Americans, which word do you think Brits pronounce the strangest?

Aluminium.

Fruit and veg.

They also say "Buddha" as "BUHD-uh"

Aluminium was actually invented in England. It's the US that misspelled it and mispronounced it.

Oregano. The American pronunciation comes from the Italian. The British way of pronouncing it sounds downright bizarre. Like it. Is one of those weird UK first names like Plum or a rare STD.

I chose lieutenant because it’s pronounced the like it’s written.

[quote] Aluminium was actually invented in England.

It's a naturally-occurring metal. Nobody "invented" it.

[quote] Oregano. The American pronunciation comes from the Italian.

In a similar vein - "Nicaragua".

*pronounced the least like it’s written

Where is the "Z" option?

None of them, OP. It's Americans who pronounce most of those words strangely.

Aluminium is an element. Sheesh.

In addition to some of their bizarre pronunciations, I find it funny when they use French words to describe vegetables that have an English word for it. For example, "courgette" and "aubergine". Their use of "coriander" to describe cilantro leaves is confusing.

Controversy.

Pumas and Jaguars are native to the Americas, so I would think an American pronunciation would take precedence.

I cringe whenever an English person says “pasta”

Herb.

And patronize.

Ralph

Brits make a big deal about saying "to-MAH-to, instead of "to-may-to," but say "pass-ta" and "tack-o." What the fuck is up with that?

salsa and samba with short a's like in cat.

Weird. They don't say salt that way.

"SHED-yool" is the inexplicable one since they don't pronounce any other word that starts with "S-C-H" like that. They don't say "SHOLLER-ship" or "SHITZ-o-freenia".

However, my choice for strangest Brit pronunciation is "yu-RYE-null" for urinal. I wonder if their doctors ask for a "yu-RYE-n" sample.

I nominate "cun-TROV-ersee" for "controversy" as the weirdest one.

How does Pry-vat become Priv-Acy not Pry-Vacy?

Paaah-stah and yog-urt are my two pet peeves.

I'm sort of split on or-eg-gahno. It's either adorable or annoying. Maybe both.

Tah-Fu for tofu. The long a...why?

Water.

The way "schedule" is pronounced makes no sense because no other "sch" word is pronounced that way.

School Schooner Scholar Scholastic

Is it the BRF's German side coming out?

[quote] Is it the BRF's German side coming out?

The Queen once mildly chastised CNN’s Royal Correspondent Max Foster for using the American pronunciation of schedule.

Med-suhn for "medicine."

I hate when they pronounce 'direct' as DY-rect.

Ibitha

Also "Los Angelease" (Los Angeles)

The way they butcher the Spanish language is downright insulting

They think they’re cute.

Uh.

Shed-jull for schedule

Seck-Tree. For secretary

The vitamins pronunciation always got to me because it was so off

Some of these are said both ways by the way - a lot of Brits will also say SKED-YOOL, PRY-VASSY, your spelling of the pronounciation of vitamin makes no sense to me, it's VIT-A-MIN, I don't know where you got the 'MUHN' ending. I would say more Brits pronounce migraine as MY-GRAIN than your version too.

What I find funny is that English people actually invented the English language, so you could argue that it's the Americans who are saying it wrong, couldn't you?

waistcoat

Worcester

UFO—pronounced as a word and not an abbreviation—bothers me the most.

They say MEE-grayn? I didn’t know that one. So I voted for it. Eh.

Paella with anglo 'L's

ingredientses.

Cummon..

[QUOTE] R13 In addition to some of their bizarre pronunciations, I find it funny when they use French words to describe vegetables that have an English word for it. For example, "courgette" and "aubergine". Their use of "coriander" to describe cilantro leaves is confusing.

A sizeable chunk of France was under English control during the Angevin Empire. A lot of French words in the English language are equally English.

Why would you invent different words for items when you need to trade with your neighbours?

R13 I learned when I did a study abroad in England that British English is heavily influenced by French. I studied French in school and I realized in England that vocabulary, pronunciation and even some speech patterns, such as making declarative sentences questions by ending with doesn’t it?/don’t you think?/isn’t it?/n’est-ce pas?, is effectively the same in both languages and entirely different than American English. And it makes sense, given that England and France are next door neighbors divided by a relatively narrow channel, and the UK and US are divided by a vast ocean.

But speaking of Britishisms that irk us, I can’t get used to “different to.” It just doesn’t make any sense to me.

