Are you sure you booked a trip to Mon-tree-awl? Or are you instead headed to Muhn-trawl?
Pronouncing the correct name of a city or country can make it sound like a whole new place. Accurate accentuation can also really help you jive with locals.
Study a few place names you may have been saying wrong all this time, and just remember: there's always time to change before your next flight. (As a note, just remember that pronunciations aren't hard-and-fast -- they can differ from person to person and from neighborhood to neighborhood, too.)
If you’re in America...
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Louisville, Kentucky
You may be saying: Looey-ville
But actually, it’s: Loo-a-vull or Loo-a-ville
Schenectady, New York
You may be saying: Ski-nek-tay-dee
But actually, it’s: Skuh-nek-ta-dee
Mackinac Island, Michigan
You may be saying: Mak-in-ak
But actually, it’s: Mak-uh-naw
Poughkeepsie, New York
You may be saying: Po-keep-see
But actually, it’s: Puh-kip-see
Spokane, Washington
You may be saying: Spoh-cane
But actually, it’s: Spoh-kan
New Orleans, Louisiana
You may be saying: New Oar-leenz
But actually, it’s: New Oar-lee-uh-nz, New Oar-luh-nz OR New Oar-leenz*
The good news is that there are many ways to say NOLA’s name -- and none is considered definitively correct, not even in the dictionary.
Or Canada…
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Clik here to view.
Toronto
You may be saying: Tuh-ron-toh
But actually, it’s: Traw-no
While most American English speakers will throw in the second “T,” Torontonians tend to drop it in their pronunciation. As one local says, “If someone pronounces that second T, it's a tipoff that they're not from here.”
Montreal
You may be saying: Mon-tree-awl
But actually, it's: Muhn-trawl
Remember that, for many locals, the first part of Montreal is "muhn," as in "money." While popular, this may not be the absolute correct way to pronounce it -- you can also harken back to the classic French dialect.
Quebec
You may be saying: Kwi-bec
But actually, it's: Keh-bec or Kay-bec
Whether you use the local pronunciation or the proper French, one thing's for sure: there isn't a "W" going on here.
Or if the islands are more your style....
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Seychelles
You may be saying: Say-chee-les
But actually, it's: Sey-shel or Sey-shelz
She sells sea shells by the... Seychelles?
Antigua
You may be saying: An-tee-gwah
But actually, it's: An-tee-guh
When a place is this beautiful, you're gonna wanna say it right.
St. Croix
You may be saying: Saint Craw-cks
But actually, it's: Saint Kroi
If you want to sound refined -- or if you want to sound normal, really -- ditch the "x."
And in France...
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.![596563001]()
Nice
You may be saying: Nahys
But actually, it's: Nees
You may already know the correct French pronunciation, but it sounds much nicer.
Aix-en-Provence
You may be saying: Aches-on-pro-vanz
But actually, it's: Ek-sahn-praw-vahns
Between the town's endless boulangeries and patisseries, you'll have plenty of time to "chew" on this fact.
Pronouncing the correct name of a city or country can make it sound like a whole new place. Accurate accentuation can also really help you jive with locals.
Study a few place names you may have been saying wrong all this time, and just remember: there's always time to change before your next flight. (As a note, just remember that pronunciations aren't hard-and-fast -- they can differ from person to person and from neighborhood to neighborhood, too.)
If you’re in America...
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Louisville, Kentucky
You may be saying: Looey-ville
But actually, it’s: Loo-a-vull or Loo-a-ville
Schenectady, New York
You may be saying: Ski-nek-tay-dee
But actually, it’s: Skuh-nek-ta-dee
Mackinac Island, Michigan
You may be saying: Mak-in-ak
But actually, it’s: Mak-uh-naw
Poughkeepsie, New York
You may be saying: Po-keep-see
But actually, it’s: Puh-kip-see
Spokane, Washington
You may be saying: Spoh-cane
But actually, it’s: Spoh-kan
New Orleans, Louisiana
You may be saying: New Oar-leenz
But actually, it’s: New Oar-lee-uh-nz, New Oar-luh-nz OR New Oar-leenz*
The good news is that there are many ways to say NOLA’s name -- and none is considered definitively correct, not even in the dictionary.
Or Canada…
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Toronto
You may be saying: Tuh-ron-toh
But actually, it’s: Traw-no
While most American English speakers will throw in the second “T,” Torontonians tend to drop it in their pronunciation. As one local says, “If someone pronounces that second T, it's a tipoff that they're not from here.”
Montreal
You may be saying: Mon-tree-awl
But actually, it's: Muhn-trawl
Remember that, for many locals, the first part of Montreal is "muhn," as in "money." While popular, this may not be the absolute correct way to pronounce it -- you can also harken back to the classic French dialect.
Quebec
You may be saying: Kwi-bec
But actually, it's: Keh-bec or Kay-bec
Whether you use the local pronunciation or the proper French, one thing's for sure: there isn't a "W" going on here.
Or if the islands are more your style....
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Seychelles
You may be saying: Say-chee-les
But actually, it's: Sey-shel or Sey-shelz
She sells sea shells by the... Seychelles?
Antigua
You may be saying: An-tee-gwah
But actually, it's: An-tee-guh
When a place is this beautiful, you're gonna wanna say it right.
St. Croix
You may be saying: Saint Craw-cks
But actually, it's: Saint Kroi
If you want to sound refined -- or if you want to sound normal, really -- ditch the "x."
And in France...
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Nice
You may be saying: Nahys
But actually, it's: Nees
You may already know the correct French pronunciation, but it sounds much nicer.
Aix-en-Provence
You may be saying: Aches-on-pro-vanz
But actually, it's: Ek-sahn-praw-vahns
Between the town's endless boulangeries and patisseries, you'll have plenty of time to "chew" on this fact.