Just like so many other ignorant people including George Bush, Sarah Palin mispronounces the word "nuclear". She did this countless times today in the debate. Excuse me for being petty, but I find that very annoying. "Nuclear" is really not such a difficult word, and for any native born English-speaking American to butcher it is inexcusable.
For what it is worth. source /ˈnukliər, ˈnyu- or, by metathesis, -kyələr/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[noo-klee-er, nyoo- or, by metathesis, -kyuh-ler Pronunciation note In pronouncing nuclear, the second and third syllables are most commonly said as /-kliər/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[-klee-er] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation, a sequence of sounds that directly reflects the spelled sequence ‑cle·ar. In recent years, a somewhat controversial pronunciation has come to public attention, with these two final syllables said as /-kyələr/[-kyuh-ler]. Since /-kliər/[-klee-er], the common pronunciation of ‑cle·ar, might also be represented, broadly, as /-kləyər/[-kluh-yer], the /-kyələr/[-kyuh-ler] pronunciation can be seen as coming from a process of metathesis, in which the /l/[l] and the /y/[y] change places. The resulting pronunciation is reinforced by analogy with such words as molecular, particular, and muscular, and although it occurs with some frequency among highly educated speakers, including scientists, professors, and government officials, it is disapproved of by many.
Thanks, homebizseo, but words such as "molecular" and "particular" were never originally pronounced "moleclear" or "particlear", so no wonder the new pronunciation for "nuclear" is controversial . Moreover, I've never heard a scientist or other "highly educated" expert say "nucyuler". The ones who mispronounce it are usually the less educated who also say "between you and I" because it supposedly sounds more erudite, even though it's grammatically incorrect.
You think that's bad...John McCain (who I like, BTW) says WaRshington. I am from the State of Washington and I HATE that!! There's NO "R" in Washington!! My grandma says that, too...and she's from here!!
I know lots of people that pronounce the S at the end of Illinois, even though it is supposed to be silent. No one from Illinois pronounces it that way. How about the east coast American who pronounce 'schedule' as 'shed-you-al'. A few friends from Maryland and also Rush Limbaugh pronounce it that way. If you are going to pronounce schedule that way, shouldn't you also pronounce 'school' as 'shool'? They also tend to pronounce 'Washington' as 'Wurshington', which is another variation to what AngelaE8654 mentioned. Our British friends pronounce 'aluminum' as 'al-you-min-ee-um', even though they spell it the same as we do. How about the Canadians who pronounce 'about' as 'aboot'. Most Canadians pronounce the word that way, but neither Americans not British pronounce it that way. A lot of English words are mispronounced by well educated people. Do you notice how Obama pronounces 'Pakistan' as 'Pahk-ee-stahn'? That pronunciation sounds almost cartoonish and grates on me a bit because it sounds elitist. It is not pronounced that way in English. Pronunciations have little to do with education and more to do with dialects in the geographic area where you are raised as well as the social class of your friends. Highly educated people do not always pronounce words in the most proper manner.
I honestly don't think it's 'elitist' which is just another term to attack them there liberals. I however do hate how he pronounces it as well, makes me want to throw something at the TV when he says it to get it to stop. Makes him sound uneducated if anything IMHO, not 'elitist'.
No argument from me. I'm not sure why he does that. It sounds intentional because of the emphasis, which sounds like he is trying to show all of of us little people how to pronounce it properly. That's why it sounds elitist to me.
I think the emphasis is perhaps him trying to control how he states it, possibly he usually states it far worse if he does not force himself. I have known others to talk that way, nothing with their intelligence or lack there of. I myself have a few words I can not pronounce the greatest because of a physical impairment of my tongue.
OK. It looks like I stand corrected on aluminium. Wikipedia spells it both ways. The industry that I worked in for 20 years universally spelled it as aluminum, which is the spelling used on the periodic table of elements. Perhaps your periodic tables spell it your way. All the European catalogs for the industry also spelled it as 'aluminum'. We used to joke about it with the Brits in our UK office and not one person ever mentioned that you guys spell it the way that you say it. My bad. . .
Hmm. I thought "WaRshington" was mainly a Hoosier (my home state of Indiana) dialect pronunciation. But I know that McCain is not from there. Maybe he's trying to sound "folksy"? Speaking of which, where did George Bush get his Texas accent? He wasn't born or raised in that state.
Probably. One of the guys used to say, "The seagulls have arrived!" when USA management visited the UK office. When I asked him what that meant, he said, "Well, every once in a while you guys fly in here, squawk and flap your wings a lot, crap on us a few times, and then fly off." He might have been right.