American opinions on anything only matter after the November election.

Shame! Shame! Shame!

[quote] Americans, which word do you think Brits pronounce the strangest?

[quote] It is every bit as valid a pronunciation there as our pronunciations are valid here, yet it still sounds bizarre to American ears.

You're not a Brit. You know it. I know it. And you know I know it.

Your reality is SSDI.

To me, when they say perfect it sounds like pear-fect, with heavy emphasis on pear.

It's charming.

I read once on the Internet that aluminium was originally spelled aluminum. If that is the case, then wouldn't the American way of pronouncing it be correct?

Niche: UK = neesh, US = nitch.

It annoys me that they say he's in HOSPITAL instead of he's in THE hospital.

the city in Spain.. Malaga . Muh LAG uh!

drives me crazy!

R52 That’s also French.

R51 I am from DC and I have always said “neesh,” as does everyone I know.

I've written this on DL before, but the "shedjool" pronunciation must have started with someone thinking the "sch" was pronounced the German way. The H is obviously in the word to signal that it's from Greek and has a hard K sound, as in "school" or "schizophrenia."

[quote]Niche: UK = neesh, US = nitch.

As is necessary for the rhyme DL fave Dorothy Parker wrote in William Randolph Hearst's guest book after seeing a Della Robbia placed over Marion Davies's door:

Upon my honor / I saw a Madonna / standing in a niche / above the door / of the private whore / of the world's worst son of a bitch.

I'm a Canadian. I use the LEFF version of lieutenant as do many other of the Canucks of my generation (senior). Also, I'm a Zed advocate although Zee seems to be taking over.

One thing that really drives me nuts about Brits’ speech isn’t really so much their pronunciation but, really, the tendency to really overuse one particular word. It can get really maddening once you notice it, really.

Mah-LAY-zia (Malaysia) and Indo-NEE-zia (Indonesia).

R59 That's a regional RP quirk rather than a national British one. A bit like Keenya for Kenya.

Lord Cholmondeley

Althorp -- until the morons simplified the pronunciation

R50 I don't know if that's true or not, but what doesn't make sense to me is that there are plenty of other metallic elements that follow the 'ium' ending, so calling it 'aluminum' instead of 'aluminium' just seems wrong to me.

R59 how the hell else would you pronounce either of those places?

Those pronunciations of schedule, privacy, vitamin and migraine are quite rare, OP.

I’ve heard Brits say skuh-LEE-tuhl for skeletal, yet they don’t say skuh-LEE-tuhn for skeleton.

R38: That excuse only applies to the English language. It doesn’t explain the English habit of deliberately mispronouncing foreign words.

Lieutenant, a French word, is pronounced with an unnecessary ‘f’ as a way to “stick it to the Frenchies”, according to one Brit on another DL thread. Talk about holding a grudge.

Jaguar, a Portuguese word, is incorrectly pronounced as JAG-yoo-wer. Then there is the ridiculous way they say Spanish words. Los Angeleeze, really? Already mentioned is their butchery of Italian words like pasta and oregano.

Seems like the UK has an intentional disregard for foreign words. Is it part of the English national character to be dismissive (or even contemptuous) of foreigners? Is it xenophobia? Yes, plenty of Americans are guilty of this. But being a nation of immigrants, we are more diverse and less homogenized than England, so there are also plenty of Americans who do make an effort to pronounce non-English words correctly.

[quote] What I find funny is that English people actually invented the English language, so you could argue that it's the Americans who are saying it wrong, couldn't you?

You could if you were just a child who did not know better, I suppose.

Historical linguists would counter that languages are not 'invented" at one moment, nor are they owned by anyone--that they are living, growing things, and the Americans and the Australians and the Nigerians and the Canadians, etc. have every bit as much right to it as the English do. Languages are not "owned."

Boatswain

Cholmondeley=Chumley

Proper names (of people and places) is a completely different thing, r67.

Except R65, you are not speaking English, you're speaking a derivative, pidgin English. Just have done with it and say that you are speaking American, a language with its roots in 17th century English. Saying that English is a closed language that looks down on foreign words is clearly ridiculous, English is a mongrel language that has borrowed words from all over the world, from bungalow and pyjamas (Indian) to Pork and Beef (French) as just a small selection, your angst (German) on this subject (French) is quite ironical (French) really.

