60 Words Pronounced Differently Across the Country - Best Life

Learn all about the subtle but shocking ways that words are pronounced differently across the ... This sweet treat's pronunciation is rather controversial. Entertainment 60WordsPeoplePronounceDifferentlyAcrossAmerica Thesewordscomeoutsoundingcompletelydifferent,dependingonwhereyouliveorgrewup. By MorganGreenwald August27,2020 By MorganGreenwald August27,2020 Shutterstock Thenexttimeyoutalktosomeonefromtheothersideofthecountry,takenoteofthewaytheysaywordslike"bagel"and"mayonnaise."Maybeyoudidn'tnoticeitbefore,butyourcross-countrycomradeslikelyhavevastlydifferingwaysofpronouncingtheseeverydayterms.Andit'snotjustthosewords,either:Howyoupronouncewordslike"tour,""almond,"and"envelope"alsolargelydependsonwhereintheU.S.youwereraised.Readontolearnmoreaboutsomeofthewordsthatarepronounceddifferentlyacrossthecountry.Andforthemistakesyou'remakingeverytimeyoutype,hereareThe25MostCommonlyMisspelledWordsinAmerica. 1 Water Shutterstock/ampcoolMostAmericansrefertothestuffthatcomesoutofthetapas"wah-ter."ButifyouwereraisedinthePhiladelphiaarea,yourpronunciationprobablysoundsmorelike"wooder"or"wooter." Andtolearnhowyourvocabularycanchangeyouroutlook,checkoutCutThese20NegativeWordsfromYourLifeandBeInstantlyHappier. 2 Been Shutterstock/madeaw_ecForthemajorityofus,theword"been"rhymeswith"bin,"liketheonesabove.ButpeopleinNorthCentral statesnearCanadawouldsay"ben,"likethename. 3 Egg Shutterstock/OlexandrPanchenkoHavingbreakfastinthePacificNorthwestportionoftheU.S.?You'relikelytoheardinersaroundyoupronounce"egg"like"ayg." Forwordswhoseoriginsyoudidn'tknow,hereare35CommonlyUsedWordsWeTotallyStoleFromOtherLanguages. 4 Picture Shutterstock/OlexandrPanchenkoForsomeAmericans,theword"picture"doesn'thavea"k"sound;itsoundsmorelike"pitcher."There'slessofaregionaldividewiththisone—you'llhearbothpronunciationsalloverthecountry. 5 Downtown Shutterstock/RyanDeBerardinisInthePittsburgharea,the"w's"in"downtown"disappearandarereplacedbyan"ah"sound.SoifaSteelersfanasksyouifyouwanttogo"dahntahn,"youknowtheywanttoheadintothecity. Forlanguagethatwilleaseyourmind,hereare15MagicalPhrasesandWordsThatHelpRelieveStress. 6 Oil Shutterstock/RyanDeBerardinisIntheSouth,whensomeoneasksyoutopassthe"all,"they'reprobablyaskingfor"oil."Alsodependingonwhereyouare,youmayhearaone-ortwo-syllableversion("oi-ull")ofthisword. 7 Drawer Shutterstock/maicasaaInmostofthecountry,thewordforanindividualcompartmentinadresserrhymeswiththeword"bore."ButintheNewYorkCityarea,"drawer"getsshortenedto"draw,"rhymingwith"straw." Andformorelanguagefacts,signupforourdailynewsletter. 8 Bag Shutterstock/AndrewAngelovShoppinginWisconsin?Theclerkislikelytoaskyouifyou'dlikea"bayg"foryouritemsinsteadofa"bag." 9 Lilac Shutterstock/fotolotosChancesare,youwouldrefertothesesmall,fragrant,purplefloralsas"lie-lacks."ButaroundRochesterNewYork,thesameplantiscommonlycalleda"lie-lock."ThetowndoeshaveafamousLilacFestival,soperhapstheyknowsomethingwedon't. Formorevocabularyinsight,hereare50WordsYouHearEveryDayButDon'tKnowWhatTheyMean. 