Words You (And I) Probably Mispronounce
February 26, 2013 6:16 AM 
Being a radio personality I take great pains to e-nun-c-ate and correctly pronounce the words I use on the air. However there are occasions when despite my best efforts–I mispronounce a common word. Chances are you mispronounce a few too like, maybe, Dr. Seuss’ name. Here, from the pages of MentalFloss.com, are some of the most commonly mispronounced words.
Seuss—-Pen names don’t always make things easier. Theodore Geisel’s college buddy Alexander Liang made a rhyme to teach you the right way to pronounce it:
“You’re wrong as the deuce/And you shouldn’t rejoice/
If you’re calling him Seuss/He pronounces it Soice” (or Zoice).
Kibosh
Let’s put the kibosh, pronounced “KY-bosh,” on saying this word like “kuh-BOSH.”
Celtic
An initial hard (k) sound is the standard, but linguists say the (s) sound emerged as far back as the 17th century. Still, you’ll sound ridiculous (but correct!) if you bring that hard (k) to a Boston Celtics basketball game.
Boatswain
Okay, so maybe this word’s not that commonly used. But now that you know it’s pronounced “bo-sun,” you might find more reasons to work it into conversation.
Comptroller
This word sounds just like “controller.” If you’re tempted to pronounce that silent (pt), please comptroll yourself!
via 11 Common Words You’re Probably Mispronouncing | Mental Floss.
Actually, my last name–Herkimer–is also soemwhat of a mispronunciation. The great Revolutionary War hero General Nicholas Herkimer was, according to Wikipedia, of Palatine German stock and spelled his last name Herchheimer, pronounced “Herk-hi-mur”. I think I’ll stick with our local pronunciation.
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