Commonly mispronounced words

[Happy Monkey]

You'd better hope so, especially dogs.

[richlevy]

Originally Posted by Happy Monkey

You'd better hope so, especially dogs.

I see you found the old post. Well, maybe it's not the end of civilization and just one guy using three different Cellar accounts.

Of course, back in the old days, mistakes like that could get you a switching from the schoolmistress, with her hair in a tight bun....and her cheeks all flushed and......

[wolf]

Today, I signed a commitment warrant for a woman who wrote that her son had "tryed to cute my throuathe."

I finally figured it out, and her son really was crazy, but the whole idea of her being barely able to express herself in written English was more frightening than her son's behavior.

[richlevy]

Originally Posted by wolf

Today, I signed a commitment warrant for a woman who wrote that her son had "tryed to cute my throuathe."

I finally figured it out, and her son really was crazy, but the whole idea of her being barely able to express herself in written English was more frightening than her son's behavior.

Well, another explanation would be that the woman was 300 years old. In the 1700's there were almost no dictionaries and words legitimately had different spellings.

I visited Franklin's Post Office and exhibit and reading the samples of writing there required some translation.

[wolf]

I honestly don't think this lady was having a purfuit of happineff moment.

[richlevy]

Originally Posted by wolf

I honestly don't think this lady was having a purfuit of happineff moment.

The whole f/s thing made it tough to read some of the manuscripts there. Think about how tough it must have been visiting a brothel back then and trying to figure out exactly what they were offering on the price list for 5 shillings.

[Griff]

Originally Posted by wolf

I honestly don't think this lady was having a purfuit of happineff moment.

[wolf]

I always loved that Stan Freberg bit, but the opportunities to use it in conversation are few and far between, even for me.

[Crimson Ghost]

Originally Posted by seakdivers

Wolf;
He's not exactly a CSI guy - that's a crime scene tech, which is different. He's a generalist, so for the most part he reviews cases and reconstructs the crime, then identifies what areas or items need further review by specialists.
Basically he's the cleanup guy. He gets called in when a case is so messed up or out of control that they need someone to come in and tell them which way to go.
He does the same thing at home...... it's a bit annoying at times!

We certainly have some interesting dinner conversations at our house

I thought that he was in that company...

SCENE CLEAN - with their mascot - The Grim Sweeper.

Real company.
Cleans up murder, suicide, accident, ect. scenes.
Better than having the family pick pieces of brain off the wall.
-----------
Back to the origin of the thread, I used to work in a hardware store, and I got the entire staff pronouncing the word as -
"Al-u-min-i-um". 5 separate sounds.
It was great watching the purchasing agent place an order.
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"Massive two tits." Massachusetts.

But, of course, "I won't cum in your mouth" is often mispronounced as "Oops".

[wolf]

I know someone who does the crime scene clean up gig in one of the Carolinas. There's a lot of money in that.

[Spexxvet]

Originally Posted by richlevy

On a related topic, I would like to express my frustration with the substitution of two similar words, not just in speech but in writing.
...

I hate when people say try "and" do something. You try "to" do something, not try "and".

[mrnoodle]

How do you pronounce a sentence like, "It isn't going to matter one way or the other?"

I'm horrible about diction in some cases -- when I say that, it sounds like "Iddingonma'er one wayathothr".

If I try to pronounce it correctly, I don't like the way all the "s" and "th" sounds feel in my mouth -- it makes my teeth itch.

Neuroses, I've got a few.

[richlevy]

Originally Posted by mrnoodle

How do you pronounce a sentence like, "It isn't going to matter one way or the other?"

I've never been sure if the expression is "It isn't going to matter one way or the other?" or "It isn't going to matter one way or another?". I'm not even sure there is a difference meaning between the two, except that maybe the first implies that there are only two 'ways' and the second implies that there are 'more than one'.

The question mark is probably wrong, however, if it is a statement. However, according to this link, it is grammatically correct to place a question mark on an interrogative statement.

Sometimes, an interrogative statement may be followed by a period instead of a question mark. A writer's choice of end mark is based upon both meaning, i.e., the main idea expressed by the sentence, and also upon emotional content. Look at some examples below.

You liked the movie. --or-- You liked the movie?

How about that guy. --or-- How about that guy?

When a sentence is only mildly interrogative, as in the examples above, either a question mark or a period is grammatically appropriate. A writer, by his or her choice of end mark, has the ability to affect the sense of the sentence. One test for an appropriate end mark is to read the sentence aloud. Does the inflection of your voice rise or fall? If it rises, the sentence should probably end with a question mark; if it falls, a period is perhaps the better choice.

This goes to show that -

A) I fact check before posting on the Cellar.
B) Even guys with English degrees forget or never bothered learning all of the rules.
C) The first rule of 'proper English grammer' is that there are too many exceptions to rules. In the end, punctation is more about conveying inflection or pace than applying strict structure.

E. E. Cummings was right.

[Sun_Sparkz]

I have trouble when speaking i think it comes from my father who was a stutterer.
If i have to say two words together sometimes i get the second letter of the second word mixed into the second letter of the first word. Its very frusterating.

Examples:

"Forest Floor" becomes "Florest Floor"
"Sylvester Stallone" becomes "Stylvester Stalone"

[Urbane Guerrilla]

And mishandled homonyms are something RichLevy and I agree on: solecisms are bad. Native English speakers do not have an excuse for mistaking your for you're, nor to and too [make yore]. I remember a real groaner of a bit of substandard writing I saw on a little sign in a military building I worked in at Misawa Air Base: "you'r" the poor SOB wrote. Charles Strunk and E.B. White are spinning in their graves... end for end.

Loose/Lose aren't even homonyms. Perhaps the explanation is that "loose" is really a typo?

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Don't get me started on the ignoramuses who don't decline their pronouns as English should, and in all seeming innocence deliver themselves of phrases like "between her and I" -- in real English, pronouns have a predicate case, an objective form, dammit! "Wanna be perfect, like I?" Where were these people hiding during English class?