10 Iron Shutterstock/NewAfricaWhetheryou'repumpingittobuildupyourmusclesorusingonetopressyourclothes,youmostlikelypronounce"iron"withtwosyllables("eye-urn").But,similartothewaythey'vetransformedtheword"downtown,"Pittsburghershaveturneditintoaone-syllablewordthatcomesoutsoundinglike"arhn." 11 Bagel ShutterstockThisdeliciousmorningstapleoftencoveredincreamcheesehasseveralwaysofbeingpronounced,asitturnsout.Mostpeople—includingNewYorkers,whoarearguablythemostknowledgeableonthematter—pronouncethewordas"bay-gull,"butmanyMidwesternersbotchthewordtosoundlike"bah-gull." 12 Caramel ShutterstockThissweettreat'spronunciationisrathercontroversial.TheHarvardDialectSurvey,alinguisticssurveyconductedintheearlyaughtsbyateamledbyBertVaux,showsthatwhiletheWestCoastandMidwestpronouncetheword"caramel"withtwosyllableslike"car-ml,"themajorityoftheEastCoastseesthewordasthreesyllables,pronouncingit"car-a-mel." 13 Syrup ShutterstockCouldyoupassthe"sear-up"?No,butIcanpassthe"sirr-up."Yes,thesyrupvs.syrupdebateisastickyone,butbothpronunciationsareconsideredacceptable. 14 Pajamas ShutterstockWhatdividesthecountrywhenitcomesto"pajamas"istheword'ssecondsyllable.HeadtoAmerica'sWesternandMidwesternstatesandyou'llfindthatthe"a"inpajamasispronouncedlike"jam,"butspendtimeinanySouthernorEasternstateandyou'llhearan"a"asin"father." 15 Nevada ShutterstockBecarefulhowyoupronouncethenameofthisstateinfrontofanativeNevadan.ThoughinhabitantsoftheEastCoastrefertothehomeoftheLasVegasStripas"Nev-AH-da"(withan"a"like"odd"),thecorrectpronunciation—accordingtothestate'sresidents—isactually"Nev-AD-a"(withan"a"like"add"). 16 Oregon ShutterstockOregonisyetanotherstatenamethatpeopleoutsideoftheWestCoastdon'tknowhowtopronounce.Contrarytopopularbelief,it'snotpronounced"Or-a-gone",but"Or-a-gun." 17 NewOrleans ShutterstockEvenlocalscan'tagreeonhowtopronouncethenameofthiscity.Somepeoplesay"NewOar-lins,"otherssay"NewOr-leans,"andasmallsubsetevenaddanextrasyllabletomakeit"NewOr-lee-uhns." 18 Caribbean ShutterstockAstheregionisnamedaftertheCaribs(pronouncedkar-ib),thetechnicallyaccuratepronunciationoftheword"Caribbean"is"Kar-i-bee-in."However,manypeople(someCaribbeannativesincluded)preferthepronunciation"Ka-RIB-ee-in,"andsobothdictionsarerelativelycommonplace. 19 Florida ShutterstockMostAmericans—Floridiansincluded—pronouncethefirstsyllableinFloridatorhymewith"sore."However,thereare threeotherwaystopronouncethisword:"Flow-ri-da,""Flah-ri-da,"and"Flaw-ri-da."Forthemostpart,thesealternatepronunciationscanbeheardinSouthernandNortheasternstates. 20 Texas ShutterstockThoughtheoverwhelmingmajorityofpeoplepronounce"Texas"withan"s"sound,noteveryonedoes.AccordingtotheHarvardDialectSurvey,justover5percentofrespondents—primarilypeopleinNorthernandMidwesternstates—saythestate'snamewitha"z"sound. 21 Tour ShutterstockDependingonwhoyouask,youcouldeitherembarkona"tore"ofacity,oryoucouldembarkona"toor"ofacity.BothMerriam-WebsterandtheMacmillanDictionaryadviseyoutopronounceitas"toor,"butthatisn'ttosaythat"tore"iswrong—itreallyjustdependsonwhatyouweretaught. 22 Lawyer ShutterstockTheresearchersbehindtheHarvardDialectSurveyalsodiscoveredthatwhilemostAmericanspronouncetheword"lawyer"insuchawaythatthefirstsyllablerhymeswith"boy,"Southernersemphasizethe"law"inlawyersothefirstsyllablemakesa"saw"sound. 23 Marry/Merry/Mary ShutterstockIfyouweretosaythesentence"IfeelmerryaboutmarryingMary,"wouldyourpronunciationsof"marry,""merry,"and"Mary"soundanydifferent?MostAmericanswillfindthatthesewordscomeouttosoundexactlythesame—butifyou'refromabigcityintheNortheast,thenit'sprobablethatthewayyousoundouteachworddiffers,with"marry"takingonthesamevowelas"cat,""merry"takingonthesamevowelas"pet,"and"Mary"takingonthesamevowelas"fair." 24 Caught/Cot ShutterstockDoyouhearadifferenceinpronunciationbetweenthewords"cot"and"caught"?Ifso,youprobablydidn'tgrowupontheWestCoastorintheMidwest.IntheHarvardDialectSurvey,researchersfoundthatthemajorityofpeoplefromtheseregionspronouncedthesewordsinthesameway.PeopleontheEastCoastandintheSouth,meanwhile,tendtopronouncethemdistinctlydifferently. 