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I do enough international traveling to know that foreigners (especially the Brits) loathe hearing from, usually the younger subset of Americans, the seemingly endless, mindless and nauseating phrase "Oh My God.....Oh My God....Oh My God."
Indeed. Not to mention the abuse of superlatives, the ...est ever!
That whole exaggerated, hyperactive way of Americans is hard to take...
Indeed. Not to mention the abuse of superlatives, the ...est ever!
That whole exaggerated, hyperactive way of Americans is hard to take...
I see a lot of that nonsense in commercials especially info-mercials but not much in real life. Most of what is depicted on TV in the USA doesn't represent real life accurately, there are a few snap shots of reality but not much.
This is interesting. Americans aren't aware that there's any other way to pronounce those words. This is the first I've heard, that other English speakers pronounce French words in a non-French way. If the words are of French origin, why wouldn't they be pronounced the French way? (See, there's a logic to the practice.) They're loan words, and the pronunciation comes with the loan, so to speak. Although there are plenty of loanwords and names from other languages, where the original pronunciation isn't honored, so...IDK. But Americans don't pronounce it the French way to be pretentious. It's the only pronunciation they know.
I'm formerly French fluent though it's pretty atrophied at the moment. This kind of makes no sense. There are a bunch of French words borrowed into English that I would never pronounce in French.
Some examples:
Information
Attention
Communication
Transformation
Action
Connection
Television
Table
Stable
Adorable
Comfortable
Accessible
Audible
Hospital (well, hôpital)
Forest (forêt)
Menu
Picnic
Restaurant (unless it's a French restaurant)
Champagne
There is a much shorter list of French words I pronounce as French. For example:
Bourgeois
Chauffeur
Deja vu
En route
Fiance
Joie de vivre
A propos
Citroen
Peugeot
Renault
Moet et Chandon
If I'm speaking with someone in English that I know is French-fluent, I'll drop in French phrases but I'm not going to do that with some guy I don't know sitting next to me at the bar.
Never have I heard anyone pronounce fillet any other way than "filay" or herb as "erb". Pronouncing them as if they were English words would sound very weird to me.
I have heard fillet or filet with a hard T. It reminds me of how in England they would say valet with a hard t, rather than valay.
I have heard fillet or filet with a hard T. It reminds me of how in England they would say valet with a hard t, rather than valay.
Sure, but you at least have cereal box French since anything you buy in the store is labeled bilingually. All those "Je me souviens" people have some impact on how you pronounce things.
Claret is another one of those Brit things. Other than as claret sauce served over ice cream, it's not in my vocabulary. I use red Bordeaux to describe the appellation and the red blend.
Appellation is a word where I use the French pronunciation in the context of French wine but the English pronunciation in any other context. I'll always use the French pronunciation for any AOC. St Emilion.
It's funny because I use the butchered English pronunciation for the US Virgin Island St Croix. I'm not fully consistent.
This is interesting. Americans aren't aware that there's any other way to pronounce those words. This is the first I've heard, that other English speakers pronounce French words in a non-French way. If the words are of French origin, why wouldn't they be pronounced the French way? (See, there's a logic to the practice.) They're loan words, and the pronunciation comes with the loan, so to speak. Although there are plenty of loanwords and names from other languages, where the original pronunciation isn't honored, so...IDK. But Americans don't pronounce it the French way to be pretentious. It's the only pronunciation they know.
I see a lot of that nonsense in commercials especially info-mercials but not much in real life. Most of what is depicted on TV in the USA doesn't represent real life accurately, there are a few snap shots of reality but not much.
Actually, you hear stuff like this in San Diego rather frequently, especially from girls and the more preppy types of 20 somethings.
I have heard fillet or filet with a hard T. It reminds me of how in England they would say valet with a hard t, rather than valay.
Pronouncing it with a hard T would stand out where I live just as people who can't pronounce Spanish surnames correctly where I live also raise an eyebrow.
Actually, you hear stuff like this in San Diego rather frequently, especially from girls and the more preppy types of 20 somethings.
I'm not part of the 20 something crowd interesting it sounds really superficial and fake to me. I do like reasonable optimism but too much of anything can be tiresome.
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