Commonly mispronounced words?

[DeeZire]

I’m looking for words like ‘potato’ and ‘tomato’, which can be spoken different ways. Or words that are mispronounced because the speaker doesn’t know any better - 'nuclear' vs. 'nuke-yuh-ler'. (I know, I should just go look up a George Bush speech, but I don’t need words with an added syllable on the end - ‘hopefuller’, or two related words combined into one new word - ‘misunder-estimate’. Well, come to think of it, words like that could work.)
Any suggestions? (Or as GWB would say, ‘suggestionations’.)

 

[cantdog]

I have a favorite:

POLISH​

Written all-caps, you can't tell how to pronounce it.


My father was quite disgruntled about my set of friends when I was in high school. He called us a pack of "swaydo-intellectuals." Which wins the Unintended Irony Prize, in my view.

But that is not a common mispronunciation. One I hear often in conversation is "withdrawl" for withdrawal. Some people even spell it that way.

 

[bluebell]

Well, I don't know if these would fit into Dee's Ictionary, but they're what came to mind (I do know people who commonly use them in these ways):

- Libary
- Refudgerator
- Broughten/boughten (the past tenses of "brought" and "bought"?)

Oh there are others, to be sure. They aren't lurking in my mind right now. Perhaps later.

 

[DeeZire]

Sometimes, kids come up with some good ones:

Aluminium for aluminum

Mazagine for magazine

A non-kid one:

Creep paper for crepe paper

(I am writing all these down in my Dee-Ictionary, as Bluebell7 noted.)

 

[TE999]

I once worked with a guy who butchered the english language.

Some of my favorites were:

Cocker Spaniard (dog)

Mannanaise

Wroushsshere Sauce

Prostrate Gland

And many others I can't remember at the moment.

 

[BlackShanglan]

You hear "Calvary" for "cavalry" fairly often, with some strange imagery resulting.

When we were children we often said "windowshield" instead of "windshield," and I still hear that now and then.

I'm curious about the purpose for which these are being sought!

 

[Boxlicker101]

Well, there's irregardless and drownded and satistics and Febuwary. Actually, some of these are just lazy speech.

I think Aluminium is actually a Britishism, like flavour and colour and grey and centre. Not really mispronounced, just differently pronounced or spelled.

I had a friend who used to tell me that certain things were "reductible" for income tax purposes.

ETA: And, of course, "prevert" like I have on my sig line.

 

[BlackShanglan]

Hardly anyone pronounces the first "r" in "prerogative."

 

[TE999]

Another garble:

Don't drive your car over the 'medium' strip.

Or the well-done one either.

 

[tickledkitty]

A business associate of mine always says pronounciation or mispronounciation.

 

[Weird Harold]

Any suggestions? (Or as GWB would say, ‘suggestionations’.)

Speaking of presidential errors -- JFK seem incapable of pronouncing "Cuber" properly or most other words ending in "A.'

 

[tickledkitty]

Cuber

*snort*

 

[Boxlicker101]

Speaking of presidential errors -- JFK seem incapable of pronouncing "Cuber" properly or most other words ending in "A.'

In all honesty, that is more an accent than a mispronunciation.

 

[TE999]

Jimmy Carter used to say 'nukeler' constantly.

And he was on a 'nukeler' submarine as a naval officer in charge of the reactor .

 

[DeeZire]

I'm curious about the purpose for which these are being sought!

It's stupid, but the 'okay-OK' thread got me started on a new story with a character who mangles the english language - sort of a modern day Archie Bunker. Wasn't Arichie Bunker the one who coined the pharse "I resemble that remark."

(The sad part of all this is; I'm such a shitty writer, I need a gimmick in order to feel confident enough to tackle a new story.)

Thanks so much for adding to my Dee-Ictionary. My character is going to be estatic!

 

[starrkers]

Don't know if this applies outside Australia, but an awful lot of people can't say "secretary". I generally comes out as "secatry" or "secatary".
Mind you, most of you would say Australians can't pronounce any word in the English language correctly

 

[Stella_Omega]

Don't know if this applies outside Australia, but an awful lot of people can't say "secretary". I generally comes out as "secatry" or "secatary".
Mind you, most of you would say Australians can't pronounce any word in the English language correctly

Or "secertery"

There's a lovely British habit of "English-ising" French words; "Garridge" for garage is the only one I can think of just now, but there are more of them...

 

[English Lady]

Chimley insead of Chimney is one I hear alot.

My Nanna always says Kekkle not Kettle.


and I don't think this is exaclty what you are looknig for but my sister used to insist that in Shaggy's song "Jump and Prance" they were saying "Jumbo Bras"

 

[DeeZire]

Chimley insead of Chimney is one I hear alot.

I haven't heard chimley in probably 40 years, but I remember it well. Thanks for the memories.

Now I have to put a fireplace in my story.

 

[Weird Harold]

I haven't heard chimley in probably 40 years, but I remember it well. Thanks for the memories.

Now I have to put a fireplace in my story.

NAh, you just have to work "sandy claws" into the story

 

[SweetErika]

- forfilled or fuhfilled for Fulfilled

- should OF for should have

- gist with a hard "g" like "gimmick"

- cue-pon vs. coo-pon (coupon)

- aks for ask

- most of the -tally words, e.g. accidently for accidentally

- calendEr

- conscious for conscience and vice versa

- per say (more of a misspelling and matter of improper usage - I see this here a lot)

- avertisement and advertISment

- mOmento

- you-shull-ee for usually

- and my personal favorites... CONVERSATE and CONVERSATING

Those are from memory. I learned a lot about how we often mispronounce words in everyday conversation when I was helping a Chinese student work on her pronunciation this year. This list ought to give you even more to work with.

 

[kendo1]

Back to Presidents, what about Goverment?

If you listen to Steve Wright on Radio 2 - you can get a podcast - he uses a apple and so on.

 

[BlackShanglan]

I don't think it's a gimmicky idea for a character. I think it's delightful. There are so many ways to go with it, too. I have a particular fondness for Dilbert-land boss-types who attempt what they think is high-flown language while mangling it painfully. The more clever the character thinks he's being, the funnier the results.

But I've just remembered what was undoubtedly the worst confusion of meaning I've ever encountered. It was someone's story (non-erotic) in which he was describing fleeing from the police and being run down and captured by the police dog. Unfortunately, what he chose to say was that the dog grabbed him by his arm and had its way with him.

Now there's a mental image.

 

[Chantilyvamp]

a few that my husband still laughs over me saying-

warsh for wash
yellah for yellow

and half the english town names I've butchered to hell and back

 

[galaxygoddess]

without ging into the background of how I know this horrible woman, I know someone who pronounces words so badly it's like listening to nails on a chalkboard.

Her common one is "Crystal"(my sister's name) which comes out to "CRASTAL"

Allvis for Elvis

Gitar for Guitar

I haven't (thankfully) heard her speak in some where in the area of 12 years, but I will forever be able to replicate "CRASTAL!! CRASTAL coom ere! Thars WRASTLIN on da TAVAE! an I wunt YOO to make DINAR!" Translation "Crystal! Crystal come here, there's wrestling on the TV and I want you to make dinner."