25 Envelope ShutterstockMostpeoplepronouncethefirstsyllableintheword"envelope"like"pen"—butifyouaskaroundenough,youwillfindthatsomepeoplepronouncethefirstsyllablelike"dawn."That'sbecausetheEnglishwordoriginatesfromtheFrenchwordforenvelope,whichfavorsthelatterpronunciation. 26 Aunt ShutterstockSomepeople,especiallySoutherners,seetheword"aunt"andpronounceitnodifferentlythantheword'shomonym,"ant."Butothers—particularlythoseintheBostonarea—pronouncethewordsothatitrhymeswith"daunt,"payinghomagetothecolonies'formermotherland. 27 Almond ShutterstockThevariouspronunciationsoftheword"almond"originatebacktowhenmanypeoplewereemigratingfromEuropetotheUnitedStates,bringingwiththemtheirnativelanguagesandthuslytheirownversionsofvariouswords.So,callitan"al-mond,"an"am-end,"oran"ahl-mend";regardlessofpronunciation,you'restillreferringtothesamething. 28 Salmon ShutterstockGivenhowmanyAmericansarenotnativeEnglishspeakers,it'snosurprisethatsomanyaresayingtheword"salmon"withadistinguishable"l"sound.InlanguageslikeSpanishandItalian,the"l"insalmonisverymuchheard,andthatoftencarriesoverintopronunciationsforpeoplewhoarelearningEnglishasasecondlanguage.Inthecaseofthisfish,though,thereisonlyonerightpronunciation,anditinvolvesno"l"soundwhatsoever. 29 Pecan ShutterstockWhetheryoupronouncetheword"pecan"as"pee-can"or"puh-kahn"ismorecomplicatedthanyouthink.WhentheNationalPecanShellersAssociationpolledAmericansabouthowtheypronouncedthenameofthenut,theyfoundthatthereweredividesnotjustamongregions,butwithinthemaswell.Perawrite-upbyTheWashingtonPost,thesurveyconcludedthattherewasnosinglepronunciationoftheworddesignatedforeacharea,with45percentofSouthernersand70percentofNortheasternersfavoring"pee-can." 30 Mayonnaise ShutterstockAsifthedebateonwhattocallagiantsandwichwasn'tenough(isitasub,ahero,orahoagie?),Americansfinditnecessarytoargueoverthecorrectpronunciationofthesandwich'scondiments,too.Thoughtherearesomeslightvariationswithinregions,thegeneralconsensusisthatintheWestandMidwest,you'llput"may-uh-naze"onyoursandwich,andintheNorthandSouth,you'lluse"man-aze." 31 Cauliflower ShutterstockIsthatvegetableyoueat"caul-ee-flower"or"caul-ih-flower"?IntheNortheast,you'remostlikelytohearthatsecondsyllablepronouncedlike"see."Intherestofthecountry,however,that"i"takesonthesamesoundthatitdoesin"sit." 32 Coyote ShutterstockUnlessyouliveontheWestCoast,youprobablydon'tevenrealizethattherearetwowaystopronounce"coyote.""Ki-oteisaColorado-Wyomingkindofpronunciation,"AndrewCowell,directoroflinguisticsatCUBolder,told9News."IfyoucomefromtheEast,you'remuchmorelikelytosayki-o-tee." 33 Bit ShutterstockSomehow,eventhree-letterwordswithonesyllablehavemanagedtotakeonseveralpronunciations.WhiletheheftymajorityofAmericanspronouncetheword"bit"like"sit,"therearesomepeople(particularlyinpartsofColorado)whosayitlike"bet."(Andsince"bit"soundslike"bet,""bet"thensoundslike"bat."It'sallveryconfusing.) 34 Grocery ShutterstockWhatdoyoucallthefooditemsthatyoupurchaseatthemarket?"Gro-sir-ees,"ofcourse!Butnotsofast:Ifyou'refromtheMidwest,youmightreplacethe"sir"soundwithan"sh,"callingyourshoppinghaul"grosh-rees"instead. 