PS. As to you R13, the reason you are confused as to why the English do not use Cilantro but Coriander, is because Cilantro is a Spanish borrow word that has made its way into American.

I'm not sure you can criticize the pronunciation of loan words; when a word becomes part of another language, it's then subject to the conventions of that language, so how it was pronounced in the original language is pretty irrelevant.

^ Well, if you go by that line of reasoning, then no one can complain about the pronunciation of any word ever. "We've adopted your foreign word as our own, so we'll pronounce it any way we like. Our rules, our conventions. And we shouldn't get upset if you take one of our words and pronounce it however you damn well please."

I think the only persons who find British pronunciation strange are those who have never taken a foreign language, or never visited GB. In fact, its Americans who pronounce strangely.

[quote]Also "Los Angelease" (Los Angeles)

That was a very common pronunciation in the US up until at least the '50s. You hear it all the time on old radio shows.

You also hear loss ANGLE-uss.

In the US, cilantro refers to the plant/leaf/herb; coriander refers to the seed/spice.

Taliaferro=Tolliver

Do they say broo-SKETT-uh, or broo-SHETT-uh in the UK? I hear both in the US; the former is correct in Italian.

Can someone find a video of them saying Lieutenant?

Never heard that.

Angelica Huston’s character in The Grifters calls it Los Angeleeze too. I always thought it was charming, like a throwback to film noir LA.

Also, “Los Feliz”.Many older people still call it Los Feeelez, part of a 40’s and 50’s Americana that is fading away.

In the 80s: DIN-uh-stee for "Dynasty" and MACK-o for macho. Tic tac toe is "O's and crosses".

R33, that’s how Lucille Ball pronounced it

[quote]Tic tac toe is "O's and crosses".

When did that change? I’ve heard it called naughts and crosses.

That's correct, R71. No-one gets upset about words derived from Greek or Latin.

Blah

Garage

Here, R7. Does this satisfy your anal retentivity.

[quote] The British physicist and chemist Sir Humphry Davy was the first to obtain a new chemical element using electrolysis: he was able to obtain boron from boric acid. He went on to use electrolysis to isolate six more previously unknown metals: potassium, sodium, barium, calcium, magnesium and strontium. It was Davy who proved the existence of aluminium, the metal found in alumina, and gave it its name.

So "discovered" and named.

checkers=draughts

braid(ed)=plait(ed)

Fanny.

[quote] " ...And we shouldn't get upset if you take one of our words and pronounce it however you damn well please."

No one sane WOULD get upset about this.

Zip! - English people don't say "clerk," they say "clark;"

Zip! - Anybody who says "clark" is a "jark."

Two additional items:

In meteorology, America has clouds in the sky. Apparently in the UK there is but one cloud that affects weather.

Similarly, listen to a sports cast. A UK football team (Arsenal, for example) is spoken as third person singular. In the US, a team is a plural subject.

There are big differences between the regions of the UK, even between neighbouring Towns and Cities. TV and Radio have homogenised them a little but they still very much exist.

The accent that most people in The US regard as English is Received Pronunciation or Estuary English.

[quote]A UK football team (Arsenal, for example) is spoken as third person singular. In the US, a team is a plural subject.

I think this is backwards. British: "Arsenal are looking good." American: "New York doesn't have a chance this year."

Derby as "Darby"

[quote] There are big differences between the regions of the UK, even between neighbouring Towns and Cities. TV and Radio have homogenised them a little but they still very much exist.

The US is the same. People from NY, Boston, the South, the Upper Midwest, etc. all hav e their own ways of pronouncing things. (Duh.)

r94 is right. Corporations and organizations are always plural in BritSpeak: "Apple have introduced a new gadget today."

R95 The City of Derby originated as a Roman Camp called 'Derventio'. It is recorded in old English as Deoraby, (village of the deer).

On a map made in 1610 it is recorded as 'Darbye' which is pretty close to the current pronunciation. The usage of the word to mean race is from the 18th Century when The Earl of Derby organized a horse race.

Brits are correct in their pronunciation.

.

Raymond Luxury-Yacht

Garage

I always think the American way of pronouncing Basil is funny and herb, is hilarious as well.

YUMAN is bizarre so is vaze and YUMID....ohmygad it's so yumid today!

And route sounds silly...ROWTE...it depends which ROWTE you take, Tony.

And the way some Americans say ruff for roof is a riot.

Not a pronunciation, but they almost always refer to it as "the menopause" ... like it's the main event or something.

