Pronunciation Quotes

“Dearest creature in creation,
Study English pronunciation.
I will teach you in my verse
Sounds like corpse, corps, horse, and worse.
I will keep you, Suzy, busy,
Make your head with heat grow dizzy.
Tear in eye, your dress will tear.
So shall I! Oh hear my prayer.
Just compare heart, beard, and heard,
Dies and diet, lord and word,
Sword and sward, retain and Britain.
(Mind the latter, how it’s written.)
Now I surely will not plague you
With such words as plaque and ague.
But be careful how you speak:
Say break and steak, but bleak and streak;
Cloven, oven, how and low,
Script, receipt, show, poem, and toe.
Hear me say, devoid of trickery,
Daughter, laughter, and Terpsichore,
Typhoid, measles, topsails, aisles,
Exiles, similes, and reviles;
Scholar, vicar, and cigar,
Solar, mica, war and far;
One, anemone, Balmoral,
Kitchen, lichen, laundry, laurel;
Gertrude, German, wind and mind,
Scene, Melpomene, mankind.
Billet does not rhyme with ballet,
Bouquet, wallet, mallet, chalet.
Blood and flood are not like food,
Nor is mould like should and would.
Viscous, viscount, load and broad,
Toward, to forward, to reward.
And your pronunciation’s OK
When you correctly say croquet,
Rounded, wounded, grieve and sieve,
Friend and fiend, alive and live.
Ivy, privy, famous; clamour
And enamour rhyme with hammer.
River, rival, tomb, bomb, comb,
Doll and roll and some and home.
Stranger does not rhyme with anger,
Neither does devour with clangour.
Souls but foul, haunt but aunt,
Font, front, wont, want, grand, and grant,
Shoes, goes, does. Now first say finger,
And then singer, ginger, linger,
Real, zeal, mauve, gauze, gouge and gauge,
Marriage, foliage, mirage, and age.
Query does not rhyme with very,
Nor does fury sound like bury.
Dost, lost, post and doth, cloth, loth.
Job, nob, bosom, transom, oath.
Though the differences seem little,
We say actual but victual.
Refer does not rhyme with deafer.
Foeffer does, and zephyr, heifer.
Mint, pint, senate and sedate;
Dull, bull, and George ate late.
Scenic, Arabic, Pacific,
Science, conscience, scientific.
Liberty, library, heave and heaven,
Rachel, ache, moustache, eleven.
We say hallowed, but allowed,
People, leopard, towed, but vowed.
Mark the differences, moreover,
Between mover, cover, clover;
Leeches, breeches, wise, precise,
Chalice, but police and lice;
Camel, constable, unstable,
Principle, disciple, label.
Petal, panel, and canal,
Wait, surprise, plait, promise, pal.
Worm and storm, chaise, chaos, chair,
Senator, spectator, mayor.
Tour, but our and succour, four.
Gas, alas, and Arkansas.
Sea, idea, Korea, area,
Psalm, Maria, but malaria.
Youth, south, southern, cleanse and clean.
Doctrine, turpentine, marine.
Compare alien with Italian,
Dandelion and battalion.
Sally with ally, yea, ye,
Eye, I, ay, aye, whey, and key.
Say aver, but ever, fever,
Neither, leisure, skein, deceiver.
Heron, granary, canary.
Crevice and device and aerie.
Face, but preface, not efface.
Phlegm, phlegmatic, ass, glass, bass.
Large, but target, gin, give, verging,
Ought, out, joust and scour, scourging.
Ear, but earn and wear and tear
Do not rhyme with here but ere.
Seven is right, but so is even,
Hyphen, roughen, nephew Stephen,
Monkey, donkey, Turk and jerk,
Ask, grasp, wasp, and cork and work.
Pronunciation (think of Psyche!)
Is a paling stout and spikey?
Won’t it make you lose your wits,
Writing groats and saying grits?
It’s a dark abyss or tunnel:
Strewn with stones, stowed, solace, gunwale,
Islington and Isle of Wight,
Housewife, verdict and indict.
Finally, which rhymes with enough,
Though, through, plough, or dough, or cough?
Hiccough has the sound of cup.
My advice is to give up!!!”
― Gerard Nolst Trenité, Drop your Foreign Accent

“If you don't know how to pronounce a word, say it loud!" (William Strunk) ... Why compound ignorance with inaudibility?”
― E.B. White, The Elements of Style

“I also think pronunciation of a foreign tongue could be better taught than by demanding from the pupil those internal acrobatic feats that are generally impossible and always useless. This is the sort of instruction one receives: 'Press your tonsils against the underside of your larynx. Then with the convex part of the septum curved upwards so as almost but not quite to touch the uvula try with the tip of your tongue to reach your thyroid. Take a deep breath and compress your glottis. Now without opening your lips say "Garoo".' And when you have done it they are not satisfied.”
― Jerome K. Jerome, Three Men on the Bummel

