Some expressions will roll off your tongue when learning a new language. Others not so much.
As a person who moved to the United States as an adult, I can honestly say I’ve committed myself to learning the language the best I can. And yet, I do recognize my limitations. There are sounds in the English language I didn’t grow up with. When it comes to reproducing them, my mouth will just throw up its arms and say "I give up." I think that with age the tongue tends to lose elasticity, making it hard to imitate or replicate letter combinations you didn’t have the opportunity to practice when you were younger. Certain words I can pronounce fairly well if I do it very slowly. With others, it’s just a losing battle. In any case, I try not to use the below words.
Sixth: I have no trouble pronouncing fourth, fifth, or ninth, but that "xth" causes my brain to short-circuit.
Sheet: With this one, I feel like I’m always a hair’s breadth away from saying "sh_t." That’s why I use "Excel file" instead of "spreadsheet."
Beach: When I was living in New Jersey it was very easy to avoid using this word altogether because most people use the word "shore" instead. Did you guess what my main concern with this word is? You got it. I’m afraid it could sound like "b_tch."
Travel: I don’t know what it is with this word, but most of the time people think I’m trying to say "trouble."
Gifts: There aren't any words in Spanish ending in "fts." The only way for me to pronounce it is by saying "gift", coming to a full stop, and then adding the "s" sound.
Focus: I avoid this one like the plague. Why? Because in my mind it could be confused with the all too popular "F" word. I prefer to use the word "concentrate."
Sheep: See "Sheet."
Major: For some reason, I keep pronouncing this word as "mayor."
Party: If I try to replicate this word, following the American pronunciation, it’ll sound like "patty." It’s easier for me to go with the British pronunciation.
Dirty: See "party."
Radius: The pronunciation of the "u" in a word like "music" is a piece of cake. Getting the "u" of "radius" just right is something I haven’t been able to achieve...yet.
What words in the English language do you find hard to pronounce? ☼
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Alex Guerrero is a content creator who lives in Lawrence, KS. He’s very vocal in his displeasure over pineapple pizza. Chocolate, on the other hand, makes everything better!
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