How do you say Chipotle? Or Hermes? Or gyro?
Chances are, a lot of you are saying at least one of them wrong…and simply don’t know it. Lemondrop.com has created a list of “Twelve Words You Didn’t Know You Were Mispronouncing.”
Check it out. It may save you a world of embarrassment.
This topic is near and dear to my heart. You see, my mother loved romance novels — those thin, Silhouette paperbacks that ran about 125 pages and ended with hand-holding or a kiss. The heroine was usually a governess, grade school teacher or cub reporter at a small town newspaper.
I started reading them when I still in grade school, so I was often learning new words that I had never heard spoken (and had certainly never had occasion to use in my day-to-day life).
Two such words were “aloof” and “arrogant.” I knew by their use in the text what they meant, but I hadn’t heard them said aloud.
One day, my brother Michael — my childhood nemesis — was being especially annoying. Adopting what I hoped was my most withering look, I placed my hands on my hips and spit at him,
“You are so ALOAF and AROWGINT!!”
I’d never heard my mother laugh harder in her life. My brother just looked confused.
I’ve been a big fan of the dictionary ever since.