“HOSTESS. Oh, nonsense! She speaks English perfectly.
NEPOMMUCK. Too perfectly. Can you shew me any English woman who speaks English as it should be spoken? Only foreigners who have been taught to speak it speak it well.”
― George Bernard Shaw, Pygmalion

“For my nymphet I needed a diminutive with a lyrical lilt to it. One of the most limpid and luminous letters is "L". The suffix "-ita" has a lot of Latin tenderness, and this I required too. Hence: Lolita. However, it should not be pronounced as you and most Americans pronounce it: Low-lee-ta, with a heavy, clammy "L" and a long "o". No, the first syllable should be as in "lollipop", the "L" liquid and delicate, the "lee" not too sharp. Spaniards and Italians pronounce it, of course, with exactly the necessary note of archness and caress. Another consideration was the welcome murmur of its source name, the fountain name: those roses and tears in "Dolores." My little girl's heartrending fate had to be taken into account together with the cuteness and limpidity. Dolores also provided her with another, plainer, more familiar and infantile diminutive: Dolly, which went nicely with the surname "Haze," where Irish mists blend with a German bunny—I mean, a small German hare.”
― Vladimir Nabokov, Strong Opinions

“When I was doing preliminary research on this case, I remembered the story about Tlazolteotl.' [Mulder] glanced at the old archaeologist. 'Am I pronouncing it correctly? It sounds like I'm swallowing a turtle.”
― Kevin J. Anderson, Ruins

“FOOD

Adobo (uh-doh-boh)---Considered the Philippines's national dish, it's any food cooked with soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, and black peppercorns (though there are many regional and personal variations)
Almondigas (ahl-mohn-dee-gahs)---Filipino soup with meatballs and thin rice noodles
Baon (bah-ohn)---Food, snacks and other provisions brought on to work, school, or on a trip; food brought from home; money or allowance brought to school or work; lunch money (definition from Tagalog.com)
Embutido (ehm-puh-tee-doh)---Filipino meatloaf
Ginataang (gih-nih-tahng)---Any dish cooked with coconut milk, sweet or savory
Kakanin (kah-kah-nin)---Sweet sticky cakes made from glutinous rice or root crops like cassava (There's a huge variety, many of them regional)
Kesong puti (keh-sohng poo-tih)---A kind of salty cheese
Lengua de gato (lehng-gwah deh gah-toh)---Filipino butter cookies
Lumpia (loom-pyah)---Filipino spring rolls (many variations)
Lumpiang sariwa (loom-pyahng sah-ree-wah)---Fresh Filipino spring rolls (not fried)
Mamón (mah-MOHN)---Filipino sponge/chiffon cake
Matamis na bao (mah-tah-mees nah bah-oh)---Coconut jam
Meryenda (mehr-yehn-dah)---Snack/snack time
Pandesal (pahn deh sahl)---Lightly sweetened Filipino rolls topped with breadcrumbs (also written pan de sal)
Patis (pah-tees)---Fish sauce
Salabat (sah-lah-baht)---Filipino ginger tea
Suman (soo-mahn)---Glutinous rice cooked in coconut milk, wrapped in banana leaves, and steamed (though there are regional variations)
Ube (oo-beh)---Purple yam”
― Mia P. Manansala, Arsenic and Adobo

“It may be a silly way, but if you remember that an owl looks like ʌ(OO)ʌ, it will perhaps help you remember that it is pronounced with something close to 'ʌoo'.”
― Jakub Marian, Improve your English pronunciation and learn over 500 commonly mispronounced words

“Even after all these years, she still said the word "gig" self-consciously, in the same way that she always said "croissant" with the proper French pronunciation, but with an apologetic, self-deprecating look to make up for her pretentiousness.”
― Liane Moriarty, Truly Madly Guilty

“The organs concerned in the production of English speech sounds are the larynx, the velum, the lips, the tongue (that punchinello in the troupe), and, last but not least, the lower jaw; mainly upon its overenergetic and somewhat ruminant motion did Pnin rely when translating in class passages in the Russian grammar or some poem by Pushkin. If his Russian was music, his English was murder.”
― Vladimir Nabokov, Pnin

“Biting into a samosa is like trying to pronounce words in English, you have to shape your mouth in a way to get every bit.”
― Alain Bremond-Torrent, running is flying intermittently

“But you say it “in-TREE-ging”, LJ, not “in-trig-you-ing”.’ I said it back to her, ‘In-TREE-ging.’ (Okay, this is a problem with books. But the only one.)”
― Stephanie Butland, Lost For Words

