How Do I Say That? Pronunciation Guides for a Better Business Image

August 9, 2009 by Rita Marshall 

Photo by gokce

Saying “warsh” instead of “wash” or “ofen” instead of “of-ten” can be a charming expression of a local dialect. But mispronouncing a word like segue or butchering the name of a person or city can be embarrassing, especially if you make it during a presentation or introductions.

Fortunately, the Internet is here to help, and will do it for free.

Preparing for a meeting? Practicing a speech? Need to settle an argument with someone who calls it “War-chest-er sauce”? (That would’ve been me ten years ago). Turn up your computer speakers and check out these websites.

- Dictionary.com uses more than 16 dictionaries to compile its database of English words. Beside each word you’ll see a speaker icon. Click on it and you’ll hear the correct pronunciation of the word.

- Inogolo.com specializes in the proper pronunciation of people and places. Your friend will learn that it’s actually pronounced “Worster sauce”. When you want to compliment a new business acquaintance on his TAG Heure watch, you’ll know to say, “Tag HOY-yur”.

- If you run Firefox, you can download the Pronounce Firefox extension. Right click on any word on a web page, and “pronounce” will appear in a menu. Click and you will hear the Merriam-Webster dictionary pronunciation of the word.

If the name or word you’re searching for doesn’t appear in any of the above three options, you might have to go about it the old-fashioned way. Ask someone who knows how to pronounce the name or word. Once you’ve heard it, repeat it and record yourself saying it correctly. Take another listen and practice again before heading off to your meeting or speech. Vwah-la!

Have a comment? Tell me what you think here!