# Pronuciation help please. **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 3, 2009, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronuciation-help-please/516197 "2009-11-03T20:02:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![MizTina](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MizTina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MizTina)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2009, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronuciation-help-please/516197/1 "2009-11-03T20:02:10Z")
Abacus. Do you pronounce it \*\*a-back-us \*\*or **abba-kiss**? I did a search and found both on vocal pronuciation pages. So I can’t tell which is correct. But I do have a beer riding on it and decided to bring it to the best and brightest. And yes, I am shamelessly pandering. 🙂 Thanks in advance! ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2009, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronuciation-help-please/516197/2 "2009-11-03T20:03:30Z")
Checked a dictionary? ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2009, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronuciation-help-please/516197/3 "2009-11-03T20:05:08Z")
Split that beer – both pronunciations are equally correct. Many English words are that way, actually. EDIT: any and all dictionary citations will show both pronunciations. ---
**Author:** ![ToeJam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dfb087/32.png) [@ToeJam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ToeJam)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2009, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronuciation-help-please/516197/4 "2009-11-03T20:15:56Z")
If this turns into an IMHO- I say Abbah-cuss. ---
**Author:** ![jujuju](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/7993a0/32.png) [@jujuju](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jujuju)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2009, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronuciation-help-please/516197/5 "2009-11-03T20:20:16Z")
> [@bordelond](#): > > EDIT: any and all dictionary citations will show both pronunciations. They will also show the correct spelling for “pronunciation” (as compared to the thread title) 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![MizTina](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MizTina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MizTina)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2009, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronuciation-help-please/516197/6 "2009-11-03T22:32:10Z")
> [@Joe Frickin Friday](#): > > Checked a dictionary? I did and found two different ways in two different dictionaries. AOL online dictionary has this **ˈa-bə-kəs** and my trusty Funk and Wagnalls shows it thisaway **AB ə kəs**. So no help there and that is why I thought I would go with majority rule. I do agree that both are possibly right, and mentioned the Toe-may-toe, Toe-ma-to thing only to be booed down by the word opponent. And heh, that naughty ‘n’ running away from me like that! Fie on it! 😃 ---
**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 3, 2009, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronuciation-help-please/516197/7 "2009-11-03T22:41:17Z")
> [@MizTina](#): > > I did and found two different ways in two different dictionaries. AOL online dictionary has this **ˈa-bə-kəs** and my trusty Funk and Wagnalls shows it thisaway **AB ə kəs**. So no help there and that is why I thought I would go with majority rule. Aren’t those both the same pronunciation? It just looks like they split the syllables differently, but both have the stress on the first syllable. ---
**Author:** ![MizTina](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MizTina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MizTina)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2009, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronuciation-help-please/516197/8 "2009-11-03T23:41:29Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Aren’t those both the same pronunciation? It just looks like they split the syllables differently, but both have the stress on the first syllable. I cannot tell. I wish that both had done it the same way, as it would have made it easier for the one in the room(me) that has always had troubling deciphering those pronunciation codes. ---
**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 4, 2009, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronuciation-help-please/516197/9 "2009-11-04T00:14:58Z")
> [@MizTina](#): > > I cannot tell. I wish that both had done it the same way, as it would have made it easier for the one in the room(me) that has always had troubling deciphering those pronunciation codes. Both have the accent on the first syllable, as far as I can tell, in your examples. One marks it with the accent mark preceding the syllable accented. The other marks it with capital letters. However, one source giving both ABacus and aBACus as a pronuncation is [here](http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/abacus). I’ve only heard it pronounced with the accent on the first syllable. ---
**Author:** ![UDS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecae2f/32.png) [@UDS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UDS)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2009, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronuciation-help-please/516197/10 "2009-11-04T01:57:15Z")
Depends on where you live. The OED (UK standard) and Macquarie (Australian standard) both offer only one pronunciation, with the stress on the first syllable. I suspect the pronunciation with the stress on the second syllable is found only in the US. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2009, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronuciation-help-please/516197/11 "2009-11-04T04:52:52Z")
> [@MizTina](#): > > AOL online dictionary has this **ˈa-bə-kəs** and my trusty Funk and Wagnalls shows it thisaway **AB ə kəs**. Those are both the same, and with rare exceptions that’s the way I’ve always heard it: accent on the first syllable. ---
**Author:** ![Shot\_From\_Guns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2009, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronuciation-help-please/516197/12 "2009-11-04T20:42:11Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Aren’t those both the same pronunciation? It just looks like they split the syllables differently, but both have the stress on the first syllable. By what I learned in grade school, splitting the first syllable to include the b would mean that the a is short (ab-), and excluding the b would be the a is long (a-). No clue if the dictionaries in question follow that convention, though. ---
**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 4, 2009, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronuciation-help-please/516197/13 "2009-11-04T21:02:02Z")
> [@Shot\_From\_Guns](#): > > By what I learned in grade school, splitting the first syllable to include the b would mean that the a is short (ab-), and excluding the b would be the a is long (a-). No clue if the dictionaries in question follow that convention, though. I’ve never heard that before, but looking online [here](http://www.referencecenter.com/ref/dictionary?invocationType=topsearchbox.refcentre&query=abacus), which is what I get from trying to find an online AOL dictionary, I get " ˈa-bə-kəs" for the pronunciation, while “able” gives me " ˈā-bəl", with the macron showing the long English vowel sound. So, it seems short “a” is indicated in both examples given by the OP. ---
**Author:** ![spingears](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ebca7d/32.png) [@spingears](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spingears)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2009, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronuciation-help-please/516197/14 "2009-11-06T16:07:48Z")
[Dictionary.com](http://Dictionary.com) will provide an audible pronunciation for you, just click on the icon following the spelling. ---
**Author:** ![Serenata67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/serenata67/32/10646_2.png) [@Serenata67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Serenata67)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2009, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronuciation-help-please/516197/15 "2009-11-08T15:49:34Z")
> [@ToeJam](#): > > If this turns into an IMHO- I say Abbah-cuss. This is how I say it. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2009, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronuciation-help-please/516197/16 "2009-11-08T17:09:16Z")
I’ve occasionally heard it with the accent on the second syllable, and always assumed (without proof) that this was the British way of saying it. ---
**Author:** ![Jake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f475e1/32.png) [@Jake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jake)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2009, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronuciation-help-please/516197/17 "2009-11-08T17:14:07Z")
> [@jujuju](#): > > They will also show the correct spelling for “pronunciation” (as compared to the thread title) > > 🙂 Nice catch jujuju. 🙂 ---
**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 8, 2009, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronuciation-help-please/516197/18 "2009-11-08T17:28:05Z")
Yeh, I pronounce it _abbah-cuss._ Like the [first red audio icon](http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/abacus) at [m-w.com](http://m-w.com). But, apparently there’s a second pronunciation that I’ve never come across, which sounds like the OP’s first example (the 2nd red audio icon). Where do you live, **MizTina?** ---
**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 8, 2009, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronuciation-help-please/516197/19 "2009-11-08T17:38:49Z")
> [@MizTina](#): > > I do agree that both are possibly right, and mentioned the Toe-may-toe, Toe-ma-to thing only to be booed down by the word opponent. It’s toe-MAY-toe vs toe-MAH-toe. Or tuh-MAY-toe, as most Americans would say it. Except when they pronounce it tuh-MAY-tuh.