“FOOD

Adobo (uh-doh-boh)--- Considered the Philippines' national dish, it's any food cooked with soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, and black peppercorns (though there are many regional and personal variations)
Bibingka (bih-bing-kah)--- Lightly sweetened rice cake, commonly consumed around Christmas. There are many varieties, but the most common is baked or grilled in a banana leaf-lined mold and topped with sliced duck eggs, butter, sugar, and/or coconut.
Buko (boo-koh)--- Young coconut
Champorado (chahm-puh-rah-doh)--- Sweet chocolate rice porridge
Lambanog (lahm-bah-nohg)--- Filipino coconut liquor
Lumpia (loom-pyah)--- Filipino spring rolls (many variations)
Matamis na bao (mah-tah-mees nah bah-oh)--- Coconut jam (also known as minatamis na bao)
Pandan (pahn-dahn)--- Tropical plant whose fragrant leaves are commonly used as a flavoring in Southeast Asia. Often described as a grassy vanilla flavor with a hint of coconut.
Pandesal (pahn deh sahl)--- Lightly sweetened Filipino rolls topped with breadcrumbs (also written pan de sal)
Patis (pah-tees)--- Fish sauce
Pinipig (pih-nee-pig)--- Young glutinous rice that's been pounded flat, then toasted. Looks similar to Rice Krispies.
Salabat (sah-lah-baht)--- Filipino ginger tea
Tuyo (too-yoh)--- Dried, salted fish (usually herring)
Ube (oo-beh)--- Purple yam”
― Mia P. Manansala, Blackmail and Bibingka

“Most of the people who have verbally asserted that ‘there is no master of pronounciation’ have intentionally made a claim and unintentionally made their claim believable. (It is ‘pro-nun-ciation’ not ‘pro-noun-ciation’.)”
― Mokokoma Mokhonoana

“That's Teletran-1!”
― Rattrap

“The correct pronunciation of 'grammar' is গ্র্যামার, not গ্রামার!”
― Md. Ziaul Haque

“Grammar শব্দটির সঠিক উচ্চারণ গ্রামার নয়, গ্র্যামার!”
― Md. Ziaul Haque

“যখন কেউ আমায় জিজ্ঞেস করে, “আমি কোন গ্র্যামার বই কিনবো?” আমি তাকে যে কোনও গ্র্যামার বই কিনতে বলি কারণ টেন্স, ভয়েস ইত্যাদি সব বইয়ে একই! গ্র্যামার বই নির্বাচন করাটা গুরুত্বপূর্ণ নয়, গ্র্যামারের নিয়মগুলো অনুশীলন করাটাই গুরুত্বপূর্ণ!”
― Md. Ziaul Haque

“When someone asks me, "Which grammar book should i buy?" I tell him to buy any grammar book because the rules of tense, voice etc. are same in all the books! Choosing a grammar book is not vital, practising the grammatical rules is more vital!”
― Md. Ziaul Haque

“I can remember the lush spring excitement of language in childhood. Sitting in church, rolling it around my mouth like marbles -- tabernacle and pharisee and parable, trespasses and Babylon and covenant.... I collected the names of stars and of plants: Arcturus and Orion and Betelgeuse, melilot and fumitory and toadflax. There was no end to it, apparently -- it was like the grains of sand on the shore, the leaves on the great ash outside my bedroom window, immeasurable and unconquerable.”
― Penelope Lively, Moon Tiger

“Pronunciation’ is one of the most mispronounced words.”
― Mokokoma Mokhonoana

“Over the years, she had encountered many French speakers in Maine, but they all produced a twangy, oddly-inflected Canadian dialect that sounded more like agitated goose honking than her native tongue”
― W.S. Winslow

“FOOD


Adobo (uh-doh-boh)---Considered the Philippines's national dish, it's any food cooked with soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, and black peppercorns (though there are many regional and personal variations)
Arroz caldo (ah-rohs cahl-doh)---A soothing rice porridge containing chicken, ginger, and green onions
Halo-halo (hah-loh hah-loh)---Probably the Philippines's national dessert, this dish consists of shaved ice layered with sweet beans and preserved fruits, topped with evaporated milk and often a slice of leche flan (crème caramel) and ube halaya or ube ice cream. The name means "mix-mix" because it's a mix of many different things and you usually mix it all together to eat it.
Lumpia (loom-pyah)---Filipino spring rolls (many variations)
Matamis na bao (mah-tah-mees nah bah-oh)---Coconut jam (also known as "minatamis na bao")
Pandesal (pahn deh sahl)---Lightly sweetened Filipino rolls topped with breadcrumbs (also written as "pan de sal")
Patis (pah-tees)---Fish sauce
Salabat (sah-lah-baht)---Filipino ginger tea
Sinigang (sih-ni-gahng)---A light, tangy soup filled with vegetables such as long beans, tomatoes, onions, leafy greens, and taro, plus a protein such as pork or seafood
Turon (tuh-rohn)---Sweet banana and jackfruit spring rolls, fried and rolled in caramelized sugar
Ube (oo-beh)---Purple yam”
― Mia P. Manansala, Homicide and Halo-Halo

