# Words that you CANNOT pronounce **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 17, 2001, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-you-cannot-pronounce/76793 "2001-08-17T19:28:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Broken\_Doll](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bbce88/32.png) [@Broken\_Doll](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broken_Doll)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2001, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-you-cannot-pronounce/76793/21 "2001-08-17T21:09:23Z")
Hypothesis. Everytime I say it, it comes out as “Hypothethithith”…hmm. ---
**Author:** ![Sultan\_Kinkari](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7bcc69/32.png) [@Sultan\_Kinkari](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sultan_Kinkari)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2001, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-you-cannot-pronounce/76793/22 "2001-08-17T21:14:53Z")
I just recently learned to roll my tongue(Spanish-esque). Does that count? ---
**Author:** ![Nimue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/d26b3c/32.png) [@Nimue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nimue)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2001, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-you-cannot-pronounce/76793/23 "2001-08-17T21:19:56Z")
I’ve discovered I can’t say “inherited it” without adding an extra “it” on the end. My mom has a similar problem with “Little Italy”, adding an extra “ittle” in the middle. ---
**Author:** ![Turbo\_Dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ce73a5/32.png) [@Turbo\_Dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Turbo_Dog)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2001, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-you-cannot-pronounce/76793/24 "2001-08-17T21:45:31Z")
Worcestershire Sauce Eutychus ---
**Author:** ![lolagranola](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ea5d25/32.png) [@lolagranola](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lolagranola)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2001, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-you-cannot-pronounce/76793/25 "2001-08-17T21:58:27Z")
Massachu… Massa… I can’t even spell it! The state with Boston in it. Can’t say it, can’t spell it. One of my nightmares involves making it to Jeopardy, and then having an answer with that as the question. There are some words I can use easily in conversation, but when I read aloud, I feel like I have to pronounce them the way they are spelled. The example that leaps to mind it “facade”. Speaking from my head, no problem. Reading it? I want to say it “fack-ade”. ---
**Author:** ![warmgun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ecccb3/32.png) [@warmgun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/warmgun)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2001, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-you-cannot-pronounce/76793/26 "2001-08-17T22:52:26Z")
That thing that checks blood pressure - Sthphignamometer…whatever!!! Band name alert!: 'Nuclear Sphincter" ---
**Author:** ![whatisnaughty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/bc79bd/32.png) [@whatisnaughty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/whatisnaughty)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2001, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-you-cannot-pronounce/76793/27 "2001-08-17T22:59:38Z")
I can’t think of any off the top of my head, when it comes to myself, but I used to have a friend who pronounced milk as melk. ---
**Author:** ![Spoonbender](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a8b319/32.png) [@Spoonbender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoonbender)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2001, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-you-cannot-pronounce/76793/28 "2001-08-17T23:18:01Z")
Uvula. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2001, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-you-cannot-pronounce/76793/29 "2001-08-17T23:34:14Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by The Great Gazoo \* > \*\*Xingjiang. As in Gao Xingjiang, Nobel Prize winner for literature. > > I posted this on another list - why is it spelled this way? with the “Xi”? The Chinese don’t spell it that way - they use pictograms. This is a spelling for English readers, so why not spell it like it sounds?? Is this some pedantic asshole trick on us, or is there a plausible excuse? \*\* Ahem: clarification. As mentioned elsewhere on the GQ board recently: That’s **NOT** “a spelling for English readers.” It’s the Pinyin spelling system which is the _People’s Republic of China’s own_ attempt at using Roman characters as phonetics for their _own_ language. Their rules. We could’a gone on using a “spelling for English readers” but they asked nice. ---
**Author:** ![Zweistein](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/54ee81/32.png) [@Zweistein](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zweistein)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2001, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-you-cannot-pronounce/76793/30 "2001-08-18T00:05:14Z")
quiesce he he? he! ---
