# Mispronounced words and descriptions that drive you crazy **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 22, 2018, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mispronounced-words-and-descriptions-that-drive-you-crazy/824951 "2018-11-22T18:31:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2018, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mispronounced-words-and-descriptions-that-drive-you-crazy/824951/141 "2018-11-28T19:54:30Z")
Veterinarian is becoming vet’narian. They’re chopping out a huge chunk of the word. ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2018, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mispronounced-words-and-descriptions-that-drive-you-crazy/824951/142 "2018-11-28T21:31:26Z")
People who say “mano a mano” and think it means “man to man”. The phrase actually means “hand to hand”, as in combat. Even worse are those who say “mano y mano”, which means “hand and hand” and makes no sense. ---
**Author:** ![EmilyG](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/emilyg/32/364_2.png) [@EmilyG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EmilyG)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2018, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mispronounced-words-and-descriptions-that-drive-you-crazy/824951/143 "2018-11-28T21:44:41Z")
There’s a guy who does traffic and weather on a local radio station, and he pronounces “overnight” as “oval-night” and Saturday as “Sattle-day.” ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2018, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mispronounced-words-and-descriptions-that-drive-you-crazy/824951/144 "2018-11-29T00:34:59Z")
This one may be slightly off-topic, as it is a commonly misspelled word rather than commonly mispronounced. Nevertheless, it grates me just the same: _Defiantly_ when _definitely_ is meant. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2018, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mispronounced-words-and-descriptions-that-drive-you-crazy/824951/145 "2018-11-29T02:22:37Z")
> [@Flyer](#): > > Two others that I just thought of, that hasn’t been mentioned yet– > > Over the the years, I’ve heard an astonishing number of traffic reporters on the radio talk about a highway “eggsit.” The word that they’re looking for is _exit_. Radio people, of all people, should be aware of proper diction. > > I’ve also heard certain people talk about “lugsury” goods. What’s wrong with “lugsury”? If you pronounce the second half as “zhury” instead of “shury”, then you pretty much have to voice the “k” in the first part of the “x” sound, so it becomes a “g.” “Luck-shurry”(/ˈlʌkʃəɹi/) sounds slightly odd to me. “Lug-zhurry”(ˈlʌɡʒəɹi/) sounds right. Your dialect may vary. ([Like the first or third pronunciation on this site](https://forvo.com/word/luxury/#en)). ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2018, 5:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mispronounced-words-and-descriptions-that-drive-you-crazy/824951/146 "2018-11-29T05:37:40Z")
> [@Flyer](#): > > I’ve also heard certain people talk about “lugsury” goods. Like this? [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/VKHFZBUTA4k/hqdefault.jpg "The Four Yorkshiremen Sketch") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VKHFZBUTA4k&t=114) ---
**Author:** ![Sangahyando](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f14d63/32.png) [@Sangahyando](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sangahyando)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2018, 10:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mispronounced-words-and-descriptions-that-drive-you-crazy/824951/147 "2018-11-29T10:57:54Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > Veterinarian is becoming vet’narian. They’re chopping out a huge chunk of the word. In the UK, we just say “vet” 🙂 . (I know that that word of three letters, has a different meaning in the States. I don’t think we have a specific single word which denotes a former member of the armed forces.) ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2018, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mispronounced-words-and-descriptions-that-drive-you-crazy/824951/148 "2018-11-29T12:32:38Z")
> [@Sangahyando](#): > > In the UK, we just say “vet” 🙂 . (I know that that word of three letters, has a different meaning in the States. I don’t think we have a specific single word which denotes a former member of the armed forces.) “Vet” is also commonly used for “veterinarian” here in the US, as well. ---
**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 29, 2018, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mispronounced-words-and-descriptions-that-drive-you-crazy/824951/149 "2018-11-29T13:04:02Z")
> [@Flyer](#): > > Two others that I just thought of, that hasn’t been mentioned yet– > > Over the the years, I’ve heard an astonishing number of traffic reporters on the radio talk about a highway “eggsit.” The word that they’re looking for is _exit_. Radio people, of all people, should be aware of proper diction. > > I’ve also heard certain people talk about “lugsury” goods. We could have a whole other thread titled “Apparently there is no such thing as a proper radio voice anymore”. What _is_ the prerequisite these days to get an on-air job? ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2018, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mispronounced-words-and-descriptions-that-drive-you-crazy/824951/150 "2018-11-29T15:21:53Z")
