English Language - what "Does your head in" ??

[Cyril Haearn]

Why is it we can be comfortable in comfort, suffer discomfort when uncomfortable, but cannot be discomfortable in uncomfort?

I feel really gruntled when I go cycling

[Mick F]

Gruntled?

gruntled
adjective humorous
pleased, satisfied, and contented.

What about being disgruntled when you don't go cycling?

[Bmblbzzz]

Yesterday we had one of our U3A 'French Conversation' sessions, and were discussing the machinations of the Academie Française, which as most people will know, has the job of safeguarding la langue française against all nasty foreign intrusions. It occurs to me that, instead of ranting on about the shortcomings of our noble Anglo-Saxon linguistic heritage, we could spare a moment to sympathise with our closest cross-channel neighbours (soon alas! to be further sundered from us).

Anyway, someone brought up this, and several other, pieces of French doggerel. Can you suss it out, without googling? Hint: fluency in French is not of particular benefit, but understanding of French pronunciation is.

Un petit d'un petit
S'étonne aux Halles.
Un petit d'un petit
Ah! degrés te fallent.
Indolent qui ne sort cesse,
Indolent qui ne se mène,
Qu'importe un petit d'un petit
Tout Gai de Reguennes.

Vaut une taupe.

I know that's not the source, but it's what the style of humour reminds me of.

[661-Pete]

Something dredged up from long-past and almost forgotten memories, gnawing at my mind, this past couple of weeks.

As a small child in the 1950s, I knew plenty about bumble-bees, especially after my little sister had the rare distinction of getting herself stung by one, causing a right old kerfuffle in the family (bumble-bees are seldom aggressive, but when they are minded to sting they carry a fair amount of venom and hence pack quite a punch).

Imagine, therefore, my confusion, when my teacher at primary school asserted that on no account must the insect be referred to as 'bumble-bee': the only correct term being 'humble-bee'. Being the good, obedient pupil I was, I duly took her at her word, for a while - to the bewilderment of my parents and just about everyone else....

I wonder, now, if that dear old teacher is by mere chance still alive and reading this. Would it be uncharitable of me to suggest that, for her outburst of absurd pedantry, she deserves the same affliction as suffered by my infant sister - and in the same part of her anatomy?

[Mick F]

Heard incessantly on R4 this morning about that fair city of Birkenhead.
She kept on pronouncing it as BirkenHEAD .................. as if it was opposed to BirkenFEET or BirkenARMS.

It's actually pronounced BIRKENhead.

She obviously needs a bumblbee sting somewhere.

[PDQ Mobile]

I thought it was pronounced "Burkened" !

[Mick F]

Just like Wigan is pronounced Wig-in.
Bury is pronounced Burry ........ and not Berry.

I know someone from Shrewsbury.
It seems that depending on where you live in Shrewsbury, depends on how it is pronounced.
Shrews-bri or Shrows-bri.

[Cyril Haearn]

:lol:

Just like Wigan is pronounced Wig-in.
Bury is pronounced Burry ........ and not Berry.

I know someone from Shrewsbury.
It seems that depending on where you live in Shrewsbury, depends on how it is pronounced.
Shrews-bri or Shrows-bri.

To avoid arguments one may use the Welsh name, Amwythig. Many people use *Salop* for Shrewsbury

[Audax67]

"Salope" meaning sloven in French.

[Mick F]

Talking of weather forecasters, why do they call Northern Ireland ............. northern island?

Just heard some woman reading the news on R2, and she said Northern Island.

Why can't people get it right?

[Bmblbzzz]

The retreat of rhotic R is a long term change. It's been going on for fifty years at least.

[Cyril Haearn]

Talking of weather forecasters, why do they call Northern Ireland ............. northern island?

Just heard some woman reading the news on R2, and she said Northern Island.

Why can't people get it right?

Ulster? The North? The six counties?

Stroke city? (Derry/Londonderry)?

BBC people should get it right, the corporation has a "pronunciation unit"

[NATURAL ANKLING]

Hi,
Pronounce that Mick F

"Milngavie"

[Audax67]

Talking of weather forecasters, why do they call Northern Ireland ............. northern island?

Just heard some woman reading the news on R2, and she said Northern Island.

Why can't people get it right?

Alas, Mick, don't you realize that we who come from such places have only ourselves to blame for our recalcitrant adherence to slipshod provincial gargling?

[Vorpal]

People all over the world do that. If you go to some parts of the USA, it can be difficult to distinguish the ir sound from ar. In Missippi, 'tire' and 'tar' are almost indistinguishable. Other places, 'e' and 'a' are hard to tell apart. Some British people say the 'r' sound very softly. So I can see how Ireland might come out sounding like 'island'. I used to buy petrol regularly at a place in Wickford, and one girl worked there was absolutely impossible to understand. She'd say an amount, and I have to look at the till, just like I was in a foreign country. And I'm usually pretty good at that sort of thing.

I was on a repair course once with other people from all over the UK. The nature of the course was that it was mainly farmers and mechanics on the course. I found myself translating for the Jordies and Scots. I seemed to understand what they were saying better than the others on the course. But I've maybe had a little more exposure than they had.

Although local dialects seem to be less unique than they once were, I think pronunciation is getting worse. Schools don't correct it anymore. They have test targets to meet and other more important stuff. Additionally, I think there a certain amount of teachers not wanting to correct youngsters on their accents on the basis that it will seen as snobbish or oppressive or some such.

I hear similar pronunciation differences and accents in Norwegian; they can make it quite difficult for me to understand.