Someone (unfortunately, I can’t remember who) said that kil-OM-eter (with the accent on the second syllable would mean a device to measure something called a “kil” as in spedometer, thermometer, barometer, interferometer. He said this was according to some rule of word formation. The unit of distance should be KIL-o-meter with the accent on the first syllable as in centimeter and millimeter and comparable to kilogram or kilohertz. Kilometer is such an unusual word in American English that I can’t think the kil-OM-eter is a fixed “American” pronunciation. I suspect folks began putting the accent on second syllable because they thought it sounded more “European”.
There should be no argument on this one. All the SI prefixes should have the stress on them. Sound out kg, kV, and kPa, then mm, mV, GW, and any others you can think of. You’d never say any of these with the stress on the unit. Pronouncing km any differently is an abomination.
The British pronunciation is simply wrong because, regardless of the expected spelling, they add a vowel sound - and consequently, an extra syllable - when they say a-lu-MI-ni-um.
And they do the same thing with the word specialty when they pronounce it spe-shee-a-li-ty. They’re adding an extra i to both words. It sounds - and is - pretentious.
Also, it’s interesting that they add an r to words that end with an “a” sound, and refuse to pronounce the r in words that actually end in r. The movie title Hannah And Her Sisters, for example, becomes Hanner And Her Sistahs.
Yeah, maybe Penny should look within before criticizing others.
W/regard to aluminium and speciality, I think it would be more correct to say that American spelling and pronunciation drops a letter (since aluminium is actually correct as has been pointed out). W/regard to adding and dropping “r” sounds, you are wildly over-generalizing. England has regional and class accents just like the U.S. Go park your car in Harvard Yard and report back.
Different pronunciations of words is not “wrong”, just different. And who are we to say that the Brits are pronouncing English words incorrectly?
Refusing to accept others’ pronunciations is pretentious IMHO and ethnocentric. We should be accepting of others as we expect them to be of us.
For most of of my life, I pronounced kilometer “kil-O-muh-ter”, only because I was brainwashed to do so by nontechnical, dogmatic teachers.
Other “kilo” containing words I use are kilohertz (KIL-o-hertz) and kilogram (KIL-o-gram), so I’m in the process of training myself to pronounce kilometer the same way (KIL-o-meter).
But then, English is a language in which for every rule, there is at least one exception.
I am a proponent of the belief that common usage dictates pronunciation and thus BOTH pronunciations are valid. However, I just came across a brochure published by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, “Metric Style Guide for the News Media.” There is a section on pronunciation, and I quote: “The pronunciation of common metric units is well known, except for pascal, which rhymes with rascal, and hectare, which rhymes with bare. The first syllable of every prefix is accented, not the second syllable. Example: KILL-oh-meter, not kil-LOM-meter.”
I was going to refrain from commenting, but Prof Huntsman, dude, language’s whole purpose is to communicate, the more clearly the better. Perhaps it’s only me, but I find myself having to struggle to understand your posts. And even then I’m not sure I understood correctly.
“One principle for compound words is to preserve the stress of root of the word, here kilo-MEE-ter”. However, another rule, typically applied to polysyllabic Latinate words, places the stress on the antepenult (third from the end), hence kil-AW-meter. Stress rules also differ across dialects, both within the US (cf the PO-lice of some southern and southern midwestern dialects) and around the world, as here between standard Am English and standard British English."
“Good point. I would only add that linguists as a group try not to use terms like “correct” and “proper” because they seem inappropriately evaluative. For example, “correct” implies an environment of a closed logical system (e.g., 2 + 2 = 5 is “incorrect” within 10-base, normal arithmetic, although it may not be in some other system). So I’d rather use some (admittedly more awkward) description like “semantically transparent” or “paradigmatically inclusive”.”
Ummmm…dude, you have GOT to be kidding!
Sorry, couldn’t resist.
@mountainbike: The nonsense you quoted is from what the right-wing radio hosts refer to as “the faculty lounge” or “the fever swamps of the professors’ lounges.”
It basically means you can say anything you want no matter how stupid when you can’t be fired (tenure). Note the use of “10-base” instead of the correct “base 10”.
“However, another rule, typically applied to polysyllabic Latinate words, places the stress on the antepenult (third from the end), hence kil-AW-meter.”
Let me pile on for a minute here:
Professor? “Kilometer” is STILL NOT ‘LATINATE’ YOU IDIOT!!!
@thesame mountainbike, I basically agree with you that the finger pointing about pronunciation is unnecessary, and that clarity is the goal. I just have a beef with pronunciations that utterly disregard the actual letters in the word. Like nook-you-ler for nuclear. That makes things less clear, and for no good reason. Cheers.
its “Miles” we live in america
Yea, too bad about that. You would think that a country as advanced as the US would be first with the better system, but I guess the US is not as advanced as many would think.
I honestly can’t think of a single practical disadvantage to measuring driving distances in miles instead of kilometers. Besides, the “Indy 804.7” doesn’t have the same ring to it as the “Indy 500” does.
Perhaps the reason we became as advanced as we are is because our systems work fine. It may be different from other countries, but it works just as well. There is no disadvantage to using “miles”. Or “inches”, “feet”, and “yards”. They’re just different ways of measuring. Nothing more, nothing less.
While the “metric system” is based on the “meter”, I wondered what a “meter” actually represented originally. You all might find the attached link a good read.
“Don’t sweat the small stuff” applies hear.
Too many people say things way too differently to snipe at little pronunciation diffferences when , in fact, …
…you know darn well exactly what they’re saying !
Every day here… yes, every day I have to adjust my listening to the accent or slant of the speaker. We have Navajo, Zuni, Pakistani, Indian, Arabic, Mexican , Spanish, and many others …all local residents…putting their slant on english, that you just can’t get so nitpicky about pronunciation or you’ll drive your OCD nuts !
Then , internationally, it is accepted practice to always use english when piloting aircraft. Although many airspace controllers speak multiple languages , english is the accepted protocol. Nothing is regulated concerning one’s accent though.
“Cool hwip.”
Yes, Ken, but must the words used be “correct” or can they only be “paradigmatically inclusive”?
I’m sorry, I can’t help it. Every time I read this thread I roll over with laughter.