Pall Mall Can't Spall

[quote]Not a pronunciation, but they almost always refer to it as "the menopause"

How do Americans say it?

I lived in America YEARS ago and STILL say weekend, magazine and massage the American way.

[quote]Not a pronunciation, but they almost always refer to it as "the menopause"

Sorry, I get it now.

we also refer to some "important" streets with the THE.

It's off THE Edgware Road.

Americans drop street and avenue etc...we only do that in reference to where we live or somewhere know very well.

[quote]And route sounds silly...ROWTE...it depends which ROWTE you take, Tony.

Americans use both pronunciations: root/rowt. I think ROOT is more common when referring to a specific highway (Route 66), but ROWT is more common when you're talking about planning a way to get somewhere.

[quote]but ROWT is more common when you're talking about planning a way to get somewhere.

Interesting. Thank you.

Brits can't even speak the language they invented. Very sad. They turn words into baby gibberish all the time. It's gross.

[quote]How do Americans say it?

We say menopause, not THE menopause. Then again, we say "the flu", not "flu".

Yet we don't say THE hospital. But we do say THE garage.

Era

Buoy

Yes, Americans say buoy very oddly, don't they?

And poem. They say pom.

I love the way Americans talk about "snacks" - as in, I'll have a few snacks during the day.

And I love even more "treats" for dogs.

Or Canadians "PAHHHH-sta" R16

I also like 'visit with' as in "how was your visit with, Muriel?"

Garage

Aluminum really rankles my cankles.

Forgot my link.

And remember, you can light either end!

Canadians and British say pa-sta. Americans sound weird saying pah-sta.

McDonalds as "MAC-don-olls"

r119 It's not weird-sounding if it's following the pronunciation in the original language.

missaisle (missle)

R67

Beauchamp = Beecham. I recall a San Francisco socialite in a Tales of the City book by Maupin named Beauchamp Day. I suspect that the British pronunciation is deemed classier. Also Schuyler ought to be pronounced Skyler ; Americans are not immune to snobbism. I'm sure that Edith Wharton could parse all these nuances.

Cholmondeley = Chumlee

PASS-tuh

and whenever I watch a Brit Com, I bristle when they take off to the res-TRANH. So French. So irritating.

I yearn for someone to pronounce the T.

But I am fond of the Brit contraction for Isn't it: innit

And I love when they pronounce world.

Leveson-Gower = Loosen Gore

Hyacinth Bucket

Mainwaring = Mannering

If there's an "r" on the end of a word, they take it off, but if there's a vowel at the end, they add an "r." Weird.

R129, they only add an "r" at the end if the next word begins with a vowel sound.

However, they hypercorrect with "drawing" by pronouncing it drawring.

PrinCESS

The way this English guy says property as proper-E. Cute.

[quote] And poem. They say pom.

I'm American, but don't know anybody who pronounces it that way. Growing up in the Midwest, I did know people who pronounced it POME. Live on the East Coast now and everyone I know says PO-um.

[quote] Americans use both pronunciations: root/rowt. I think ROOT is more common when referring to a specific highway (Route 66), but ROWT is more common when you're talking about planning a way to get somewhere.

Huh? ROOT vs. ROWT generally depends on the region you live in; never known anyone to use different pronunciations for "Route 66" and "let's take this route."

How about words that don't even exist in American English--like NOWT.

Americans don't even say "blimey" !

Not a word, but the r-glide they use to avoid hiatus when two vowels come together between words: like "once the pass-ter is drained ..." or "how about a vaniller ice, then?"

I believe, however, that this is not a very posh usage.

British and Canadians say "You're Welcome'. Americans grunt "uh-huhhhh"

British people rarely say "you're welcome." They might, in fact, respond to "thank you" with another "thank you."

And Americans say, ""no problem!"; Canadians, "no worries!"

R127 According to Hyacinth Bucket (pronounced Bouquet) it's a Hoo-gen-not name. Are the Huguenots the only refugees in history who were considered classier than the indigenous population ?

It's very strange how they pronounce "Hi there" as "OI CUNT".

Banahnarahma

Gar-rage = garage

literally as "litrally"

Oy, grab me free (three) bags of crisps.

R52 It used to irritate me when Brits say “in hospital” but as an American, we are guilty of saying “in/at school” or “in college.” As in “Johnny is in school” or “She’s doing well in college.”

