After 40 years in America, one word I still avoid is banana.
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Saturday's Question Of The Day
- Thread starter Norachan
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- #22
Why? Do they pronounce it strangely? The whole toMAHto toMAYto thing makes me cringe, but I can't recall ever having heard banana with an American accent.
I'm with you on the aunt/ont thing. My daughter does that. I have no idea where she got that from. I also can't stand it when someone says EYE-talian. That's the one that annoys me the most.
I avoid bananas just because they are gross.
I'm a grammar grouch. It makes me cringe when someone says, "pacific stastistics" instead of "specific statistics." "Realator"instead of "realtor." "Suspicioned" instead of "suspected". "Bit" instead of "bitten" (becoming far too common). "Did-ent" instead of "didn't". "Bidded" instead of "bid". "Comftable" is NOT "comfortable"! "Probly" has no place in my ear. "Probably" does. You better have sneaked up on me and not snuck. People are hanged. Stockings are hung. Hens lay. People lie in both senses of the word. One of my favorite garden lecturers talks about "Herbs" instead of "erbs" and "bassil" instead of "baysil". She's not English, either. She's Texan.
Texas has its share of towns whose name is pronounced far differently from the spelling. "Tejuacana" would seem to be "Tay way CAN a" but in reality is "Tu WALK a knee". "Bexar" is not Bex-er, but "Bear". "Refugio" is not "Re FYU gee o", but "Re FYU ree o". "Humble" is "Umble." And don't you Yankees call us "YEW-ston". We're "HEW-ston"!
Texas has its share of towns whose name is pronounced far differently from the spelling. "Tejuacana" would seem to be "Tay way CAN a" but in reality is "Tu WALK a knee". "Bexar" is not Bex-er, but "Bear". "Refugio" is not "Re FYU gee o", but "Re FYU ree o". "Humble" is "Umble." And don't you Yankees call us "YEW-ston". We're "HEW-ston"!
Help, don't hurt me!
How else would one pronounce "didn't"? If I had to spell it the way I think it's said I think "did-ent" would be closest. Or maybe "did-int"? I generally try not to be bothered with how a person talks. Overly precise speaking can cound stilted and awkward. Fluent speech requires a fair amount of colloquialisms. But in writing there's no excuse! You have time to look at it and fix it.
But even though O try not to let it bother me, hearing people say "I seen" and "them things" just kind of hurts my ears, lol.
I don't mind most colloquialisms but some just plain hurt my ears.
I've also heard "didn't" said like "dint". Now that grates!
Let me see if these URLs will show up properly. They pronounce "didn't" the way I do. Of course, I suspect a lot of people would get a giggle or a shriek out of my Texan language.
My boss was a big one for using incorrect words. At a staff meeting he once admonished us to not "sit on our dwarfs." We were totally puzzled by why we should make a special effort not to perch on little people until we realized he meant "duffs". He was often "Pleased and appalled," too.
How to pronounce didn't in English
American Pronunciation of didn’t by Macmillan Dictionary
I've also heard "didn't" said like "dint". Now that grates!
Let me see if these URLs will show up properly. They pronounce "didn't" the way I do. Of course, I suspect a lot of people would get a giggle or a shriek out of my Texan language.
My boss was a big one for using incorrect words. At a staff meeting he once admonished us to not "sit on our dwarfs." We were totally puzzled by why we should make a special effort not to perch on little people until we realized he meant "duffs". He was often "Pleased and appalled," too.
How to pronounce didn't in English
American Pronunciation of didn’t by Macmillan Dictionary
Well, yeah, that's how I say didn't, too, it's just that if I were to spell out the pronunciation I would probably put "did-ent" or "did-int", but maybe I'm just bad at phonetic pronunciation guides, lol.
I like how British people say "innit" for "isn't it". It probably drives British grammarians crazy, but of course Americans tend to think anything in a British accent sounds charming!
I like how British people say "innit" for "isn't it". It probably drives British grammarians crazy, but of course Americans tend to think anything in a British accent sounds charming!
Americans don't pronounce banana strangely, but the way I pronounce it with my British accent now sounds very weird to me. Easier to avoid the word. I hate to admit it, but it's just easier to say "toMAYto" after all these years. Ditto "process" with the stress on the first syllable & numerous other examples. I still get told almost every day what a beautiful voice I have so go figure.
I always say "erbs" & "bassil" now after 40 years in America.
One thing I hate is when people say "the amount of people" instead of "the number of people". Makes me cringe. Also confusing "less" and "fewer".
Saying "innit" is so low-class. Ugh. I also intensely dislike how modern-day Brits now say "I am bored of it" instead of "I am bored wih it". I see this everywhere now in British print & movies.
