The pronunciation of "pseudo"?

[Boneman]

People saying pelanty for penalty and chimley for chimney make me cross.

Yeah, everyone knows it's chimbley. Father Crimble comes down it on Dec 25th...

 

[RX-79G]

People who are dyslexic or not very well educated or children switch words like this around quite a lot. My youngest still says "aminal"...

I thought "foliage" was pronounced "foilage" until I was 8 or 9. However, "foliage" probably didn't come up in grade school all that often.

 

[thaddeus6th]

Leftenant is obviously correct.

 

[RX-79G]

Leftenant is obviously correct.

I didn't realize it was spelled that way.

 

[thaddeus6th]

RX, unsure if you're being silly, but I was referring to the pronunciation rather than the spelling (which is the same).

 

[RX-79G]

I was being silly, but it seemed more joyful to leave it ambiguous.

 

[Boneman]

Take a day off in Lef... I got into an argument in school because my book said lootenant and there's no way Lieutenant vocalises to leftenant...

 

[Ursa major]

However, "foliage" probably didn't come up in grade school all that often.

One would hope not! Wouldn't it take years (decades?) of not cleaning the floors to allow that to happen...?

 

[Alex The G and T]

I think it's about time to warsh the cah.

 

[Venusian Broon]

I am sure many British place names have been designed to confuse and confuddle Johnny foreigner - particularly with pronunciation - in case he tries to invade.

I mean, just take a simple example like Worcester. Who'd know, not ever having heard the town name, that the 'orce' bit should be pronounced 'oo'?

 

[HareBrain]

Indeed. I wouldn't mind betting MI5 during WWII had a simple test to tell if someone was really British or a German spy: to pronounce Loughborough.

 

[Vladd67]

I am sure many British place names have been designed to confuse and confuddle Johnny foreigner - particularly with pronunciation - in case he tries to invade.

I mean, just take a simple example like Worcester. Who'd know, not ever having heard the town name, that the 'orce' bit should be pronounced 'oo'?

Not to mention Bicester, Cirencester, Chester, Towcester, and then you have Woughton and Loughton, and anyone who has lived in Oxford will tell you the right way to pronounce Magdalene.

 

[Ursa major]

Who'd know, not ever having heard the town name, that the 'orce' bit should be pronounced 'oo'?

Some of us have learnt not to trust orcs....

 

[Boneman]

Dalziel and Pascoe... oh, that's french! Or is it?

Oh yeah: worcestershire sauce pronounced by an American is better than anything the Brits say.

 

[Teresa Edgerton]

Oh yeah: worcestershire sauce pronounced by an American is better than anything the Brits say.

That name tormented me as a child!

 

[Phyrebrat]

Gillingham and Gillingham.

And of course there's the Great Bard, Shakus-peer-ay

pH

 

[dask]

But she said "saying", not "writing". I can't imagine anyone saying that.

Yeah, you're right. That does present a prolbem.

 

[Abernovo]

Oh, to hear tourists in NE Scotland attempt Craigellachie.

And, for the record, I pronounce schedule with a with an aspirated ch after the s. As one is supposed to.

 

[thaddeus6th]

Alex, that's southern pronunciation. Wouldn't get that in Yorkshire.

Venusian, I agree. Operation Confuse Johnny Foreigner is a great success.

Incidentally, how to people pronounce 'swathe'? I'd say it as swayth. In Agents of SHIELD (no spoilers, back from series 1) Lady Sif makes an appearance. She has a very good English accent but pronounces it swoth, which gave the game away to me (I did wonder if it might be a southern pronunciation).

HareBrain, in WWII we employed Welshman to communicate via telephone (can't recall if it was in Welsh or just heavily accented English) which utterly confounded Jerry.

 

[Mouse]

Alex, that's southern pronunciation.

Oi, no tidden. Might be southerly southern and south easterly southern but those of us in the south west with proper accents still put our Rs in the right places. CaRpet, puRple, oveR, publisheR. And not in random places like baRth and paRth. Not that I've heard anyone in the UK say 'warsh' and actually thought Alex was doing Australian, especially with the 'cah.'