# Yaaarghh! It's pronounced SUB-SID-I-ARY, goddammit!! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [January 20, 2011, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yaaarghh-its-pronounced-sub-sid-i-ary-goddammit/568284 "2011-01-20T03:44:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2011, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yaaarghh-its-pronounced-sub-sid-i-ary-goddammit/568284/41 "2011-01-21T14:02:40Z")
Where I am, the word “expedite” is used a lot. It’s rarely spelled or pronounced correctly. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2011, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yaaarghh-its-pronounced-sub-sid-i-ary-goddammit/568284/42 "2011-01-21T14:12:14Z")
> [@jjimm](#): > > My boss says “pacifically” all the time. He even read it off a presentation yesterday that said “specifically” right there on the screen. He’s not the only one in the company, either. =3 :smack::smack::smack: I have a teacher right now who does this one. Like nails on a chalkboard, it is. She mangles a lot of other words, too, but this is the \*specific \*one that makes me want to stab my own brain with my pen. And why is it that people who say “pacifically” seem to use the word so very often? Twenty times a class, she’ll have to be pacific and pacifically use the word, when I swear “specifically” comes up in my vocabulary twice a week. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2011, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yaaarghh-its-pronounced-sub-sid-i-ary-goddammit/568284/43 "2011-01-21T15:24:08Z")
I know the Brits have some rather odd pronunciations by American standards; leftenant, Ah Kuyeeda, terminal Rs like “the city of Chacager in Americer”, and the like. BBC America, and the growth in public and community radio stations, with BBC World Service filling in some of the airtime, are bringing more of those oddball pronunciations to the forefront. One I heard a few days ago: “dik-ahhd”. The context: “In this, the second dikahhd of the 21st century …” Earlier, I heard one of the days of the week pronounced as “Wed-niss-day”. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2011, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yaaarghh-its-pronounced-sub-sid-i-ary-goddammit/568284/44 "2011-01-21T15:27:03Z")
> [@elmwood](#): > > One I heard a few days ago: “dik-ahhd”. The context: “In this, the second dikahhd of the 21st century …” I’ve lived here most of my life and have never heard this pronunciation. ETA: could be Kiwi maybe? If you really want to hurt your American ears, try listening to us saying “vehicle”. (“Veiu-kul”) ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2011, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yaaarghh-its-pronounced-sub-sid-i-ary-goddammit/568284/45 "2011-01-21T16:28:28Z")
> [@jjimm](#): > > If you really want to hurt your American ears, try listening to us saying “vehicle”. (“Veiu-kul”) Heh. Reminds me of the time I took a tour of the Kennedy Space Center. A highlight of the tour was the famous [Vehicle Assembly Building](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vehicle_Assembly_Building). Due to the tour guide’s extremely thick southern/African American pronunciation, however, the name of this structure was forever burned into my brain as the “Vickle Semmy Building”. ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2011, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yaaarghh-its-pronounced-sub-sid-i-ary-goddammit/568284/46 "2011-01-21T19:18:38Z")
My Mom adds Rs and performs other gymnastics. It’s really noticable with the street names that she mispronounces. Drove one of my sons nuts, but as he got older, he joined the rest of us in being philosophical about it. It seems to happen more often with new names, rather than general words. Once a mispronunciation has gotten into her head and been reinforced by saying the word out loud, nothing can make her say it any other way. The neural pathways have been set and will not reform. Covell Street will always be Corvell. Nintendo will always be Intendo. ---
**Author:** ![MLS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MLS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MLS)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2011, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yaaarghh-its-pronounced-sub-sid-i-ary-goddammit/568284/47 "2011-01-24T17:59:47Z")
I used to have a co-worker who said “in-term” for interim. Some years back one of my fellow Mensa members submitted an article for our newsletter that included the phrase “for all intensive purposes.” She readily accepted the correction, but I couldn’t help think, “Goodness, woman, have you never seen that in writing?” ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2011, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yaaarghh-its-pronounced-sub-sid-i-ary-goddammit/568284/48 "2011-01-24T23:04:50Z")
