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(Mis)understood Words
Have you ever heard a word used by someone who clearly didn’t understand it? Sometimes, it is the pronunciation (corpseman, obgynie), sometimes it’s totally the wrong word. And sometimes, the wrong word almost makes sense — those are my favorites.
One of my first examples was in the 6th grade when the teacher was explaining the circulatory system. He kept talking about the “Red Blood Corpsuckles.” I was in my wanting-to-be-a-doctor phase, was pretty sure that was not right, and did my best to correct him. (I’m still in my obnoxious-kid stage.)
My first boss in “the real world” was taking a weekly Dale Carnegie self-improvement course when I first started working for him. I could always tell what the lesson for the week was. For example, in the “get to know your coworkers” week, he took me to lunch. During “improve your vocabulary” week, he told me he was being “undulated” by paperwork. I thought the visual image was actually pretty good.
A co-worker used to talk about getting “to the crust” of the matter and sometimes, he would argue that an item was a “mute” point. In both cases, the wrong word sort of made sense.
At the same company, a line supervisor used to talk about someone coming up with a “good ideal.” I think she was the same one that one that once referred to the roots of her hair as “hair fossils.”
It is pretty common for one of our dogs to figure out what we are about to do before we even talk about it. At one of these times, my wife turned to me and said: “He must have ESPN.”
Sometimes, I worry that I am guilty of this mistake at times. I’ve always heard “it’s time to go to the mat” with respect to fighting a particular issue. That made sense to me; I was a wrestler in high hchool and “going to the mat” had a specific meaning. In the last two weeks, I’ve heard the phrase “go to the mattress” at least three times. I am no longer sure which is correct.
What about you — have you come across any of these? I’m particularly interested in the ones where the wrong word almost makes sense.
Published in Group Writing
Texas place pronounciations are difficult for newcomers.
Leakey: Lake-ee
Boerne: bernie
Some are the result of mispronounced Spanish names:
Mexia: muh-hay-uh
Bexar: bear
One of my personal faves is Iraan: Ira-Ann
From a high school teacher’s compilation of examples from students’ papers:
Ok, I will admit it. This is one that I would pronounce one way (improper) if I was saying it in conversation and the other (proper) way if I was reading it.
Oh well, as long as I don’t use it as my safe word, any potential confusion should be of minimal harm. (A teleprompter may not always be a convenient solution for my linguistic short falls.) Maybe “naughty” is a better alternative…
Huh. Wikipedia gives the pronunciation as /ænˈtɪpədiːs/ — that is, an-Tip-uh-Dees, which is how I have always heard it.
Well, we learn something new every day. Antipodes is amphibious!
This is also how my dictionary has it. Another dictionary has a singular, antipode, of only three syllables, but shows the plural, antipodes, as four. I generally use and trust the first dictionary more. The second, I only have and use because it has dates as to when a word came into use.
Here’s your knife.
Sword.
Whatever.
I knew a man from Paradise, Michigan. He claimed it was a common saying in his hometown that, “If you don’t like it here. You can always go to Hell.”
In Nashville, there is Lafayette Street – pronounced “laFAYet.” And there is the nearby town of Santa Fe, pronounced “Santa FEE.” And just south of the metroplex is Maury County, pronounced “murree.”
In Wisconsin there is a city Berlin (pronounced like the German Capitol) and also a New Berlin, pronounced New BURR-len.
MIS-che vuss
It is difficult to add the irritating extra syllable when the accent is where it should be.
I’ve seen more than one instance lately of “deign” used as a synonym for “dare.” I can’t recall where I keep seeing this, but I see sentences such as “Anyone who deigns to speak out is punished.” “Deign” means to condescend, as in “She thought she was too good for us and we should be grateful when she deigned to speak to us”
And in Austin, we have Burnett Road, pronounced BURN-it. I always wondered if the guy they named it after had a daughter-in-law, and if she called him Dad Burnit.
I attended public school in the fifties. Here’s an observation I think carries an important message. I had one English teacher who placed emphasis on spelling and another who emphasized grammatical usage and construction. These two I remember and no others. I wonder why I remember these teachers, their names and their images, but no other English teachers? I don’t know if what I was taught is considered important in public schools today. I have my doubts arising from my perception that the teaching of our history and the meaning of our Constitution is missing.
I should have said ‘spelling and definitions’ above.
And I should have included ‘pronunciation’.
Same here. I still remember the teacher who taught us how to parse a sentence and had us memorize poetry. (I also still remember the poetry)
I don’t like to see “squash” when they mean “quash.” You squash a bug, you quash free speech.
Thinking about it, the etymology of ignoranus would literally work out to dumb-ass.
Hahaha! I love this one. The mental image!
Hoo!! These are great. My contribution will be meager, but…
When Chauvinist the Elder was little, she’d ask for a “kiss-you” when she needed to blow her nose. We didn’t correct her until she was 15 or so, it was so stinkin‘ cute.
Limon, Colorado is pronounced, LIE mon, not Lee MOAN as the (pretentious) Google lady says.
Mr. Trink has a whole dictionary of these he makes up for fun. We should get him in here @thekd45
When my sister was in grade school, she checked out a library book called “Nanette and the Chateau.” She pronounced it “Chat a hew.” We still laugh about it. She ended up with a degree in French.
When I was little, I thought the Christmas carol said “O Come, Augie Faithful,” and I always wondered who he was.
As a violist, I do that on purpose! Cracks me up. 😂
Parma Jawn.
Fellow Knee. Mister meaner.
Rotflol.
The result of a couple of generations of kids never seeing words in print.
Irregardless used to be a word that I would use, but it just means regardless so I find irregardless to be a redundant word have excised it from use.
Climax is a town name in Canada – there are Climax’s in Saskatchewan and BC, there are a number of business names that also incorporate Climax, my favorite is a personal trainer in Kelowna BC “Climax Conditioning”… The imagination runs wild with just how personal this training could be. I wonder if undercover vice ever made appointments…
Ha! And there’s an Intercourse, PA and a Cut and Shoot, Texas. And we can’t forget Screamer, Alabama. And never say “irregardless” again.
There is also (or was) Swastika, On (changed its name after WWii) Didlo, NFLD. Killam AB (the travel destination that leads to murder plots) Wawa On, Placentia, Nfld. Ma-Me-O Beach Ab. Moose Jaw, Sk. Vulcan Ab. Dead Man’s Flats, AB.
Could start a thread of the weirdest town name – of a place that you’ve actually visited?
Oh, yes. That would be great.
The people of Portland, OR, think you’re the weirdo if you don’t know that Couch Street is pronounced Cooch.
I’ve heard many people say “supposebly.”
And “Rhododendrum.”
My mother dated a man named Dick Pease. Luckily, she didn’t marry him.
Don’t forget people who get books from the LIE-berry.
And this spectacular headline from the onion, oh so many years ago.