Subject: English names Americans struggle with
Posted by: lesn
Date: Jan 15 19
Americans struggle with English place names especially Worcestershire, it is prononced Woss-ter-shire.
Magdelen College, is pronounced Maud-lin
Leominster, is promounced Lem-ster
Is this not rather a failing of the English language though?
Posted by: lesn
Date: Jan 15 19
Americans struggle with English place names especially Worcestershire, it is prononced Woss-ter-shire.
Magdelen College, is pronounced Maud-lin
Leominster, is promounced Lem-ster
Is this not rather a failing of the English language though?
55 replies. On page 3 of 3 pages. 1 2 3
Mixamatosis 
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In England there are noticeable differences between pronunciation in the North and South. One of the differences is that the North uses the short a much more. The South uses he long a. This is noticeable in the pronunciation of words such as bath, grass, and class. In the South they would be said more like barth, grarss and clarss (bearing in mind the letter r in the middle of words is quite weakly pronounced in the South - no trilling or rolling of rs). In fact the r sound is so weak that the word Ireland may sound like the word island. In the North the a sound in those words is pronounced like the a in cat or hat. Non one pronounces the word fat with a long a sound for reasons that become obvious if you try it. Reply #41. Jan 31 19, 7:22 AM |
LauraMcC
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I've always pronounced "shire" as "shire", and I'm British born and bred. Either I've been saying it wrong all my life (which is possible), or there are some variations in pronunciation here. Reply #42. Jan 31 19, 7:30 AM |
| Mixamatosis
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I wonder if it isn't pronounced differently in Scotland because it feels right somehow to say Ayrshire and not Aysheer. I think that may be the explanation. Reply #43. Feb 02 19, 7:17 AM |
horadada
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I lived in Washington state for a lonf time. Puyallup was a great one to learn. Reply #44. Feb 02 19, 7:34 AM |
Blackdresss
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Sorry, Mix, I gave you the wrong pronunciation of the town of Ronan. It's pronounced row-NAN, not ROW-nan. I must have been tired. Reply #45. Feb 27 19, 6:33 PM |
| Blackdresss
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And yes, Puyallup is a real tongue-twister. So are a lot of the town and cities in Washington State. Even Spokane trips up a lot of people. Reply #46. Feb 27 19, 6:34 PM |
| Mixamatosis
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When I see Puyallup I want to say Pullya up, even though I know it can't be that. Reply #47. Feb 27 19, 11:39 PM |
daver852
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My brother-in-law, who was born and raised in Springfield, used to get on my case about the pronunciation of county in which we live: Sangamon. I would say "SANG-guh-MON," which would make him cringe. It's actually pronounced something like "SANG-uh-mun." Since I've lived here for almost ten years now, I've picked up the correct form. Reply #48. Mar 12 19, 6:46 PM |
| Mixamatosis
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I think unusual ways of pronouncing places - especially in the countryside, is a subtle way of knowing who's a stranger. Reply #49. Mar 13 19, 8:15 AM |
Cymruambyth
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I live in Winnipeg, which is pronounced win-A-peg. Non-Winnipeggers insist on pronouncing it Winnie-peg. We just smile and nod. Salisbury - Saulsbree Worcester- Wuh-stur Warwick - Worrick Reply #50. Mar 21 19, 8:01 PM |
MiraJane
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My favorite local impossible to pronounce town is Quogue (Kwog), rhymes with bog. Reply #51. Mar 25 19, 1:07 AM |
| Cymruambyth
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North Americans - on both sides of the 49th parallel - have trouble with Worcester, especially Worcestershire sauce. My Canadian husband never mastered it. He'd just say, "Pass the Lee and Perrins, please." It's Wuh-ster-sher sauce. Reply #52. Jun 04 19, 7:08 PM |
UmberWunFayun
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In the Midlands we don't even bother pronouncing the last syllable, we just call it Wuh-ster sauce. Great for adding a bit of flavour to soup, spaghetti Bolognese, and cheese on toast, however you say it! Reply #53. Jun 05 19, 6:08 AM |
| Mixamatosis
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The way Americans pronounce the word missile makes me chuckle sometimes. When commentators talk about missul attacks, I have visions of catholics attacking with prayer books, as that's how we in the UK pronounce the word missal. Neither is wrong of course. Reply #54. Sep 17 19, 5:01 AM |
rockstar51
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Nobody has mentioned the word buoy, pronounced BOOWEE in America but the correct pronunciation is BOY. Reply #55. Sep 25 19, 4:02 PM |
55 replies. On page 3 of 3 pages. 1 2 3
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