JAG-wahr”. Some commercials have a British-accented voice soundng out all the vowels – “JAG-you-are”, which sounds pretentious and false to my ears.

But never “jag-wire”

5

I probably say “jag-wire” too…yup. Just said it out loud and I certainly do. But I’d feel like a bit of a ponce if I said it like the announcer in the car adverts and said “Jag-u-wahr”. Midwest accents aren’t pretty.

6

You bad-mouthin’ the way Baltimorons talk, hon? I grew up in Gardenville, where everyone pronounced Jaguar the way you describe, and tires were always “tarrs”. Well, except in my house.

7

Then what were they? Recliners?

Kidding!

8

I watched a documentary about the Cold War two nights ago with a very well-spoken Northern Irish woman doing the voice-over, who repeatedly referred to “nuc-u-lar” escalation. GWB, I take it all back - you only do it occasionally; this woman did it about twice a minute

Me, I pronounce it “JAG-you-[schwa]”, but I appreciate that though correct in my accent, this is a bit odd.

9

A shitload of people do it around here (North Florida) and they have plenty of opportunities, since the Jacksonville football team is the Jaguars.

I think a good slapping of offenders would be appropriate.

10

Good one. Actually, we had a bus tire in the back yard which we used as a sand box. On the pronunciation thing, my parents struggled mightily to quash the most egregious elements of the Baltimore accent, but we all said “wooder”. I eventually overcame even that.

11

Yup. I say “jag-wahr”, but I had a lit professor in college who said “jag-wire”. I don’t know where he was from, but in spite of his really impressive erudition, that always made him sound like a yokel to me. I can’t recall why that came up in a lit class, but I still remember it very clearly.

12

But, did you warsh your tahls?

13

Steve Jobs does, and he’s from California.

14

Yeah, that’s how I’ve always pronounced it and I’m from Gainesville. (and my dad had an old “jag-wire” so I grew up saying it) It just sounds Southern to me.

15

Well, that’s taken the wind out of my sails! I don’t want to slap you so I guess I don’t get to slap anyone else either.

Rats.

16

I also live in Baltimore where it is pronounced Jag-Wire by everyone except for me since I’m not from around these parts. In Baltimore, I’m from Yerp.

More fine Baltimorese: Earl (oil), Tarrs (tires), Zinc (sink), chimley (chimney)and the favorite…‘Downy Owshun’ as in ‘This summer, we’re going downy owshun hon’ as in we’re going to the beach.

17

I pronounce it “Jagular,” as in

:slight_smile:

18

Eh, you can get still get annoyed by it. :slight_smile: My personal pet peeve: pronouncing “picture” as “pitcher” which is the common pronunciation in these parts. Still grates every single time and my friends are so tired of me bitching they now say “piKKK-ture” with a deep, throaty Greek growl.

19

I don’t get huffy about it, but I have heard many folks saying Jag-wire (and Val-vo, too.)

I’ve always said Jag-wahr.

In Jaguar car ads, I have heard Jag-wahr and, more often, Jag-you-ar.

The Spanish explorers/plunderers spelled the native word for the cat, Hahg-wahr. In Spanish, that’s spelled Jaguar.

The cat’s name for itself? I can only guess, from its blood-chilling cry. I can’t quite spell it, but it’s a drawn-out Yeow. :eek:

20

Just remember that no one drives a Porsh.

In German, if there’s a letter, you say it.

I live near Washington state. Actually, BC is so close to Washington state that it touches it for some miles. I love those Washingtonians who say they live in Warshington. They have idears. I have idears too. My idear is: where does that “r” come from?

BTW, some of my kin say “chimley”, too. So even in the nicest families.