"pronunciation" news and stories

I noticed a lot of comments about the name of the potential Ben & Jerry's flavor "Apricotabra." Whether or not the flavor - vanilla with apricot preserves - sounded appealing, most people didn't seem to like the name. I, too, found it awkward to think about, let alone to say aloud. The reason is that they word is a play on "abracadabra" that does not work for all English speakers because there are two entirely different ways to pronounce the name of the small stone fruit: ah-pricot and ape-ricot (I'd put the significantly more accurate phonetic transcription for any linguists out there, but my IPA fonts would probably not be visible on your screens via the Slashfood interface anyway).

If you take the ape-ricot pronunciation, they play on words that is supposed to be there just doesn't quite work. Doubtless, this would not be a selling point for Ben & Jerry's, who probably want people to be able to speak the names of their flavors aloud without stumbling over poor constructions. It may taste great, but no one will ever know if they're disinclined to buy it in the first place.

If you're going to Thailand anytime in the near future, or if you just want to seem like less of a jackass the next time you go out to a Thai restaurant, have a look at this "talking menu" of Thai food. Just what it sounds like, this is a list of popular Thai dishes accompanied by audio clips of their names. The guide is part of EnjoyThaiFood.com, an extensive blog and recipe resource for Thai cooking and foodways. The recipes look authentic and simple and the Thai food forum seems pretty active.