# Your Pronunciation **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 23, 2021, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-pronunciation/949375 "2021-08-23T15:27:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**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:** [August 30, 2021, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-pronunciation/949375/141 "2021-08-30T01:15:34Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > When you phonetically spell it “DAH-ta” I think you mean “Dah” to rhyme with “ah” or “hah!” (or as in the songs by [Trio](https://youtu.be/lNYcviXK4rg?t=52) or [The Police](https://youtu.be/7v2GDbEmjGE?t=66)). I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone say “data” like that. > > But for as long as I can remember, I’ve heard the two different pronunciations “day-ta” and “dat-a” (rhyming with the first two syllables of “category” or “satellite”); and I myself probably pronounce the word both ways (as with the word “route”). > > I don’t know whether one pronunciation is more correct or preferred than another, or whether it depends on where you are or what you’re talking about. Yeah, I go back-and-forth between dat (rhymes with “cat”)-uh and day-tuh. I don’t think I’ve ever heard “dah-tuh.” And I’m fine with using singular verbs with “data.” ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2021, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-pronunciation/949375/142 "2021-08-30T01:44:18Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > And I’m fine with using singular verbs with “data.” I do, but my inner Grammar Nazi knows it’s wrong. ---
**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:** [August 30, 2021, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-pronunciation/949375/143 "2021-08-30T03:11:44Z")
I honestly don’t find it wrong. Just because “data” is the plural of “datum” in Latin doesn’t means it need be in English (and, if you wanna get funny, in some specialized cases “datums” is the plural of “datum” in English.) Data, I’d argue, is parsed as a singular noun by many/most speakers in English to refer to something like “dataset” or “collection of information” rather than being the plural form of individual bits of information, hence our tendency to want to use the singular verb form with it. As the Merriam-Webster usage note states (linked to previously): > _Data_ leads a life of its own quite independent of _datum_ , of which it was originally the plural. It occurs in two constructions: as a plural noun (like _earnings_ ), taking a plural verb and plural modifiers (such as _these, many, a few_ ) but not cardinal numbers, and serving as a referent for plural pronouns (such as _they, them_ ); and as an abstract mass noun (like _information_ ), taking a singular verb and singular modifiers (such as _this, much, little_ ), and being referred to by a singular pronoun ( _it_ ). Both constructions are standard. The plural construction is more common in print, evidently because the house style of several publishers mandates it. Note the “both constructions are standard.” The Chicago Manual of Style, the Associated Press Stylebook, The Washington Post Stylebook, etc., all allow both plural and singular verbs to follow “data,” depending on context. I believe APA sticks to the plural form (which is more common in scientific or academic contexts.) So don’t feel guilty for saying “the data looks great!” It’s accepted by the major style guides. ---
**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:** [August 30, 2021, 7:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-pronunciation/949375/144 "2021-08-30T07:20:50Z")
Does your pronunciation of “beneficiary” have 4 or 5 syllables? ---
**Author:** ![alovem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b38774/32.png) [@alovem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alovem)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2021, 9:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-pronunciation/949375/145 "2021-08-30T09:39:05Z")
Six (gasp) 😀 ---
**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:** [August 30, 2021, 10:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-pronunciation/949375/146 "2021-08-30T10:32:57Z")
Sorry, I meant five or six syllables. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2021, 11:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-pronunciation/949375/147 "2021-08-30T11:21:26Z")
Oh, here’s some that are fun… Lidl (the retail chain) Nutella (the chocolate spread) Chupa Chups (sugar on a stick) I am often corrected by people who say these are ‘leedl’, ‘nootella’ and ‘choopa choops’ respectively, however, all three of those companies have official TV adverts in the UK where they have apparently accepted a UK-normalised pronunciation of their brand names (in the case of Lidl, they ran with it because ‘the middle of Lidl’ rhymes, and is an interesting name for their housewares section, and because their tagline ‘big on [quality/brands/cuisine/etc], Lidl on prices’ sounds like ‘little on prices’ [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/gaDk97H_nuc/hqdefault.jpg "TV Ad | Big On Quality | Lidl GB") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gaDk97H_nuc) [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/Se6R7CLbWoQ/maxresdefault.jpg "Nutella UK B-ready TV ad") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Se6R7CLbWoQ) [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/6_WXnsl9hIw/hqdefault.jpg "UK TV Adverts 1995 during Big Breakfast") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_WXnsl9hIw) ---
**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:** [August 30, 2021, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-pronunciation/949375/148 "2021-08-30T12:20:46Z")
Wow. That UK pronunciation of “Nutella” really grates on me. I mean, it makes sense, I’ve just never heard it as anything but noo-tella here to American ears. “Lidl” I’ve always said as “Leedl” as I’ve only encountered it living near the Germanic countries. I don’t think I’ve ever seen it in the US, so I have no idea how they say it here. Same with Chupa Chups. I would probably have said “Choopa Chuhps” if I ever came across them, but at least now I know how it’s intended and how the UKers say it. ETA: Hmmm… I have a feeling I have seen the Chupa Chups lollipops at the grocery store at the checkout, now. The pictures look familiar. I guess I never bothered to actually see what they were called. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2021, 12:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-pronunciation/949375/149 "2021-08-30T12:31:18Z")
I think it’s probably the same as ‘Legos’ (although not strictly a pronunciation thing). It really grates on me, and makes no sense to me, and I want to correct 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:** [August 30, 2021, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-pronunciation/949375/150 "2021-08-30T13:32:28Z")
