# Take the online accent quiz **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [February 29, 2012, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-online-accent-quiz/614344 "2012-02-29T14:52:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Alka\_Seltzer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c89c15/32.png) [@Alka\_Seltzer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alka_Seltzer)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-online-accent-quiz/614344/41 "2012-02-29T17:48:18Z")
Is it bad if the test says you are a Martian dachshund? A friend is asking. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-online-accent-quiz/614344/42 "2012-02-29T17:49:02Z")
> [@Mr\_Shine](#): > > English, quiz pegged me as NE American Heh, me too. I also answered ‘they sound different’ to every question. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-online-accent-quiz/614344/43 "2012-02-29T17:51:13Z")
> [@Maastricht](#): > > Dopers, Can I ask something? Do I have an accent in writing? Can you tell by my word usage I am from the Netherlands? Not to this New England sounding English person. ---
**Author:** ![Lanzy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/74df32/32.png) [@Lanzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lanzy)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-online-accent-quiz/614344/44 "2012-02-29T17:56:00Z")
From Memphis TN but this thing says inland North. I call it a miss. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-online-accent-quiz/614344/45 "2012-02-29T17:59:47Z")
It correctly ID’d me as Inland North. And I’m \*so \*Inland North, when I lived in Chicago, they made fun of my nasal way of talking. SE MI born and raised, btw. ---
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-online-accent-quiz/614344/46 "2012-02-29T18:00:38Z")
> [@Barking\_Dog](#): > > It _is_ a silly quiz. The quiz will work only if the answers truly reflect the way a person talks without thinking about their pronunciation. But some people think that because a word is spelled differently that they pronounce it differently, even though they don’t, so they give answers that they think they _should_ say, rather than what they really say. (Not to say that’s what happened in your case, though.) It would work much better if the quiz could actually record people talking, (using the words in question), without telling them the purpose of the test. ---
**Author:** ![Paintcharge](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/paintcharge/32/7946_2.png) [@Paintcharge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paintcharge)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-online-accent-quiz/614344/47 "2012-02-29T18:07:14Z")
Got me as Boston. I was born in a suburb of Boston and grew up in Maine. Living in Upstate New York now, my friends tell me my Maine comes out when I get drunk. ---
**Author:** ![Zulema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/db5fbb/32.png) [@Zulema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zulema)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-online-accent-quiz/614344/48 "2012-02-29T18:07:42Z")
Mine was 100% Inland North. I’m from Detroit and live in Wisconsin and there’s a pretty big difference between the two. I have never been accused of being from Wisconsin and my friends say they can tell I’m not from here. ---
**Author:** ![missred](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/missred/32/14096_2.png) [@missred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/missred)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-online-accent-quiz/614344/49 "2012-02-29T18:10:00Z")
> [@Cub\_Mistress](#): > > I got “Midland”, the same as **Brynda** , which makes sense since we were raised in the same house. Which is odd…I got southern. I grew up in northern Indiana, but in an area that was a stop on the hillbilly highway (Mom’s family came from the hills). I’ve lived the biggest chunk of my adult life in Tennessee though. ---
**Author:** ![SpoilerVirgin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@SpoilerVirgin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpoilerVirgin)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-online-accent-quiz/614344/50 "2012-02-29T18:12:51Z")
I’m from Northern California, and my accent is from the West. ---
**Author:** ![Rhiannon8404](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rhiannon8404/32/17929_2.png) [@Rhiannon8404](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhiannon8404)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-online-accent-quiz/614344/51 "2012-02-29T18:16:00Z")
Midland Born, raised and have always lived in Northern California. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-online-accent-quiz/614344/52 "2012-02-29T18:25:56Z")
> [@Maastricht](#): > > …Dopers, Can I ask something? Do I have an accent in writing? Can you tell by my word usage I am from the Netherlands? Of course. But try as I might, I just can’t figure out if you have a Benthuizen or an Amsterdam accent in writing. ---
**Author:** ![limegreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/82dd89/32.png) [@limegreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/limegreen)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-online-accent-quiz/614344/53 "2012-02-29T18:32:05Z")
It got me right --‘southern Illinois’. It also said I have a good voice for radio or TV. That was a bit strange… ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-online-accent-quiz/614344/54 "2012-02-29T19:38:07Z")
> [@limegreen](#): > > It got me right --‘southern Illinois’. It also said I have a good voice for radio or TV. That was a bit strange… It says the same thing for Midland (the lower Midwest). ---
**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-online-accent-quiz/614344/55 "2012-02-29T19:49:28Z")
Did anyone else run into trouble with Question 8? The three options for Mary, marry, and merry were that they were all the same, all different, or that “marry” was the outlier. I think that “merry” is the outlier (it has slightly more of an “eh” sound to the vowel than the others). I guess I just made that up? I’ve lived in California all my life (Northern and Southern). I was pegged as “Midland”. I’m wondering what the difference is supposed to be that gets you tagged with “West”, since as far as I can tell, I pretty much talk like other folk 'round here. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-online-accent-quiz/614344/56 "2012-02-29T19:51:45Z")
> [@iamthewalrus\_3](#): > > Did anyone else run into trouble with Question 8? > > The three options for Mary, marry, and merry were that they were all the same, all different, or that “marry” was the outlier. I think that “merry” is the outlier (it has slightly more of an “eh” sound to the vowel than the others). I guess I just made that up? > > I’ve lived in California all my life (Northern and Southern). I was pegged as “Midland”. I’m wondering what the difference is supposed to be that gets you tagged with “West”, since as far as I can tell, I pretty much talk like other folk 'round here. I had that problem too. I went with “They’re all the same.” But I know better. “Merry” \*is \*different. ---
**Author:** ![picunurse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@picunurse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picunurse)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-online-accent-quiz/614344/57 "2012-02-29T19:55:45Z")
It says I’m from Chicago (which I have trouble even spelling, it took three tries). I was born, raised and have returned multiple times to the Pacific Northwest. When I lived in the midwest for a short time, people thought I was Canadian. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-online-accent-quiz/614344/58 "2012-02-29T19:59:36Z")
Can I respectfully enquire as to what the pronunciation diiferences between “caught” and “cot” might be in some American dialects? ‘Cause I got nothin’. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-online-accent-quiz/614344/59 "2012-02-29T20:04:40Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > Can I respectfully enquire as to what the pronunciation diiferences between “caught” and “cot” might be in some American dialects? ‘Cause I got nothin’. I’ve heard “cot” pronounced with slightly more pursed lips than “caught.” Sort of the difference between the first syllables of “codependent” and “cauterize” (at least as I pronounce them). ---
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-online-accent-quiz/614344/60 "2012-02-29T20:06:29Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > Can I respectfully enquire as to what the pronunciation diiferences between “caught” and “cot” might be in some American dialects? ‘Cause I got nothin’. /kɔt/ vs. /kɑt/ [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-online-accent-quiz/614344.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-online-accent-quiz/614344.md?page=4)