> [@WOOKINPANUB](#): > > We could have a whole other thread titled “Apparently there is no such thing as a proper radio voice anymore”. What _is_ the prerequisite these days to get an on-air job? See, to me, “egg-zit” is the correct pronunciation. If you look at [dictionary.com](https://www.dictionary.com/browse/exit) or [Merriam-Webster](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/exit), it’s the first pronunciation listed. “Eks-it” just sounds odd to my ears. Letters get voiced in English all the time, depending on their context. The most obvious example is the letter “s” for a plural. It can be the sound “s” or the sound (voiced) “z.” If the preceding sound is a vowel or a voiced consonant, it becomes a “z” sound. I assume a similar thing is happening here where “x” gets pronounced as “'gz” instead of "ks."For example, a terminating “x” I would always pronounce as “ks.” But an intervocalic “x” I think I usually pronounce as a “gz.” ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2018, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mispronounced-words-and-descriptions-that-drive-you-crazy/824951/151 "2018-11-29T15:30:49Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > But an intervocalic “x” I think I usually pronounce as a “gz.” Strike that. It seems that in most cases, I will pronounce it as “ks.” I’m trying to figure out if there is a linguistic “rule” I follow as to when I pronounce it “gz” and when I pronounce it “ks.” Looks like the “exi” combination usually comes out “egg-zi” with me. Existential. Exit. Exhilarating (ok, “exhi” there, but silent “h.”) But “sexing” comes out as “seksing.” There is some kind of rule at work, but I can’t quite figure it out. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2018, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mispronounced-words-and-descriptions-that-drive-you-crazy/824951/152 "2018-11-29T20:18:54Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > This one may be slightly off-topic, as it is a commonly misspelled word rather than commonly mispronounced. Nevertheless, it grates me just the same: _Defiantly_ when _definitely_ is meant. Yep. I always assume they misspelled “definitely” so badly that autocorrect couldn’t tell what word had been intended, but IMHO that’s still no excuse. ---
**Author:** ![Doug\_K](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5ac83/32.png) [@Doug\_K](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doug_K)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2018, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mispronounced-words-and-descriptions-that-drive-you-crazy/824951/153 "2018-11-29T20:27:08Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > See, to me, “egg-zit” is the correct pronunciation. If you look at [dictionary.com](https://www.dictionary.com/browse/exit) or [Merriam-Webster](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/exit), it’s the first pronunciation listed. “Eks-it” just sounds odd to my ears. Letters get voiced in English all the time, depending on their context. The most obvious example is the letter “s” for a plural. It can be the sound “s” or the sound (voiced) “z.” If the preceding sound is a vowel or a voiced consonant, it becomes a “z” sound. I assume a similar thing is happening here where “x” gets pronounced as “'gz” instead of "ks."For example, a terminating “x” I would always pronounce as “ks.” But an intervocalic “x” I think I usually pronounce as a “gz.” It’s neither egg-zit nor eks-it. it’s exit. X has a distinct sound, but eks probably comes closer to the x sound than egs. It has a completely different mouth feel when saying it. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2018, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mispronounced-words-and-descriptions-that-drive-you-crazy/824951/154 "2018-11-29T20:40:59Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Strike that. It seems that in most cases, I will pronounce it as “ks.” I’m trying to figure out if there is a linguistic “rule” I follow as to when I pronounce it “gz” and when I pronounce it “ks.” Looks like the “exi” combination usually comes out “egg-zi” with me. Existential. Exit. Exhilarating (ok, “exhi” there, but silent “h.”) But “sexing” comes out as “seksing.” There is some kind of rule at work, but I can’t quite figure it out. Try these words: Flexible Chex Mix Mexico Exit Exemplary Exotic If you’re like me, it’s “X” in the first set, and “Eggs” in the second set. When the “ex” is preceded by a consonant, I get a hard X sound. With one exception: Brexit. The eggs in Brexit come with the portmanteau. ---
**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 29, 2018, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mispronounced-words-and-descriptions-that-drive-you-crazy/824951/155 "2018-11-29T20:42:29Z")
> [@Doug\_K](#): > > It’s neither egg-zit nor eks-it. it’s exit. X has a distinct sound, but eks probably comes closer to the x sound than egs. It has a completely different mouth feel when saying it. Agreed. I was just thinking the other day about my co-worker whose last name is Cox. Keep in mind I work with a most prurient, juvenile group and said co-worker is the leader of the pack. Anyway, it occurred to me to wonder if he was ever self