A rose by any other name (or pronunciation) ...

Columnist has a pretty good command of the English language, but sometimes it’s the pronunciation that gets her.

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By TAMMY MALGESINI

INSIDE MY SHOES

Published on September 30, 2015 5:23PM

I like to think I have a pretty good command of the English language, but sometimes it’s the pronunciation that gets me.

I’m glad I’m in print media, because unlike radio and TV, as long as you spell the words correctly, you’re good to go.

I recently fielded a phone call from a Tri-Cities news station inquiring how to pronounce “the local middle school.” A co-worker had told me a news anchor had completely slaughtered the pronunciation of Armand Larive the night before in a newscast.

Just to mess with the guy, I said rather slowly, “Sandstone Middle School.” There was silence on the other end of the phone and then the guy said, “No, another one.” And then he attempted to pronounce Armand Larive.

Honestly, I felt his pain. I’ve had my share of laughable linguistic moments. However, when I mess up on words my audience is generally a small group or just one person — not thousands of TV viewers.

But, my husband doesn’t soon let me forget my phonetic foibles.

Like the time I was talking about a particularly disturbing part in the latest Stephen King novel. Saying it was quite macabre — only pronouncing it mack-a-bree. Or when I was telling him about talking to someone about an episode of “Intervention” and how the situation quickly went awry — pronouncing it awe-ree. And, of course, there was the time I was obtaining information from the concierge desk at a fancy San Francisco hotel. Yup, I messed that one up too, saying kon-kur-odge.

Evidently my linguistic limitations are especially an issue when dealing with French words. I was covering a 4-H horsemanship competition shortly after starting with the newspaper. I didn’t have a clue what dressage was, much less how to pronounce it. I approached someone who appeared to be affiliated with the competition and asked, “What exactly is dressage?” Only I pronounced is like dress-age: dress as in the article of clothing, and age, like what age is the participant. Put that together and it’s nothing like the actual French pronunciation of druh-sahzh.

Luckily, I can laugh at my faux pas — and at least I know that’s not pronounced fox paws.

Tammy Malgesini is the community editor. Her column, Inside my Shoes, includes general musings about life. Contact her at tmalgesini@eastoregonian.com or 541-564-4539.