[quote] Canadians and British say pa-sta. Americans sound weird saying pah-sta.

Presumably you must think the Italians do too, then,

[quote] Aluminium was actually invented in England.

This is the single stupidest claim I have ever seen on Datalounge. You cannot [italic]invent[/italic] an element. It would be like claiming they invented water or fire.

Huguenots? My mother's family name is Norman French!

R58, I say!

R59 and r60? How do YOU pronounce those names?

A lot of American expressions I'd never even heard until I came to DL. So I have no idea how they're pronounced. "gurl, puhlease" for example. A most useful expression.

Fracas.

American = FRAY-kis.

British = FRAH-KAH.

[quote]American = FRAY-kis.

REALLY?

How do Americans pronounce buoy?

-The short a in pasta and Las Vegas still grates in my nerves after years here. -When a Brit wants to sound cultured, they over enunciate foreign words like rioja, chorizo and Van Gogh. but they get paella and fajita wrong every time. If there’s a throaty CH or explosive TH sound, they are going to turn the dial to 11. -They get really jingoistic about courgette instead of zucchini even though it’s a recent introduction from French (versus Italian). Same for aubergine instead of eggplant which actually has a English root word. Don’t get me started on mange-tout. -They will ignorantly complain about supposed ‘Americanisms’ like soccer and Fall even though they are firmly rooted in this island. Certain regional dialects here say schedule like the US and some use mom instead of mum. They say scone both ways as well as controversy and privacy. -To be fair, it’s a losing battle with Americanisms, and they seep in just through osmosis and the media onslaught. When I first moved here, the word awesome was being fiercely rejected for example, but now it’s firmly established. People complained about the hyperbole, but Brits do the same using words like lovely, gorgeous and brilliant. I had a coworker wax on about how gorgeous her egg sandwich was one day.

Yes, r154. REALLY.

Oh, and it's "boo-wee," r154.

R155, And Brits get their PIAT over calling forehead hair "bangs" instead of "fringe"!

R158 "Bangs" is nonsensical to Brits. It's not a matter of pronunciation.

The funniest reaction and quick learning experience I had was using the US pronunciation of ‘caulk’ in the UK. It had people on the floor laughing.

R104 -

"I lived in America YEARS ago and STILL say weekend, magazine and massage the American way."

I'm puzzled by this - what on earth is the American way of saying these and how does it differ from the British way? The only one I think could have varied pronunciation (either of which is acceptable/used in the UK) is massage - being either MASS-ARGE or MUH-SARGE.

By the way, there is someone (or possibly more than one person) who clearly doesn't understand the point of this thread and keeps posting nouns that are pronounced very differently from how they are spelt. You don't seem to have grasped the concept.

[quote]Oh, and it's "boo-wee," [R154].

That's REALLY peculiar, you must admit.

[quote]"I lived in America YEARS ago and STILL say weekend, magazine and massage the American way." I'm puzzled by this - what on earth is the American way of saying these and how does it differ from the British way? The only one I think could have varied pronunciation (either of which is acceptable/used in the UK) is massage - being either MASS-ARGE or MUH-SARGE.

Be puzzled no longer.

Americans say Mass-ARGE with the emphasis on the arge. In England we say MASS-arge...emphasis on the MASS.

Americans say MAG-azine. We say Maga-ZEEN.

Americans say WEEK-end. We say week-END.

Got it?

I hate how they pronounce massage.

Who are THEY?

r163 We don't put an "r" in massage. If anything, it's mah-SAHJ.

And I've heard "magazine" both ways in the US. Probably the first way is more common, but the second wouldn't sound odd. Same for things like EN-velope vs. ON-velope, or EN-dive vs. on-DEEV.

R166, R163 is British. The "R" isn't pronounced but indicates that the preceding 'a' pronounced /ɑː/.

*is pronounced...

Shallot. Brits say shuh-LOT.

Brew-shetta Ex-presso

Both do my bleeding head in.

It's cute how they spell curb "kerb".

Britons also say "at the weekend," like "at the end of the week."

Americans say "on the weekend," analogous with "on Saturday, on Sunday," etc.

They also say "she fell pregnant" instead of just saying "she is pregnant"

[quote]It's cute how they spell curb "kerb".

And gaol.

Golliwog, I beg your pardon.

[quote]They also say "she fell pregnant"

I've never heard that.

"What's wrong with that gurl?" "She fell pregnant!" ...NO!

