# Pronunciations even experts disagree on **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 8, 2023, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciations-even-experts-disagree-on/977898 "2023-01-08T23:50:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![wguy123](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wguy123/32/3161_2.png) [@wguy123](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wguy123)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2023, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciations-even-experts-disagree-on/977898/101 "2023-01-09T20:32:07Z")
Glad to see I brought up one that brings the disputes/discussions. We’ve had these same discussions in the IT arena. “He’s mispronouncing it!” “He’s the CEO…he can pronounce his product however he wants!” etc ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2023, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciations-even-experts-disagree-on/977898/102 "2023-01-09T20:35:10Z")
Shakespeare treated “azure” as having the accent on the first syllable, and I’m not going to be the one to say that Shakespeare’s English was wrong. > [@](#): > > And 'twixt the green sea and the azure vault Set roaring war ---
**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:** [January 9, 2023, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciations-even-experts-disagree-on/977898/103 "2023-01-09T20:36:03Z")
Is that from _Azure Like It_? ---
**Author:** ![MrAtoz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@MrAtoz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrAtoz)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2023, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciations-even-experts-disagree-on/977898/104 "2023-01-09T20:57:33Z")
I’m completely unfamiliar with the software in question. But for what it’s worth, I’ve always pronounced “azure” with the emphasis on the first syllable, and I’m pretty sure that’s how I’ve always heard it pronounced by others. Prior to this thread, were I to have heard anyone pronouncing the word as a-ZURE, I certainly would have considered it a mistake, and probably would have mocked them mercilessly once they were out of earshot. ---
**Author:** ![Walken\_After\_Midnight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b487fb/32.png) [@Walken\_After\_Midnight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walken_After_Midnight)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2023, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciations-even-experts-disagree-on/977898/105 "2023-01-09T20:58:31Z")
Wiktionary has five pronunciations for azure. The word is discussed on an English language usage forum here, without consensus: > I’ll concede that A-zure is acceptable, but if one pronunciation is correct, then I would go for second syllable a-ZURE emphasis, as that is where the emphasis is in the European words it derived from (from Old French azur, via Middle English). However, these European words in turn derived from Arabic لَازَوَرْد‎ (lāzaward, “lapis lazuli”) and Persian لاجورد‎ (lâjvard, “lapis lazuli”), which look like they might have accent on the first syllable. ---
**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:** [January 9, 2023, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciations-even-experts-disagree-on/977898/106 "2023-01-09T20:59:48Z")
> [@Walken\_After\_Midnight](#): > > I’ll concede that A-zure is acceptable, but if one pronunciation is correct, then I would go for second syllable a-ZURE emphasis For what it’s worth, Merriam-Webster gives only the pronunciation with the stress on the first syllable. > **[Definition of AZURE](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/azure)** > > the blue color of the clear sky; the heraldic color blue; the unclouded sky… See the full definition ---
**Author:** ![Walken\_After\_Midnight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b487fb/32.png) [@Walken\_After\_Midnight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walken_After_Midnight)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2023, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciations-even-experts-disagree-on/977898/107 "2023-01-09T21:14:51Z")
Here’s the pronunciation for the Côte d’Azur (“Azure Coast”) in France, also known as the French Riviera: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/yLrQWwT42ro/maxresdefault.jpg "How to Pronounce Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yLrQWwT42ro) ---
**Author:** ![Walken\_After\_Midnight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b487fb/32.png) [@Walken\_After\_Midnight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walken_After_Midnight)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2023, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciations-even-experts-disagree-on/977898/108 "2023-01-09T21:44:59Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Shakespeare treated “azure” as having the accent on the first syllable, and I’m not going to be the one to say that Shakespeare’s English was wrong. > > > [@](#): > > > > And 'twixt the green sea and the azure vault Set roaring war The Youtube videos of the ‘Ye Elves of Hills’ monologue from The Tempest I watched do indeed pronounce it as first-syllable emphasis A-zur’d. With even the Brits in the English language usage forum not agreeing on which syllable the emphasis should fall, I guess both forms are acceptable. ---
**Author:** ![wguy123](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wguy123/32/3161_2.png) [@wguy123](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wguy123)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2023, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciations-even-experts-disagree-on/977898/109 "2023-01-09T22:23:50Z")
> [@MrAtoz](#): > > Prior to this thread, were I to have heard anyone pronouncing the word as a-ZURE, I certainly would have considered it a mistake, and probably would have mocked them mercilessly once they were out of earshot. > [@Walken\_After\_Midnight](#): > > I’ll concede that A-zure is acceptable, but if one pronunciation is correct, then I would go for second syllable a-ZURE emphasis Back-to-back posts. Excellent! [![](https://i.imgflip.com/8d13c.jpg?a464616) ](https://i.imgflip.com/8d13c.jpg?a464616) ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2023, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciations-even-experts-disagree-on/977898/110 "2023-01-09T22:50:17Z")