How is “Ikea” pronounced over there? I’m just curious, because we pronounce it “eye-KEY-uh” over here, but I have a British friend from Cambridge, UK, who pronounces it as “icky-uh” (or thereabouts.) He’s lived in Hungary since the 90s, though, and that’s when Ikea came into prominence over there, so I suspect his English pronunciation may be influenced by the Hungarian and kind of a mish-mash of both. So is that an unheard of UK pronunciation? A regional UK pronunciation? Or probably a quirk of this individual? ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2021, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-pronunciation/949375/151 "2021-08-30T13:42:50Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > How is “Ikea” pronounced over there? It’s supposed to be pronounced ‘ee-KAY-ah’. ---
**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:** [August 30, 2021, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-pronunciation/949375/152 "2021-08-30T13:54:46Z")
The first syllable in the Swedish pronunciation is actually closer to the “short i” of English, and the second syllable is not a diphthong, like “ay” is (but may be heard as one in English.) Examples are here: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/ZFVAVY37nI4/maxresdefault.jpg "How Do You Pronounce IKEA? | Improve Your Accent") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZFVAVY37nI4) So with the UK adverts, it seems my friend has some sort of weird mish-mash pronunciation. ---
**Author:** ![eschrodinger](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschrodinger/32/122_2.png) [@eschrodinger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschrodinger)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2021, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-pronunciation/949375/153 "2021-08-30T16:32:16Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Wow. That UK pronunciation of “Nutella” really grates on me. I mean, it makes sense, I’ve just never heard it as anything but noo-tella here to American ears. I’ve always said Nutella closer to the way it is said in that UK ad, because I first encountered it in Europe. But the US ads use the Noo- pronunciation. I’d say my pronunciation is a slightly softer version of the UK one, actually. ---
**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:** [August 30, 2021, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-pronunciation/949375/154 "2021-08-30T16:55:22Z")
That’s interesting as I find the American pronunciation more like the way it is pronounced in most European languages. The vowel is /u/ or sometimes /y/ (like an ü) not /ʌ/. ---
**Author:** ![eschrodinger](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschrodinger/32/122_2.png) [@eschrodinger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschrodinger)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2021, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-pronunciation/949375/155 "2021-08-30T17:07:58Z")
Yeah, mine is sort of in between, I guess. In my dialect, I’d say Americans pronounce it New-tella. I’d say the UK pronunciation seems like Nut-tella, kind of emphasizing “nut.” And mine is more like Nu-tella, with a vowel that is like the European u, which is more clipped than the American oo sound. And I sometimes slide toward a schwa with it – “nuh-tella.” ---
**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:** [August 30, 2021, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-pronunciation/949375/156 "2021-08-30T17:11:32Z")
Data as a plural reminds me of this: Plural forms ending in -ae. Algae, larvae, antennae, alumnae, vertebrae, etc. According to all my science profs back in college (and all the dictionaries), the proper pronunciation is -ee as in bee. ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2021, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-pronunciation/949375/157 "2021-08-30T21:19:30Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > When I moved there, I had to learn how to pronounce Mary, marry and merry. Then, when I moved back to Ohio, I had to re-learn to pronounce them the same. Interesting. To me, Mary, marry, and merry are quite distinct. But I pronounce merry and Murray, exactly the same. Bugs my wife. But her pronounciation of merry sounds almost like Mary to me. ---
**Author:** ![hibernicus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hibernicus/32/2802_2.png) [@hibernicus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hibernicus)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2021, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-pronunciation/949375/158 "2021-08-30T22:41:13Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > the second syllable is not a diphthong, like “ay” is The Swedish é sound may not be canonically a diphthong, but as far as I can tell it is often/usually realised as one. Not the same diphthong as the English “ay” though, I’ll give you that. ---
**Author:** ![hibernicus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hibernicus/32/2802_2.png) [@hibernicus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hibernicus)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2021, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-pronunciation/949375/159 "2021-08-30T22:49:55Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Just because “data” is the plural of “datum” in Latin doesn’t means it need be in English I agree. Data functions as a singular noun in English just as “news” or “physics” does, even though they are plural in form. I heard an anecdote years ago illustrating the point. A traditionally-minded or pompous editor inquired “Are there any news”, to which the reporter replied “Not a single damn new”. “Media” is another example that may be treated as singular or plural depending on the speaker / context. ---
**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:** [August 31, 2021, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-pronunciation/949375/160 "2021-08-31T00:06:35Z")
> [@hibernicus](#): > > The Swedish é sound may not be canonically a diphthong, but as far as I can tell it is often/usually realised as one. Not the same diphthong as the English “ay” though, I’ll give you that. I don’t know about Swedish enough to guess. I do know that English speakers have a habit of hearing the é sound as an “ay,” which is why you get stuff like “hoe-ZAY” for José or “oh-LAY” for olé. I do know that in IPA it is spelled out as /e:/ rather than /eɪ/. It’s a subtle difference, though. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-pronunciation/949375.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-pronunciation/949375.md?page=9)