Well, at least in Britain you won't need to worry if you get knocked up.

Or if you’re up the duff.

straightaway vs. right away

[quote]Also "Los Angelease" (Los Angeles)

If you are able to access old US radio recordings of news and interviews, airchecks, and station IDs from the late 1920s through the 1930s, you'll discover that most announcers and many newscasters, including those originating in California, pronounce the city as "Los Angelease".

"You are listening to station KNX, "Los Angelease". 1050 kHz on your dial."

Who cares how a country of uncut smelly cocks pronounce words.

The 1,800 people who've read this thread, R181 - for starters and the 84 different posters.

Nation of fags.

They say "whilst".

^ Not about pronunciation

R159, Did you read only my post? The thread had digressed by then.

R162, I linked to the spoken pronunciation (several of the same, in fact), so no, I don't have to "admit it's peculiar" when "boo-wee" is correct.

R64 is so up his American ass that he doesn’t realize that the American pronunciation of Los Angeles is just as ridiculous.

It’s Los Anhheles.

r180: See R73 r74 and r79

[R188]And you would be wrong, you ignorant twat. I live in California, so I'm familiar with Spanish words and have friends who are fluent in Spanish. Americans who say Los Angeles, without using the "h" sound, are still closer to the correct pronunciation than Brits who pronounce the ending like it's a Greek word.

Your mistake #2: It's pronounced Los Ahngheles. That's how bilingual Mexican-Americans around here say it. The g is still sounded before the h.

You actually thought you were going to school me? LMAO! The asshat on this thread is you. And only one comment in your history, too — I smell a stinky sock puppet account.

Well looky looky. R188's comment history expanded to more than one comment. You're still an ignorant twat, though. You must be one of those Brits who has never set foot in Los Angeles, yet has the extra nerve to tell Americans to pronounce the word incorrectly.

R191 and R190 your two laughs are worth about as much as two North Korean laughs after I tell them that their laughs are worth about as much as two American laughs when confronted about their highly delusional views of their own country.

Laugh all you want, by the end of the day, I’m not in your brainwashed shithole country, so all is good.

[quote]your two laughs are worth about as much as two North Korean laughs after I tell them that their laughs are worth about as much as two American laughs when confronted about their highly delusional views of their own country.

That has got to be the stupidest thing I've read here in quite some time. What a mixture of word salad and verbal diarrhea. Is English even your native language? Thanks for the third laugh, twat.

Oh, and you have shit credibility. You're the same idiot on another thread who thinks the flu vaccine causes the flu (the talking points of the anti-science/anti-vaxxer/conspiracy loons). You must be the UK's version of a Trumper. Don't bother to stand in line when the coronavirus vaccine finally becomes available to the general public.

[quote]I’m not in your brainwashed shithole country, so all is good.

What happens in the U.S. affects the world, including your podunk island, clueless one. Your country very much needs U.S. aid. And what the fuck are you even doing on DL, an American website? Take your sorry xenophobic ass to England's version of DL.

Oh, that's right. [bold]You don't have one![/bold] Not only are you a foolish know-nothing regarding Spanish, you're a stupidly rude guest who got his fee-fees butthurt on a thread that specifically asked for American opinions. Such a pallid, thin-skinned boy you are.

R193 Well, I hope you enjoyed your three laughs, but something tells me you didn't even laugh once.

^ha-ha

How dare people who live in different countries that share a language have the utter temerity to pronounce words differently. Anyone would think there weren’t more pressing problems currently that adults might discuss. Like adults.

What happened to the sophisticated witticisms and laser-like bitchery ? Or is it the thing now to impersonate illiterate breeders ? Just asking for a friend.

Some of the pronunciation changes are relatively recent. For example, they make a HUGE deal about pronouncing the h in 'herbs'.

Well - they didn't either until around early 20th century when not pronouncing 'h's became a sign of lower social standing and poor grammar. The applied it to 'herbs' even though it didn't need to be as it was originally a french word. In its overzealousness, they inserted the haitch into it.

There are so many examples of Brits not knowing how their language has evolved in the past 150 years and calling out everyone else who used to speak it the original way. It's annoying as fuck. THEY changed it - not us.

[quote] English people don't say "clerk," they say "clark;"

Yes, I noticed that. Very upsetting.

Have any Brits explained just why-the-fuck they can’t pronounce lieutenant properly?

I think Brits can say “in lieu of” correctly.