> [@Dead\_Cat](#): > > Small data point: I’ve never heard this in Britain (or anywhere, in fact). Interesting. So probably not widespread, then. The first source that comes to mind is the Youtuber **mikeselectricstuff**. [For example](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8WH5tCNIIck) (says it in the first 10 seconds). Could be an individual quirk, though I’m pretty sure I’ve heard it in other cases. He’s definitely a professional. I wonder if people that have to say it ten thousand times a day eventually get tired of spelling it out. ---
**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:** [January 9, 2023, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciations-even-experts-disagree-on/977898/111 "2023-01-09T22:53:34Z")
> [@Dr.Strangelove](#): > > I wonder if people that have to say it ten thousand times a day eventually get tired of spelling it out. Not many people know the early work of _L.E.D. Zepellin_. But as another data point, another Brit here, and I’ve never heard it said that way, so I think it’s probably just idiosyncratic rather than associated with the U.K. ---
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2023, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciations-even-experts-disagree-on/977898/112 "2023-01-09T22:54:21Z")
I’ve heard it said that if you say Mary, merry and marry exactly the same, you are American - or, no doubt, from some particular part(s) of same. ---
**Author:** ![Tibby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tibby/32/17030_2.png) [@Tibby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tibby)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2023, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciations-even-experts-disagree-on/977898/113 "2023-01-09T23:25:56Z")
_Soup or salad_ sounds exactly like _super salad_ to me. This has embarrassed me on numerous occasions at restaurants when the waiter/waitress asks “would you like a soup or salad with your meal” and I answer, “yes please.” I dine out infrequently, so I keep forgetting that a “super” salad is not really a thing at fine restaurants. ---
**Author:** ![Hatchie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hatchie/32/3983_2.png) [@Hatchie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hatchie)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2023, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciations-even-experts-disagree-on/977898/114 "2023-01-10T00:42:54Z")
“Compact”. Compact disc, compact car. Always pronounced COM-PACT, both syllables stressed, as in a written agreement. But how it _should_ be pronounced is com-PACT, something made smaller. But I gave up doing that. Nobody cared. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2023, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciations-even-experts-disagree-on/977898/115 "2023-01-10T00:54:38Z")
The verb is pronounced comPACT. The noun or adjective is pronounced COMpact. There are a few other examples of this in English, though the only other one that comes to mind is “record”. ---
**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:** [January 10, 2023, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciations-even-experts-disagree-on/977898/116 "2023-01-10T01:00:37Z")
I don’t know about the UK, but I’ve definitely heard it said as “led” and said it that way myself before. Wiktionary gives both pronunciations: > **[LED - Wiktionary](https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/LED)** ---
**Author:** ![Wallaby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/dc4da7/32.png) [@Wallaby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wallaby)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2023, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciations-even-experts-disagree-on/977898/117 "2023-01-10T01:05:20Z")
Half the people in Australia pronounce the word castle to rhyme with ‘parcel’ and the other half to rhyme with ‘hassle’. Fortunately, I am in the 50% who get it right 🙂. ---
**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:** [January 10, 2023, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciations-even-experts-disagree-on/977898/118 "2023-01-10T01:07:06Z")
> [@Hatchie](#): > > But how it _should_ be pronounced is com-PACT, something made smaller. The dictionary gives both pronunciations in the adjectival usage in the US. I say COM-pact car (there is a secondary stress on the second syllable, yes, but the first is slightly stronger), as well, not com-PACT car, which sounds really weird to my ears. I can’t think of any adjectival usage where I would say “com-PACT” instead of “COM-pact.” ---
**Author:** ![am77494](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d2c977/32.png) [@am77494](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/am77494)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2023, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciations-even-experts-disagree-on/977898/119 "2023-01-10T01:29:03Z")
What about Aluminum? Or Aluminium ? ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2023, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciations-even-experts-disagree-on/977898/120 "2023-01-10T01:36:06Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > There are a few other examples of this in English, though the only other one that comes to mind is “record”. Attribute. In my line of work, a particular type of data is called an attribute, pronounced AT-ri-bute. Except one of my coworkers, to my infinite annoyance, always says a-TRI-bute. No one else does this. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciations-even-experts-disagree-on/977898.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciations-even-experts-disagree-on/977898.md?page=7)