“Subtle distinctions of pronunciation in our language are being lost and words are becoming slimy, spoken often with an idiotic smile as speakers fashionably soften nonexistent consonants. Degenerate. Like children, half-articulate, vacuous, infantile orators roll words around their mouths like hot potatoes, as though they were toothless, they shift them about, squash them, then open their mouths to eject a mash, a sticky pre-masticated porridge, which slides down their chins.”
― Daša Drndić, EEG

“Adobo (uh-doh-boh)---Considered the Philippines's national dish, it's any food cooked with soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, and black peppercorns (though there are many regional and personal variations)
Arroz caldo (ah-rohz cahl-doh)---A savory rice porridge made with chicken, ginger, and other aromatics
Champorado (chahm-puh-rah-doh)---Sweet chocolate rice porridge
Lumpia (loom-pyah)---Filipino spring rolls (many variations)
Malunggay (mah-loong-gahy)---An edible plant, also known as moringa, with many health benefits
Mamon (mah-mohn)---A Filipino chiffon cake, made in individual molds as opposed to a large, shared cake
Matamis na bao (mah-tah-mee nah bah-oh)---Coconut jam (also known as minatamis na bao)
Pandan (pahn-dahn)---Tropical plant whose fragrant leaves are commonly used as a flavoring in Southeast Asia. Often described as a grassy vanilla flavor with a hint of coconut.
Patis (pah-tees)---Fish sauce
Salabat (sah-lah-baht)---Filipino ginger tea
Ube (oo-beh)--- Purple yam”
― Mia P. Manansala, Murder and Mamon

“My mother can hold her own where foreign words are involved. The simple duo-syllable 'croissant' comes out variously as 'craw-sank', 'crass-ant', or 'crah-sint', the word seeming to have no business being in her mouth and getting spat out as quickly as possible like a bad oyster.”
― John Niven, O Brother

“ইংরেজি উচ্চারণ বেশ অদ্ভুত! Cycle উচ্চারণ সাইকেল কিন্তু Bicycle উচ্চারণ বাইসাইকেল নয়, বাইসিকল!”
― Md. Ziaul Haque

“English pronunciation is quite strange! Cycle is pronounced sʌɪkl, but Bicycle is not pronounced bʌɪsʌɪkl, it is bʌɪsɪkl!”
― Md. Ziaul Haque

“FOOD

Adobo (uh-doh-boh)--- Considered the Philippines's national dish, it's any food cooked with soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, and black peppercorns (though there are many regional and personal variations)
Arroz caldo (ah-roz cahl-doh)--- A savory rice porridge made with chicken, ginger, and other aromatics
Champorado (chahm-puh-rah-doh)--- Sweet chocolate rice porridge
Escabeche (es-cah-beh-che)--- A dish that exists in many countries, but in the Philippines is specifically a sweet and sour fish dish consisting of fried fish covered or marinated in a sauce of vinegar, garlic, sugar, bell peppers, and other aromatics
Ginataan (gih-nah-tah-ahn)--- Any dish cooked with coconut milk; can be sweet or savory
Ginataang mais (gih-nah-tah-ahng mah-ees)--- A sweet porridge consisting of glutinous rice and corn cooked in sweetened coconut milk
Keso (keh-so)--- Cheese (same pronunciation as the Spanish "queso")
Lugaw (loo-gow)--- Savory rice porridge, similar to Chinese congee or Korean jook
Lumpia (loom-pyah)--- Filipino spring rolls (many variations)
Mais (mah-ees)--- Corn (same pronunciation as the Spanish "maiz")
Mamon (mah-mohn)--- A Filipino chiffon cake, made in individual molds as opposed to a large, shared cake
Matamis na bao (mah-tah-mees nah bah-oh)--- Coconut jam (also known as minatamis na bao)
Pandan (pahn-dahn)--- Tropical plant whose fragrant leaves are commonly used as a flavoring in Southeast Asia; often described as a grassy vanilla flavor with a hint of coconut
Patis (pah-tees)--- Fish sauce
Salabat (sah-lah-baht)--- Filipino ginger tea
Tokwa't baboy (toh-kwat bah-boy)--- Filipino side dish consisting of fried tofu and boiled pork cooked in soy sauce, vinegar, and chili, and usually topped with green onions
Ube (oo-beh)--- Purple yam
Yelo (yeh-loh)--- Ice (same pronunciation as the Spanish "hielo")”
― Mia P. Manansala, Guilt and Ginataan

“A stutter knows exactly when to hide, and when to emerge. It knows pretty well how to ruin a perfect conversation.”
― Michael Bassey Johnson, Stamerenophobia