conscious about his last name and then I thought “\* I\* never hear “cocks” when I hear “Cox” , so why would he?” (if that makes sense). All that aside, the comment I made about radio personnel really wasn’t about this particular issue. If only this was the biggest problem with the way most of them speak ☹ ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2018, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mispronounced-words-and-descriptions-that-drive-you-crazy/824951/156 "2018-11-29T22:13:36Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > Try these words: > > Flexible > Chex Mix > Mexico > > Exit > Exemplary > Exotic > > If you’re like me, it’s “X” in the first set, and “Eggs” in the second set. When the “ex” is preceded by a consonant, I get a hard X sound. > > With one exception: Brexit. The eggs in Brexit come with the portmanteau. Yep, same pronunciation as yours in all cases. I don’t see how “x” has a different pronunciation to “ks.” They feel exactly the same to me the way I say it, and the IPA marking for it is /ks/. Perhaps some dialects distinguish it in some way, but I’m not aware mine does. I would say Mexico and Meksico exactly the same way. And I sure as heck wouldn’t even know how to distinguish “cox” from “cocks.” They are pronounced exactly the same in my dialect. The only place where “x” would be pronounced different than “ks” is in those exit/examplary/exotic examples. If spelled with a “ks,” I’d probably pronounce it voiceless (as a “ks”) as opposed to voiced, as is done in my dialect (“gz.”) ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2018, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mispronounced-words-and-descriptions-that-drive-you-crazy/824951/157 "2018-11-30T01:15:48Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Yep, same pronunciation as yours in all cases. Except wait, I’m gonna fuck up the execution of my proposed rule with an extreme excess of words that break it. Who, for example, lives in Texas? All my exes. ---
**Author:** ![Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulf_the_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2018, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mispronounced-words-and-descriptions-that-drive-you-crazy/824951/158 "2018-11-30T01:30:34Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Yep, same pronunciation as yours in all cases. > > I don’t see how “x” has a different pronunciation to “ks.” They feel exactly the same to me the way I say it, and the IPA marking for it is /ks/. Perhaps some dialects distinguish it in some way, but I’m not aware mine does. I would say Mexico and Meksico exactly the same way. And I sure as heck wouldn’t even know how to distinguish “cox” from “cocks.” They are pronounced exactly the same in my dialect. The only place where “x” would be pronounced different than “ks” is in those exit/examplary/exotic examples. If spelled with a “ks,” I’d probably pronounce it voiceless (as a “ks”) as opposed to voiced, as is done in my dialect (“gz.”) Completely agree that unvoiced x and ks are the same sound, just represented differently in spelling. This is one of those times I’d love to do an experiment with someone who says they’re different: Record various people saying word pairs such as flex/flecks, hacksaw/Texas, extra/huckster, lynx/sinks…where the sounds in question appear in different positions—after a vowel at the end of the word, before a vowel, before a consonant, after a consonant. Then isolate the x and ks/cks sounds in the recordings. Play them and ask the listener to identify which are representing the letter x and which are not. I’d be really surprised if people could do this consistently. I’m sure I couldn’t. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2018, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mispronounced-words-and-descriptions-that-drive-you-crazy/824951/159 "2018-11-30T01:40:22Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > Except wait, I’m gonna fuck up the execution of my proposed rule with an extreme excess of words that break it. Who, for example, lives in Texas? All my exes. Ah, yes. It’s “eks-iss” there, too, not “egg-ziss.” There must be some rule! ---
**Author:** ![newme](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e0b2c6/32.png) [@newme](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/newme)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2018, 6:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mispronounced-words-and-descriptions-that-drive-you-crazy/824951/160 "2018-11-30T06:58:27Z")
For me, ex is pronounced eks (exit = eksit) unless 1. the word starts with the spelling ex- (no leading consonant) 2. and the accent is on the second syllable. 3. and the first \*sound \*after the x is a vowel sound, except for words starting with exs- or exc-. So **exist = egzist** \*\* exact = egzact\*\* \*\* exhume = egzoom\*\* but **except = eksept** \*\* exsanguinate = eksanguinate \*\* So “ **eccentric** ” is still pronounced “ **eksentric** ”, although I think “ **eccentricity** ” I may pronounce either way: “ **egzentrissity" "eksentrissity** ”. I guess **eccentricity** is **WEIRD**.🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mispronounced-words-and-descriptions-that-drive-you-crazy/824951.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mispronounced-words-and-descriptions-that-drive-you-crazy/824951.md?page=9)