The nation’s most mispronounced words are acai, segue and charcuterie, new poll finds

A STUDY of 2,000 adults found many stumble over commonly used words, with other ‘difficult’ terms including quinoa, gnocchi and Worcestershire. Chipotle, phenomenon and gyro also featured among the top 10 mispronounced words, with hyperbole, aesthetic and even gif also proving tricky for some. The word squirrel proved particularly difficult for Brits to pronounce Credit: SWNS TOP 20 MISPRONOUNCED WORDS: AcaiMispronunciation: “ah-sigh”Correct Pronunciation: “Ah-sigh-ee” SegueMispronunciation: “seeg” / “seg”Correct Pronunciation: “seg-way” CharcuterieMispronunciation: “Char-koo-ter-ree” (harsh C)Correct Pronunciation: “Shar-koo-tuh-ree QuinoaMispronunciation: “kwin-wa” or “kwin-no-a”Correct Pronunciation: “Keen-wa” GnocchiMispronunciation: “No-kee”Correct Pronunciation: “nyawk-kee” WorcestershireMispronunciation: “Wor-chest-er”Correct Pronunciation: “Wus-ter-sher” ChipotleMispronunciation: “Chip-oh-ttul”Correct Pronunciation: “Chi-poht-lay PhenomenonMispronunciation: “Phenom-nom-non”Correct Pronunciation: “Phe-nom-enon” GyroMispronunciation: “Gi-ro”Correct pronunciation: “Yee-ro”(rolled R) SimilarlyMispronunciation: “Si-mi-ly”Correct Pronunciation: “Si-mi-lar-ly” HyperboleMispronunciation: “Hy-per-bly”Correct Pronunciation: “Hy-per-bo-ly” AestheticMispronunciation: “Aesth-tic”Correct Pronunciation: “As-the-tic” GifMispronunciation: “Jif”Correct Pronunciation: “G-if” EntrepreneurMispronunciation: “On-tre-prener”Correct Pronunciation: “On-tre-pre-neur” ColonelMispronunciation: “Co-lo-nel”Correct Pronunciation: “Cur-nel” NecessarilyMispronunciation: “Ne-siss-rily”Correct Pronunciation: “Ne-siss-sar-ri-ly” SpecificMispronunciation: “Spe-sthi-fic”Correct: “Spe-ci-fic” EspressoMispronunciation: “Ex-press-o”Correct: “Es-press-so” BreweryMispronunciation: “Broo-wry”Correct: “Broo-wer-ry” SquirrelMispronunciation: “Skwirl”Correct: “Skwi-rrel” It also emerged 85 per cent have had someone correct them after mispronouncing a word, leaving 25 per cent feeling embarrassed. As a result, 24 per cent admitted they aren’t confident giving unfamiliar words a go. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! But 27 per cent continue to spout a word incorrectly, despite knowing they were getting it wrong. Kirsten Stagg, a spokesperson for Škoda, which commissioned the research after revealing people have been saying the name of the car brand wrong for years, said: “Sometimes, there are words that simply don’t sound how they are spelt, and even everyday terms tend to catch people out. “Škoda is a perfect example. The distinctive mark above the S, known as a hacek, or caron, can throw people off, and here in the UK the name is commonly pronounced ‘S-co-der’ rather than the correct ‘Sh-co-da’. “What’s great to see from the research is that the majority of people are still willing to have a go, even when they’re unfamiliar with a word and risk getting it wrong.” The study also found 85 per cent of adults believe correct pronunciation is important, with 59 per cent of those believing it helps avoid misunderstandings. Others think it shows respect for language (52 per cent), makes them appear more knowledgeable (38 per cent) and professional (34 per cent). Most read in The Sun With 38 per cent going as far as to say the way someone pronounces words can influence the impression they have of them. But attitudes towards mispronunciation vary across generations, with 53 per cent of Gen Z claiming a person’s pronunciation would impact what they think of them, compared to just 24 per cent of Boomers. Likewise, 57 per cent of Gen Z correct family, friends and colleagues on their pronunciation, but only 29 per cent of Boomers do the same, according to the OnePoll data. Among those who avoid correcting others, the most common reasons were not wanting to embarrass them (39 per cent), not wanting to come across rude (35 per cent) and not feeling it’s their place to do so (33 per cent). It also emerged 47 per cent of adults believe words should be spelt the way they are said, but 30 per cent credit social media for making them more aware of how to pronounce words. Stagg added: “As a brand whose name people haven’t always found easy to pronounce, we know better than most that some words can be trickier than others. “That’s exactly why we’ve launched our ‘Šhhhkoda’ campaign… along the way, hopefully we can help more people discover how we say ours.” Comment now