35 Crayon ShutterstockSomepeoplepronounceit"cray-awn,"rhymingwith"dawn,"andotherspronounceit"cray-ahn,"rhymingwith"man."AccordingtoCrayola,arguablythetopcrayonexperts,thecorrectwaytosayitis"cray-awn,"buteventheyadmitthattherearetoomanyregionaldifferencestotryandimplementasinglepronunciation. 36 Mirror ShutterstockWhensayingthewords"mirror"and"mere"outloud,doyouhearasignificantdifference?FolksfromtheEastCoastmightbesurprisedtolearnthattheanswertothisquestionforsomepeopleisno,astheirpronunciationoftheword"mirror"makesitjustonesyllable,disregardingthe"-or"altogether. 37 Museum ShutterstockNobodyisdenyingthattheword"museum"beginswitha"mew"sound.Theymight,however,disagreeoverhowthewordcontinuestobesoundedout,withsomepeoplefavoringthepronunciation"mew-zee-um"andothersoptingforthepronunciation"mew-zam." 38 Mischievous ShutterstockTheword"mischievous"isspelledsothatitshouldbepronouncedlike"mis-che-vous,"butsomehowtheHarvardDialectSurveyfoundthatover26percentofAmericanspronouncethewordwithfoursyllables.Why?AccordingtoMerriam-Webster,avariantspellingofthewordwithan"-ious"endingexistedasfarbackasthe16thcentury,thoughtodayboththisspellingandpronunciationareconsidered"nonstandard." 39 Coupon ShutterstockYoudon'tpronouncetheword"cool"witha"q"sound,soyouwouldn'tthinktopronouncetheword"coupon"witha"q"soundeither,right?Unfortunately,it'snotthatsimple.Thoughtheword'sacceptedpronunciationisthesimple"koo-pon,"manyaneducatedindividualpronouncethefirstsyllableofthewordlike"kyoo,"asifthey'resoundingouttheletter"q." 40 Poem ShutterstockWhereveryoutraveltointheUnitedStates,you'llfindpeoplewhopronouncetheword"poem"asboth"pome"(rhymingwith"home")and"po-emme."Thepronunciationofthiswordisnotlimitedtoregions,butsimplytopersonalpreference. 41 Flourish Shutterstock/TinseltownUndoubtedly,Beyoncéisflourishing.Butisshe"flore-ishing,""fluh-rishing,"or"flurr-ishing"?Itreallyalldependsonwhomyouask.TheHarvardDialectSurveyfoundthatwhile"flurr-ish"isthepreferredpronunciation,therearemanyMidwesternersandNorthernerswhosay"flore-ish"andsomefolkslivingintheNortheastwhosay"fluh-rish." 42 BowieKnife ShutterstockIsita"Bow-ie"knife,orisita"Boo-wie"knife?Thatdependsonwhoyou'retalkingto.IntheHarvardDialectSurvey,researchersfoundthatapproximately19percentofrespondents—mostofwhomlivedintheNortheastregion—pronounceditthesecondway. 43 Creek ShutterstockThemajorityofAmericanscanagreeonthefactthatthe"ee"in"creek"ispronouncedlike"seek."However,intheHarvardDialectSurvey,approximatelyfourpercentofpeoplenotedthattheypronouncedthe"ee"increeksothatitsoundedlike"sit."MostofthesepeoplewerefromMidwesternstateslikeMinnesota,Wisconsin,andIowa. 44 Handkerchief ShutterstockDoesthelastsyllablein"handkerchief"havethesamesoundas"seek"or"sit"?PertheHarvardDialectSurvey,mostpeopleintheNortheastwouldsay"seek,"whiletherestofthecountrywouldgowith"sit." 45 Adult Shutterstock"Adult"isconsideredtobea"toiletpaperroll"word.Thatistosay,whetheryouchoosetopronounceitlike"add-ult"or"uh-dult,"youarecorrect—justasyou'dbecorrectinplacingyourtoiletpaperrolleitherunderorover. 46 Asterisk Shutterstock"Asterisk"mightnotcomeupofteninconversation,butwhenitdoes,it'spronounceddifferentlydependingontheregion.InpartsoftheNortheast,it'spronounced"asteri[ks]";upanddowntheNortherncoast,it'spronounced"asteri[k]";andintherestofthecountry,it'ssimply"asteri[sk]." 47 Realtor ShutterstockHowmanysyllablesaretherein"realtor"?AsksomeonefromtheNortheastandthey'llprobablytellyouthatthereareonlytwo.AsksomeonefromtheMidwestortheSouth,however,andthey'remorelikelytousethreesyllables,pronouncingiteither"reel-uh-ter"or"ree-l-ter." 48 Monday ShutterstockMostpeoplewillsaythedaysoftheweek—Monday,Tuesday,etc.