All you people need to stop hyperventilating about mispronunciations or you’ll have an arrest and they’ll need to call Respitory Services for you. Yes, I hear this constantly over the hospital intercom. _“Res-pi-tory Services, to the emergency department!”_ Another favorite is the labeling of sentinel lymph node specimens from Surgery (these are nodes sent for special pathologic evaluation before a full axillary node dissection is done). Various misspellings of “sentinel” are in vogue, my favorite of which is “centennial” nodes. If only this happened just every 100 years. ---
**Author:** ![california\_jobcase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@california\_jobcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/california_jobcase)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yaaarghh-its-pronounced-sub-sid-i-ary-goddammit/568284/49 "2011-01-25T00:13:08Z")
I taught high school science for 26.5 years. It still amazes me how many of my colleagues mispronounce meiosis, pumice, zoology, and Punnet square. Don’t get me started on the Food Network and plantains. ---
**Author:** ![jasonh300](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/46a35a/32.png) [@jasonh300](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jasonh300)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yaaarghh-its-pronounced-sub-sid-i-ary-goddammit/568284/50 "2011-01-25T01:08:27Z")
> [@gotpasswords](#): > > Where I am, the word “expedite” is used a lot. > > It’s rarely spelled or pronounced correctly. What’s wrong with expedite? ---
**Author:** ![Klaatu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Klaatu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Klaatu)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yaaarghh-its-pronounced-sub-sid-i-ary-goddammit/568284/51 "2011-01-25T02:32:28Z")
You people obviously aint pacifically orientated to the way words are pernounced these days. This is an incenerary topic. A mod should put the breaks on it. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yaaarghh-its-pronounced-sub-sid-i-ary-goddammit/568284/52 "2011-01-25T02:58:12Z")
What is up with aluminum and a-lu-min-i-um? ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yaaarghh-its-pronounced-sub-sid-i-ary-goddammit/568284/53 "2011-01-25T03:00:00Z")
> [@Klaatu](#): > > You people obviously aint pacifically orientated to the way words are pernounced these days. > This is an incenerary topic. A mod should put the breaks on it. Dam it! Insiniary! ---
**Author:** ![california\_jobcase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@california\_jobcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/california_jobcase)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yaaarghh-its-pronounced-sub-sid-i-ary-goddammit/568284/54 "2011-01-25T03:09:17Z")
It’s aluminum in North America- aluminium everywhere else. Sorta like colour and color, armor and armour, sulfur and sulphur, blah blah blah. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yaaarghh-its-pronounced-sub-sid-i-ary-goddammit/568284/55 "2011-01-25T03:17:14Z")
> [@Klaatu](#): > > You people obviously aint pacifically orientated to the way words are pernounced these days. > This is an incenerary topic. A mod should put the breaks on it. Maybe we all need some kind of perscription. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yaaarghh-its-pronounced-sub-sid-i-ary-goddammit/568284/56 "2011-01-25T03:19:57Z")
Those other examples have the same pronunciation. Or do they? Escuse me, I meant pronounciation. My story – and I’m going to stick to it – is that everywhere else is wrong. ---
**Author:** ![california\_jobcase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@california\_jobcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/california_jobcase)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yaaarghh-its-pronounced-sub-sid-i-ary-goddammit/568284/57 "2011-01-25T03:27:49Z")
Nobody’s mentioned warshing and rinching yet. ---
**Author:** ![Klaatu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Klaatu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Klaatu)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yaaarghh-its-pronounced-sub-sid-i-ary-goddammit/568284/58 "2011-01-25T03:32:15Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > Maybe we all need some kind of perscription. This I agree with. Perhaps a gerneric? It would be cheaper. ---
**Author:** ![fachverwirrt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/94ad74/32.png) [@fachverwirrt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fachverwirrt)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yaaarghh-its-pronounced-sub-sid-i-ary-goddammit/568284/59 "2011-01-25T04:21:15Z")
> [@california\_jobcase](#): > > Nobody’s mentioned warshing and rinching yet. My wife’s grandfather used to warsh his hands in the zink. After using the tarlet. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2011, 6:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yaaarghh-its-pronounced-sub-sid-i-ary-goddammit/568284/60 "2011-01-25T06:59:14Z")
I was assaulted again today with “heighth”. I’ve heard “larnyx” too many times as well. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yaaarghh-its-pronounced-sub-sid-i-ary-goddammit/568284.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yaaarghh-its-pronounced-sub-sid-i-ary-goddammit/568284.md?page=4)