**Author:** ![TheLoadedDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/35a633/32.png) [@TheLoadedDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheLoadedDog)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2001, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-you-cannot-pronounce/76793/31 "2001-08-18T00:15:01Z")
I have a nasty habit of speaking too quickly, but I do have to consciously slow down if I’m saying “orange juice” in a sentence. “Sixths” is no problem for me because I cheat. I think I pronounce it “sixts”. I think a lot of other people do this too. ---
**Author:** ![DooWahDiddy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e9bcb4/32.png) [@DooWahDiddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DooWahDiddy)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2001, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-you-cannot-pronounce/76793/32 "2001-08-18T00:16:17Z")
You know what word sucks? Rural. I can’t pronounce that for the life of me. ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2001, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-you-cannot-pronounce/76793/33 "2001-08-18T00:38:12Z")
hmm… none of the words in this thread are hard for me, but I swear if I see “photography” written, I say it “photo - graphy” like a big ole retard. ---
**Author:** ![SpartanDC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b2d939/32.png) [@SpartanDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpartanDC)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2001, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-you-cannot-pronounce/76793/34 "2001-08-18T01:00:29Z")
> [@](#): > > _Originally posted by DooWahDiddy_ > **You know what word sucks? Rural. I can’t pronounce that for the life of me.** I’m the same way. A few months ago I was dating a girl that couldn’t pronounce it either. Whenever it would come up in conversation, we’d just get stuck saying “rururururuururur…” ad nauseum. I also can’t pronounce, in a sentence at least, “statistics.” I have to slow down and enunciate every… last… syllable. ---
**Author:** ![rivulus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/839c29/32.png) [@rivulus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rivulus)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2001, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-you-cannot-pronounce/76793/35 "2001-08-18T02:22:43Z")
My own friggin name. Martina. I _hate_ introducing myself. Somewhere between the “m” and the “r” my tongue gets balled up. I can say Artina no problem, but add the “m” and it affects the “r”, which is a hard consonant for me anyway. Stupid American “r”. Then, of course the person I’m talking to can’t understand what I just said so I have to repeat it… And yes, “rural” sucks too. I’m a native speaker of American English, so I don’t know why it’s so hard – except that my mom is German, so I may have gotten the impediment from hearing her say my name and other “r” words with an accent. Also: “edited it”. It usually comes out OK, but it sounds so weird that I do a double take every time. rivulus (which I _can_ pronounce) ---
**Author:** ![anenquiringmind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/54ee81/32.png) [@anenquiringmind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anenquiringmind)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2001, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-you-cannot-pronounce/76793/36 "2001-08-18T02:35:29Z")
Oh, and another one, The name ROY I look and feel like I"ve had a stroke when I say that name… ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2001, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-you-cannot-pronounce/76793/37 "2001-08-18T04:58:40Z")
Am I the only one who has trouble with “directory”? ---
**Author:** ![Ruby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/13edae/32.png) [@Ruby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruby)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2001, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-you-cannot-pronounce/76793/38 "2001-08-18T05:05:31Z")
Hubby is constantly correcting my “q-pon” to “cooo-pon”. I guess I’m just one of those **bilingual rural** gals with a **quiescent uvula** , that has never been to **Massachusetts** , likes **Worcestershire** sauce and **horseradish** , and prefers her pie divided into **sixths**. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![lel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8797f3/32.png) [@lel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lel)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2001, 8:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-you-cannot-pronounce/76793/39 "2001-08-18T08:19:41Z")
I can almost never pronounce “llama” correctly. Then again, “sixths” is pretty bad also. ---
**Author:** ![nerv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/85e7bf/32.png) [@nerv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nerv)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2001, 8:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-you-cannot-pronounce/76793/40 "2001-08-18T08:58:00Z")
If you have trouble with the American pronunciation of the first word, try the British one: “woostasha” (stress on the first syllable) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-you-cannot-pronounce/76793.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-you-cannot-pronounce/76793.md?page=3)