Why Do Some People Say Again Instead of Against

WATCH: Why Exercise These Words Have Different Pronunciations?

Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong famously sang virtually the controversial pronunciations of words like tomato (to-mah-to?) , spud (po-tah-to?), either, neither, pajamas, and others in the vocal "Allow'due south Call the Whole Thing Off." They settled null, and people have been debating the right style to say these words ever since.

And those aren't the only words that send people to opposing corners, either. There are a host of words that, for whatever reason, people only tin't reach a conclusion as to which way they should be pronounced.

If you lot want to go people all fired up, just mention one of these words and picket the orthoepy fires ignite. Even dictionaries dive into the fray on occasion.

So how practise you pronounce these words?

caramel

For such a sweet word, caramel can cause some pretty sticky conversations. Some people choose to skip a syllable and pronounce information technology similar car [ kahr -g uh50 ], while others pronounce it every bit a three-syllable word offset with care: [kar–uh-muhl ]. There's also [ kar – uh -mel ], because why have 2 pronunciations when 3 is even more disruptive?

First evidence of the word in English dates back to 1715–25. Information technology stems from the French caramel ("burnt sugar") and Spanish caramelo. It's likely derived from the Latin give-and-take cannamella , meaning "carbohydrate cane," which is equivalent to the Latin words canna  ("cane") and mel ( "honey").

GIF

Talk about a word that gets people riled upwards. GIF or gif stands for "graphics interchange format," that much is fact. The way information technology's pronounced, notwithstanding, is the field of study of much fence since the word was introduced into our language around 1985–xc.

At Dictionary.com, we stand by the pronunciation as [ jif ] (equally in the peanut butter make or a giraffe) as that's how the inventor of the format, Steve Wilhite, says it should be pronounced. Plenty of others though say it should exist pronounced [ gif ] with a hard Yard as in golf. That leads some people to opt for a version along the lines of "In that location'due south this jif or gif—nonetheless yous say it …"

vase

When it comes to these vessels that typically concur flowers, there are a variety of means people pronounce vase . At that place's [ veys ] (rhymes with case ), [ veyz ] (rhymes with daze ), and [ vahz ](rhymes with cause ). Which one is right? Take your choice. Most people in the Usa pronounce it [ veys ], but if you want to be fancy, become ahead and say [ vahz ] .

Outset show of the give-and-take dates back to 1555–65 French. It is derived from the Latin discussion vās, meaning " vessel."

mauve

Color near people confused when it comes to this pale shade of bluish majestic. Many people pronounce mauve with a brusk A sound similarfather [ ah ], but the correct pronunciation actually rhymes with stove: [ mohv ]. (Yeah, that blew our minds, as well!)

The purple dye used to make the color was discovered in 1856, obtained from aniline. Its name stems from the French word mallow , itself derived from the Latin word malva meaning "mallow," which refers to the mallow plant that has purple markings on its petals.

jewelry

You can never have too many baubles or too much bling, which may help you call up that the discussion jewelry tin be pronounced multiple ways: with three syllables [ joo – uh 50-ree ] and two [jool -ree ] . The pretty give-and-take dates back to 1300–50, stemming from the Anglo-French give-and-take juelerie, which is equivalent to juel , meaning " jewel, " and the suffix -erie .

often

Talk about an often-mispronounced word. To include the T sound, or not include the T audio—that is the question. There are iv pronunciations for often included in this lexicon: [ aw -f uh n ], [ of – uh n ]; [ awf -t uh n ], and [ of -t uh n ].

The T can exist silent [ aw -f uh n ], though it used to be pronounced early, when the word was a variant ofoft (call up oft-quoted).Outset show of the word dates back to 1300–50 when it was spelled oftin . Just around the 1600s, the educated classes in North America and Uk accounted the T audio unfavorable, and for some, that'southward still the case today.

almond

You just may surprise your friends when you tell them that it'due south perfectly adequate to pronounce the L in almond —or not!  There are iii pronunciations for almond: [ ah -1000 uh nd ], [ am – uh nd ], and [ al -yard uh nd ] . 'Cause sometimes you feel like an L, and sometimes y'all don't.

In California, where more than than 80 per centum of the globe's almonds are grown, the fence over pronunciation splits forth age and region. Older farmers (from established farming families) and those in the North tend to omit the L. (And even have a rhyme for information technology: "It's an almond when it's in the tree and an amond when information technology'due south on the ground considering the L gets shaken out of information technology!")

First evidence of the give-and-take in English dates back to 1250–1300 when it was spelled almande. Information technology stems from the Old French give-and-take alemande.

sherbet

Here'southward another i nearly people accept been pronouncing incorrect their entire lives: sherbet . Nope, in that location'southward no R in the second syllable, and you lot don't need to put one in when yous're pronouncing the name of this yummy frozen fruit-flavored batter either.

This word dates back to 1595–1605, stemming from the Turkish and Persian discussion sharbat , which comes from the Arabic give-and-take sharbah , meaning "a drink." As you can encounter, neither of these words includes an R. The sound—known as an intrusive R—was added when the discussion was imported into English. (An intrusive R also appears whentunais pronounced by some equallytuner.)

acai

Speaking of fruity things, permit's talk acai. This vibrant purple drupe comes from a palm tree plant in Central and S America called the Euterpe oleracea. The health benefits of acai as well every bit the pretty acai bowls peppering social media accounts have led to the fruit's recent popularity.

But how to pronounce the superfood? Information technology should be [ ah-sah- ee  ] or [ ah-sahy- ee ]. There's no hard C nor does it rhyme with good day . The word dates back to 1850–60 to the Portuguese discussion aça í, which stems from theTupi-Guarani give-and-take asaí.

Lookout: Mutual Food Names We're Mispronouncing

anteroom

How fancy you are volition probably determine how you lot pronounce foyer. Saying [ f oi -er ] is just fine, as is [ foi -ey ], or if you want to add a fiddling French to your lingo, you might say [ fwa- yey ]. Take your pick.

The word, which ways "the lobby of a theater, hotel, or flat house" or "a vestibule or antechamber in a business firm or apartment" comes from French, where it meant "fireplace or hearth" as information technology was originally used to describe the room where theatre patrons went between acts to get warm.

With these pronunciation guidelines, you'll be able to settle a few debates—or astound your friends with your newfound cognition. And as far as tomato goes, why don't we call the whole thing off? Both pronunciations are in the dictionary, after all!

And while nosotros're talking almost pronunciation, can nosotros have a give-and-take on whether accent marks are necessary or not?

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Source: https://www.dictionary.com/e/how-do-you-pronounce-these-words/

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