Unpacking English, Bit by Bit
A community for questioning, nitpicking, and debating the quirks and rules of the English language.
Unpacking English, Bit by Bit
A community for questioning, nitpicking, and debating the quirks and rules of the English language.
Pet Peeve 1. Lots of antipodeans (particularly sports commentators) persist in pronouncing “début” as “dayboo” yet they pronounce “débutante” correctly. Occurs 2 or 3 times in every broadcast on Sky TV. I now mute the sound otherwise my teeth would be ground to dust.
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They're actually pronouncing it closer to the correct pronunciation (i.e. how the French say it) than we are.
Sam Hattz Jul-06-2012
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Check on www.forvo.com
The French pronunciation is definitely closer to 'daybew' than 'dayboo', as is the normal English pronunciation.
Mediator Jul-06-2012
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Yeah, I would think so. In french it's kind of a "yeuh" sound. I've always said day-bew.
Kat Jul-07-2012
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If you want grating, you should try asking a New Yorker to say "It is my duty to tell you there is dew due"
Traff Aug-19-2013
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