February 2006

Just Foolin’ Around

February is not the only word whose proper pronunciation is a matter for debate. Interested in checking out other words in that group? Choose the Collegiate Dictionary, click on Advanced Search and then, in the Usage Paragraph box, type pronunciation and enter. You can preview the results right here.

The twelve results range from effect (often pronounced like affect, which is part of the reason we get these two confused) to nuclear (a word with a pronunciation that can set folks off).

Others on the list include envelope (\ en-\ and \ än-\ are used with about equal frequency, and both are fully acceptable), foliage, forte (a word with no entirely satisfactory pronunciation), genuine, get, -ing, kilometer (most often pronounced with stress on the second syllable), library, and mischievous (stick with the three-syllable pronunciation).