I think they pronounce “tenant” properly.

But put the lieu and the tenant together and now there’s an F sound?

R195 Yes because there is no point in discussing things with you / North Koreans.

;)

[quote]Have any Brits explained just why-the-fuck they can’t pronounce lieutenant properly?

I remember reading some story out loud in class at my school in London and I pronounced it the American way (avid Kojak watcher) and the teacher laughing about it.

We've adopted American words recently. We say forward-slash now, we used to say forward stroke.

We used to say "gate" for the # sign on the phone.

We used to call erasers "rubbers" - now we say erasers.

& I've noticed journalists now write purlease! when in fact it's PUHLEASE, but they're trying. They don't say "gurl, puhlease!" though.

The eye-ther and n-eye-ther pronunciations, instead of eether and neether, go back a little over two centuries. I don't know why the changed, but the latter were the original.

r203 Let's call the whole thing off.

R200: Yet here you are, continuing to post pointless replies. *eyeroll*

R205 Maybe I just like to partake in pointless bitchery, as per the welcoming message of this entire board.

^Pffft! You're nothing but a troll, an amateurish one, devoid of wit and knowledge.

Easy R199, as an old French word for position holder (essentially someone second in command) the U and V were pretty much the same at one point so in old French Lieu (position) would have been pronounced as a "v", creating the British Liev(f) tenant (holder) pronunciation. The French language has changed as much as any other, as well as many French borrow words that were deliberately anglicised during periods of war between Britain and France in the same way the the USA changed words and spellings to distance themselves from the British.

I am a major Anglophile but I’ll never understand why they pronounce the letter “Z” as Zed.

The also pronounce the letter “H” with a H at the beginning. Instead of “aitch” the say “haitch”.

"Zed" comes from French "zède," which came from the Greco-Roman "zeta."

"Haitch" is how the Aussies say it, too.

I lived in London for 2 years, but prior when I was just exploring the words that are so off for me phonetically were:

-Leicester = Lester

-Aluminum = Alu-mini-um - I think for everyday conversation, if I had to pick one work, this is the most different pronunciation

-Cholmondeley = Is this just pronounced Chom-ley in the UK? This one really throws me off. This doesn't come up but I remember reading this in relationship to Wills and was totally lost reading that word

-Barnard = Barn-ard

-Yeah = Yaaaa - this is something I picked up that I can't seem shake

R91, add to that

Berkeley Square - Barkley

Derby, Derbyshire - Darby

Hertford - Hartford

Kerr - Karr

Berkeley for sure. I would pronounce it like the the University but Barkley. Good call.

Birmingham is like = Birming-am, no H really

R212 The US also follows the 'er' as 'ar' pronunciation with Sergeant.

[quote]-Aluminum = Alu-mini-um - I think for everyday conversation, if I had to pick one work, this is the most different pronunciation

There's an extensive discussion of aluminum/aluminium upthread. It's pronounced differently because it's SPELLED differently.

R211 Cholmondley is a bit of a weird one. If you are using it as a family name or place name you'd stick to 'Chumley'. It changes though if it's a street name (we have a Cholmondley Rd and Avenue nearby), If you want taxi or to give directions you pretty much have to say it how you spell it. People just get confused otherwise.

Another one local to me is Chandos Rd which is pronounced 'Shandos', though that doesn't seem to cause a problem

Featherstonhaugh is of course always pronounced as 'Fanshaw' in England though.

What's crack-a-lackin'? I love me some British slang and pronunciations. Though I sometimes do have to turn on closed captioning when I'm watching British TV shows.

Apparently it's American slang, sounds Oirish to me...

We were just watching a report from BBC News, and one of the reporters pronounced "Nicaragua" as NICK QUEUE RAG GREW AH.

My boyfriend and I just looked at each to make sure that we both heard what we'd just heard and started to laugh.

Versa-till.

Antibiotics becomes Ante-be-otics

@Bencjacobs

Trump's Nevada electors, including the chair of the Nevada Republican Party, are suing to either have Trump declared the winner of Nevada or to have the presidential election in the state annulled entirely.

4:50 PM · Nov 17, 2020

oops - maybe the Brits say Nuh-vah-dah?

Probably not since they tend to ignore the Spanish 'a' in words like salsa, samba, etc.

But then, we do too, when it comes to Nevada.

Why? Just to stick it to the original residents?