—andpronouncethesecondsyllablesothatitrhymeswith"say."Asmallportionofthepopulation,however,primarilyintheSouthandMidwest,willsaythissyllablesothatitrhymeswith"see." 49 Huge ShutterstockDoyoupronouncetheletter"h"inwordslike"huge"?Ifso,you'reamongthemajorityofAmericans.IntheHarvardDialectSurvey,though,approximatelythreepercentofrespondents—mostlypeopleintheNortheast—notedthattheydon'tpronouncethe"h"soundwhensayingwordslike"huge,""humor,""humongous,"and"human." 50 Quarter ShutterstockMostAmericanspronouncetheword"quarter"sothatithasa"kw"soundatthebeginning.However,somepeopleintheNortheastandMidwesternregionspronouncethiswordsothatthefirstsyllableismoreofa"k"sound. 51 Roof ShutterstockIfyou'vestayedinoneplaceforyourentirelife,thenyoumightnotevenknowthatthere'smorethanonewaytopronouncetheword"roof."Butsurprisingly,thereareactuallytwocommonwaystopronouncethisfour-letterword.WhilepeoplebornandraisedintheWesttendtopronouncethewordasifitrhymeswith"hoof,"thosefromtheEastseeitasrhymingwith"poof." 52 Miracle Shutterstock/SydaProductionsMostAmericanspronouncethefirstvowelin"miracle"sothatitsoundslike"knit."However,theHarvardDialectSurveydiscoveredthatintheNortheastregion,peopletendtopronouncethisvowelsothatitsoundsmorelike"near."ThereisevenasmallgroupofpeopleintheNortheastwhopronouncethissoundtorhymewith"net"! 53 Really ShutterstockThoughtheword"really"ispronounceddifferentlyacrossthecountry,itdoesn'tappeartobeduetoregionaldifferences.IntheHarvardDialectSurvey,researchersfoundthatpeoplefromcoasttocoastpronouncedtheword"reely,""rilly,"and"ree-l-y." 54 Insurance Shutterstock/FreedomzMostAmericanspronouncetheword"insurance"withanemphasisonthesecondsyllable.Butinsomepartsofthecountry—mostlyintheNortheastandMidwestregions—peoplewillemphasizethefirstsyllableinstead,callingit"INsurance."ae0fcc31ae342fd3a1346ebb1f342fcb 55 Route ShutterstockThepronunciationoftheword"route"isalittlebitcomplicated.ThoughNortheasternerstendtopronounceitsoitrhymeswith"hoot"andMidwesternerstendtopronounceitsoitrhymeswith"out,"justover30percentofrespondentsintheHarvardDialectsurveynotedthattheycan(anddo)pronounceitbothways. 56 EtCetera iStockThereisnotone,nottwo,notthree,but fourdifferentwaystopronounce"etcetera."Thoughthemostpopularwaytosayitis"e[ts]etera,"peoplealsosay"e[ts]etra,""eksetera,"and"eksetra." 57 Garage ShutterstockDialectdifferenceshavedividedAmericansintotwocategories:thosewhosay"ga-rah-ge,"andthosewhosay"ga-redge."Buthey,howeveryoupronounceit,atleastyou'renotcallingitacarpark! 58 Get Shutterstock"Theword getdoesnotrhymewith yethereintheSouth,"writes SarahJohnson,aSouthCarolinanativeandSouthernaccentspecialist."Wesayitlike'git.'Thereisacommonrhymeteachersuseatschoolwhenstudentscomplainaboutnotgettingtheirfirstchoice.IntheNorth,youmightsay:'Yougetwhatyouget,sodon'tbeupset.'Butthatdoesnotrhymeforus.Wesay,'Yougitwhatyougit,sodon'tthrowafit.'" 59 Can't Shutterstock"Get"isn'ttheonlywordthatSouthernerspronouncedifferently.AccordingtoJohnson,"thewordcan'tinmanysmalltowns[intheSouth]actuallyrhymeswith paint." 60 Pen ShutterstockInsomepartsofthesouth,theword"pen"oftenrhymeswith"pin."Accordingtoadialectprojectfromthe1990sconductedatNorthCarolinaStateUniversity,thispatterncanalsobeseeninwordslike"tin"and"ten,""windy"and"Wendy,"and"sinned"and"send." 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