Report: The word residents of Ohio, each state struggle to pronounce the most
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – A recent report has revealed the word that residents struggle to pronounce the most in Ohio and each state across the country.
Unscramblerer.com, an online tool intended to assist with spelling games such as Scrabble, analyzed Google search data to discover the “most mispronounced word” in each state. The website considered searches made from January through October, containing terms such as "how do you pronounce" and "how to pronounce."
The word Ohioans have the hardest time pronouncing is Paczki, according to the study. Paczki, pronounced POONCH-kee, is a traditional Polish doughnut. Paczki was also named the most mispronounced word in Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin.
The most mispronounced word in the country is Gyro, pronounced YEE-roh, which saw 312,000 searches, according to the report. The list of the top 10 words Americans struggle to pronounce the most can be found below.
- Gyro (312 000 searches) - YEE-roh.
- Worcestershire sauce (300 000 searches) - WUSS-ter-sheer.
- Acai (192 000 searches) - ah-SIGH-ee.
- Qatar (180 000 searches) - KAH-tar.
- Dachshund (156 000 searches) - DAKS-hund.
- Niche (142 000 searches) - NEESH.
- Aoife (84 000 searches) - EE-fah.
- Charcuterie (72 000 searches) - shar-KOO-tuh-ree.
- Paczki (36 000 searches) - POONCH-kee.
- Primeval (26 000 searches) - pry-MEE-vul.
“Our research about the most searched for mispronunciations gives an interesting insight into American culture,” a spokesperson with the website said. “Exposure to new words through media, music, pop culture and social platforms drives curiosity. People often look up pronunciations if there is a gap between how a word or name is spelled and how it sounds.”
The spelling of English words only matches pronunciation about 75% of the time, according to the University of Oxford. Unscramblerer.com also noted a Cambridge University survey that found more than 60% of English speakers admit they regularly mispronounce at least one word.