The campaign season is winding down, so now it’s time to turn our attention to not only WHAT they say, but HOW they say it. In the diary title, the word "mispronounciation" is, of course, snark, but I’m sure you’ve heard people mispronounce "mispronunciation" in this way.
Some of my "favorite" mispronunciations are "eckcetera" for etcetera, and "irregardless" for regardless. "Prostrate" for prostate, "drownded" for drowned, and "snuck" for sneaked. "Lie-barry" for library, "duck" tape for duct tape, and "spaded" for spayed. "Illi-noiz" for the silent "s" in Illinois and "Dez Moinz" for the two silent "s’s" in Des Moines. "Febuary" for February, "artic" for arctic, and "track" home for tract home.
And, of course, "nuuk uu ler" for nuclear. How is that our POTUS (among others) continues to mispronounce this word when he hears it pronounced so often in his work, when it’s a sure bet others have tried to correct him, and when he sees the word, it isn’t spelled even close to how he pronounces it? Find out the reasons for mispronunciation below the fold.
Mispronunciation does not usually cause much confusion in communication, but it is annoying and illiterate-sounding to those of us who respect the English language. Mispronunciation often correlates closely with level of education and social class. It is also due to family of origin usage. If your dad got the dog "spaded", then without a higher level of education and/or a rise in social class, you probably get the dog "spaded" too.
But in Dubya’s case, he has a Yale M.B.A. and a very high social class. I can’t remember if George H.W. said "nuuk uu ler", but if so, W’s mispronunciation would make sense. I’ll just betcha a lot of you remember if H.W. did or didn’t.
I believe mispronunciation also has to do with poor listening skills and sometimes an auditory processing disorder, or more specifically, an auditory discernment problem. People with this problem have not developed phonemic awareness. Simply put, they hear the word pronounced correctly over and over, but do not recognize they pronounce it differently.
I think some people, like George W., also mispronounce words out of a sort of emotional stubbornness. They continue to hear the word pronounced correctly, but do not or will not change their own mispronunciation. Do they think they’re right and everyone else is wrong? It’s more likely that the mispronunciation, in addition to possible auditory and visual processing problems, is a habit they refuse to break.
Occasionally people, especially children, have seen the word in print but have not heard it pronounced. I will never forget my experience in the third grade. One of the class spelling words was "democracy." When Mrs. Lawlor pointed to the chalkboard and asked if anyone in the class could pronounce this word, I proudly waved my hand and pronounced DEM o cracy. When she kindly corrected me with "de MOC racy", I could feel my face burning bright red, and I never again mispronounced "democracy." I am a visual learner. Sometimes mispronunciations of these learners center around their visualizing the word in print, but not processing it auditorally to verbalize the word correctly, even if they have heard the word pronounced correctly before.
My really good friend Charlene pronounces "refrigerator", "refwigewator." She doesn’t speak all Elmer Fudd-y with any other word that I’ve noticed. Just "refwigewator." Charlene has a college degree and is successful in her career as a graphics artist. This mispronunciation bugged me for years, until I finally met her (large) family. Guess what? They all say "refwigewator." And they’re from Long Beach, so this is not a dialect nor a regional accent (discussed below.) It’s a generational pattern, a visual learning issue, a possible auditory problem, probably with a bit of emotional stubbornness thrown in.
This brings us to an important question: Should we correct the mispronouncer? Well, probably not, unless you know the person really, really well, or if the person is a child. Mispronouncers, through habit and stubbornness, are generally pretty comfortable with their mispronunciations. Here’s what I do unless it’s one of my kids or a really close friend: I pronounce the word correctly upon hearing them mispronounce it, and I vocally emphasize the correctly pronounced word. I heard Jay Leno employ this technique the other night when he was interviewing Debra Messing. She was saying how much she liked her piece of "juul er y." Immediately Jay said, "So, you like JEW EL RY." In the next sentence she insisted that, yes, her "juul er y" was important, or something like that. The point is, due to habit and stubbornness, and possibly an auditory or visual disorder, mispronouncers just don’t get it.
