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Funny List of the Most Misprounounced English Words

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Milton Ramirez
An interesting list of 51 mispronounced words it's been posted by DailyWritingTips. A the moment we write this post, comments number by 297, from people who have contributed to the list or have made appreciations on the topic. There is a word of caution, though: "I’m writing from an American perspective" says DailyWritingTips. At least one of these is, in our view, a lost cause: #21 the two pronunciations of forte. We’ve never heard any English-speaker use it to mean 'strong point' and pronounce it according to French rules — everyone we’ve ever heard pronounces it the Italian way. If you want to get really picky, the masculine form of the French adjective is 'fort' — if it should be pronounced in English according to French rules, then how come English has adopted its feminine form 'forte'? Reasons are lost in the mists of time — let’s just get on with it! 1. aegis - The ae in this word is pronounced /ee/. Say EE-JIS/, not /ay-jis/. In mythology the “aegis” is associated especially with the goddess Athene. It is her shield with the Gorgon’s head on it. 2. anyway - The problem with this word is not so much pronunciation as the addition of an unnecessary sound. Don’t add an s to make it “anyways.” The word is ANYWAY. 3. archipelago - Because the word is from Greek, the ch is pronounced with a /k/ sound. Say /AR-KI-PEL-A-GO/, not /arch-i-pel-a-go/. 4. arctic - Note the C after the R. Say /ARK-TIK/, not /ar-tik/. 5. accessory - the first C has a “hard” sound. Say /AK-SESS-OR-Y/, not /ass-ess-or-y/. 6. ask - The S comes before the K. Say /ASK/ not /aks/. 7. asterisk - Notice the second S. Say /AS-TER-ISK/, not /as-ter-ik/. 8. athlete - The word has two syllables, not three. Say /ATH-LETE/, not /ath-uh-lete/. 9. barbed wire- Notice the AR in the first syllable. Say /BARBD/, not /bob/. 10. cache - The word is of French origin, but it does not end with an accented syllable. A cache is a hiding place or something that is being hidden: a cache of supplies; a cache of money; a cache of drugs. Say /KASH/, not /ka-shay/. We don't want to steal the whole post from DWT, so for the next 31 words, you would have to head over the original post. Any contributions this far?
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  1. Anonymous3:13 PM

    Nice post! I actually say a couple of these wrong now that you mention it :S

    ReplyDelete

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