Not a pronunciation but a word -- what does "shtook" mean?

shtup?

in trouble or in a difficult situation : You'll be in shtook if you carry on like that. (Cambridge English Dictionary)

I have a question about "Having a curry". Do you use this to include ANY Indian/Pakistani dish? If you have biryani and tandoori chicken is it still called having a curry? What about Thai? In US we would say we had Indian food or Thai food, though they both offer curries.

I've been watching a lot of Britbox. I assumed that I would figure out by example but it hasn't happened yet.

Is Moscow Mitch and his KKK coven finally gettin' skeerd?

Sen. Mitch McConnell, joined by other GOP Senate leaders, continues to express opposition to President Donald Trump drawdown plans in Afghanistan and Iraq. (Nov. 17)

Dammit - can't keep my threads straight - time for bed grampa

AL YOU MINI UM - it is ALOO MIN UM...

I have been watching quite a bit of British as well as Australian tv since COVID and just find the different pronunciations and phrases interesting. We diverged and even in the US there is a big difference in accents/pronunciations (warsh instead of wash, for instance). Growing up in Southern California and living for over 10 years in Upstate NY, i'd have a hard time completely catching all of a, say, New Orleans (or as they say, N'Awlins) accent. Just appreciate diversity.

And understand that if they say in London they knocked you up, it probably doesn't mean what you may think it means.

Not pronunciation but usage:

"Stiffy" is British slang for a formal, printed or hand-written invitation - one printed on stiff paper - to an event or party. Among other things...

So imagine my surprise when a British friend told me her three-year-old son got his first "stiffy."

To another kid's birthday party.

I love the how the Brits pronounce mayor with one syllable, so that it sounds like mare.

So would "in shtook" be considered standard English? I mean would a newscaster or the Queen use it?

R233 Mayor is Latin in Origin - Pronounced 'Maior'

It then moved on to Old French in the form of 'Maire'

It hit Middle English and the spelling changed to Mayor, but the pronunciation as 'Mare' stayed pretty much the same.

It's the US that is incorrect in this case The English shouldn't have altered the spelling as it seems to make it confusing for Americans.

'The Mayor of Casterbridge' by Thomas Hardy read aloud in a US classroom would probably sound eye wateringly funny to Brits.

.

Glacier. Brits pronounce it GLASSIER.

And "geyser" as GEEZER. Which means something completely different (although I don't know if that is in common usage in the UK.)

R237 Possibly because it is a word borrowed from French 'Glace' (pron ɡlæseɪ)

Regina

R238 "Geezer" is used in Britain (especially Cockney), and it just means "guy" or "bloke." .. I think in America, it usually refers to some really old guy, but that's not specific to the British use where it can be applied to any adult male, much like "dude" or "bro."

r32 Ibitha is the correct pronountiation of Ibiza in Spanish from Spain.

None of those which were polled, OP, you diree SLAT! 😂

r238 r241 Geyser, pronounced "geezer", is what Brits call erupting hot springs and hot water heaters.

But Americans pronounce it GUY-zer.

What I can't get over is the differences in "fanny."

Vivian Vance

The "I" isn't long you fucking limey buggers.

Brits are dumb. Fuck their accents!

They use the word "jab" for an injection - where we use "shot"

I guess they're both pretty aggressive words, but 'jab' always makes me cringe more. Not used to it.

R247 - are you saying that for the name Vivian, they use a long "i"? Like Vie-vee-yen? How have I missed that all these years?

And didn't Oscar Wilde name one of his sons Vyvyan?

I mostly enjoy the differences in British pronunciation, but there’s one example that always weirds me out. Anytime there’s a mention on the BBC of Tony Blair, it always sounds to me like the news reader is vomiting (“...and former Prime Minister Tony Blaaaaaaa”).

British English, as Spanish from Spain, sound more elegant and classy.

R246 Michael J Fox said 'fanny' live on air on BBC Breakfast yesterday. Obviously he meant it to refer to his bum, but it caused a bit of laughter here. He must have been the only person in history to have used that word on British TV at that time of day.

"British English, as Spanish from Spain, sound more elegant and classy."

Not when you put it that way, dear...

I’m Australian and use both the American and British pronunciations of most of these words equally, at random I suppose. Which I think is best practice. Sorry losers. Also please don’t come here

r255 But I'll bet you use the British spellings.

Teck-wee-lah for tequila, empanyad-us for empanadas. Not English but still...