Sometimes, a vocalization pattern (different from a speech impediment, which we will not discuss in this diary since it is quite different from mispronunciation) prevents a person from correctly pronouncing a word. In other words, they know the correct pronunciation, but when it comes out of their mouth, it is pronounced imperfectly. One of my most beloved guys, Keith Olbermann, of MSNBC pronounced the word supposedly, "supposably." This was sometime in September. I had DVR’d the show and wasn’t sure if I heard him correctly. So I played it over and over, and sure ‘nuff, he said "supposably." I fretted because I didn’t want my favorite guy to go on this way. I worried that Fox might make fun of him. I was anxious about his credibility. I e-mailed the staff of his show, not him personally. I very politely explained what I heard and asked for someone to talk to him about it. That was in September. I am a regular viewer of his show, and to this day I have not heard him attempt to pronounce "supposedly" again. It could be that, after his staff made him aware, he realized he could not vocalize the appropriate sounds to pronounce it correctly. So, instead, he carefully avoids the word. Good plan, methinks. (Bob Woodward also says "supposably." I heard him say it twice on Larry King the other night.)
Speaking of dear Keith, he recently made pies for Thanksgiving with Martha Stewart on her show. I swear, Martha says "punkin" for pumpkin. I wasn’t sure at first, but she kept repeating the word – punkin, punkin, punkin. Yikes! She is the supreme baker of pies, up front and center on national TV every day. Could she maybe call the pumpkin pies "squash pies", or "orange Thanksgiving pies?" I think she may have the same problem as Keith. She knows how the word is supposed to be pronounced, but when it comes out of her mouth, it is inaccurate due to a vocalization patterning problem. I think this because every time she said "punkin", she turned away from the camera.
A famous "pundint" (pundit) is Chris Matthews of MSNBC, and he is an interesting case study in mispronunciation. Matthews pronounces America, "a murr i ca." He must be trying to correct this, because within the past few weeks you can tell he is trying very hard to pronounce the word more correctly. When he is reading from the teleprompter, he speaks more slowly and correctly, but when he is engaged in an argument or any more rapid speech, he definitely still says "a murr i ca." His mispronunciation appears to be a combination of a vocalization problem combined with a regional accent (Philadelphia), with some generational habit thrown in.
English is a pluricentric language and the United States encompasses many regional dialects, or accents. Dialects and accents are a subset in the arena of mispronunciation. In Boston, you have an "i dee er", not an idea. In New York, you "pahk the cah." In the South, well, y’all know what I’m sayin’. I lived in Chicaaaaago for many years and still can’t quite shake the accent. California Valspeak, is, like, totally awwwwesome. In Minnesota, you juust go aboot your business.
Mispronunciation via accents or dialects is usually forgiven because the usage is so widespread, and spoken by whole regions of the country. Sometimes, accents or dialects become "mainstream" and acceptable to the entire American population. Here is an interesting quote from an essaywritten by philosopher Peter Suber:
"In the evolution of speech, the censure of mispronunciations can cause them to abate, and thereby reinforce the prevailing norm. Conversely, widespread and long-lasting mispronunciation can amend the norm."
A good case in point is the word "gonna" (going to). So many regional dialects use this word, that it has become nationally acceptable, especially in informal language. Even our heroic POTUS-elect uses "gonna" liberally. Almost as widespread is leaving the "g" off words ending in "-ing". As in the Sarah Palin use of huntin’, talkin’, lyin’, pallin’, and slaughterin’. IMHO, I think leavin’ the "g" off words, consistently, is only acceptable in very informal conversations. A late night drunk party, for example. To drop ALL "g’s" in formal situations, such as campaign speeches seen and heard by millions of people, rises to the level of blatant stubborn mispronunciation, and is not acceptable.
So, what are your "favorite" mispronunciations? Do you think regional accents or dialects should become acceptable to all? Or should we refine our English language and try to avoid and/or denounce dialects and accents as true mispronunciations? Should we confront or ignore "hurts the ears" mispronunciations? Do you want to "keel" (kill) anyone who says "nuu kuu ler"? Who is the "worsest" mispronouncer in the public eye?
Have a Merry "Chrissmas", and a Very Nice "Valentimes" Day. Also.
Oh, by the way, this is my first diary so please speak "kindly" words.
Yers Alwees,
kktlaw