*10 points!* REALLY Odd speech impediment, please help!?

Question

Hi, this psycho, snotty, complete loser that I know has a really odd speech impediment. What I don't know is if it's really a speech impediment, if she never associated the true spelling of the words to their pronunciation (i.e. how some people say "supposIVEly" instead of "supposEDly"), or if she just mispronounces things on purpose because she's such a snotty weirdo who thinks that she's better than everyone else (when in fact her education is less than that of a rat). Anyway, what she seems to have the most trouble with is the word "we'll." Example: We'll have to see how that works out. Instead, she says something that sounds like either
"where" or "were" added to a whistling sound. It's almost like some hybrid, French-sounding word! Example: Werecey what happens ("we'll see what happens").

What do you think that is?

A) a true speech impediment
B) she doesn't know the real pronunciation
C) she thinks she's too good to pronounce words properly
D) something else

Thank you!

Honestly, I know this sounds absolutely crazy and like I joke, but I swear to God that I'm 100% serious! Please help with this; it's intolerably annoying!

Oooh! Another thing she does that makes me think it's just her trying to be annoying is that she says it ALL the time. It's like she purposely rearranges sentences so that she has to say that damn hybrid word.

"fancyname" - I'm explaining the type of person that she is, because I thought that it might be relevant as to WHY she was pronouncing the word like that. I know some people that purposely mispronounce things in an effort to sound more educated -- it's a very skewed way of thinking, but they do it so as to make the listener think "Hey maybe *I* have been mispronouncing it all these years!"

Example: "Pap-Rick-Uh" instead of "Pap-Wreak-Uh" (Paprika)

Answer 1

It's from an Austin Powers movie or something isn't it? Actually, it could be from Team America, but I have heard it before and it was in a movie. She thinks she's being funny. Just tell her to shut up.

Answer 2

If it was a speech impediment, the whistling sound you describe would occur in other words with the same collection of sounds, and it doesn't.
The "real pronunciation" of words is a matter of location, accent, preference, education and so on, but having said that, she certainly seems to be out there on the edge.
I would suggest that this is an affectation that she will grow out of. I would also be curious to know how her parents pronounce this word.
Finally, if you are really curious and not just spiteful, you might try overcoming your distaste and asking her why she pronounces it this way.

Answer 3

It sounds familiar to me, although a diagnosis would require more information about her nonstandard pronunciations (and maybe a bit less about her personal shortcomings).

I'd guess a combination of A and D.

Here's my analysis, starting with the last first:


|--: In English, the terminal L is almost always "dark" (IPA: /É«/). This is problematic for many speakers, and there is also a fairly wide variance amongst various subgroups; for example, a white mid-Westerner might hear a Cockney, South Australian, or African-American pronounciation of /É«/ as a "w", where in "bell" sounds like "beww". (See citation.)

|--: The transition from long-E to dark-L is particularly problematic, and many languages drop the L or substitute another phoneme in this position; for example, French mille is pronouced something like mee-y'.

|--: Finally, the transition from the initial "w" sound (which is basically a very short "oo") to the long-E sound requires a certain amount of labial and buccal gymnastics. For example, if you say "wee-wee-wee-wee" rapidly in a loud whisper, you'll hear all sorts of transitional phonemes and maybe even a whistle.


And now a few theories that might explain both this woman's pronunciation and possibly your antipathy towards her:

1A. You and she are of different races or nationalities, and her idiolect works your nerves because of your unfamiliarity with it and your attitude towards her.

1B. She comes from a culture, upbringing, or background where her pronunciation is not unusual. However, other aspects of this culture are expressed by her in a way that works your nerves.

2A. She is overcompensating for a speech impediment or a cultural background that she is ashamed of. The subtle or not-so-subtle ways in which she defends herself against others' feared/perceived judgment works your nerves.

2B. She has a mild uncompensated speech impediment and a superiority complex about it that works your nerves.

Answer 4

She might have a sequencing deficit , a form of verbal dyslexia or a substitution error in her speech. But her speech impediment is nothing compared to her problem with you and your rude behavior to her. If she truly has a speech impediment, why are YOU Being so mean? If you are just using this forum to insult her, why are YOU bothering. If she is that annoying, and you are so much BETTER than her, just ignore her.

Answer 5

It sounds like a combination of a speech impediment and a weird accent.

Answer 6

She could be lazy with her speech. Alot of people do get lazy and slur their words alot. Also...it is possible she has some type of hearing loss, doesn't realize it, and doesn't hear everything that she is saying.

Please don't badmouth a person, no matter how much you don't like them. They are human as well. When you badmouth someone, you curse them. So, instead of cursing them, give them a blessing.

Answer 7

B. Sounds like she know what to say, just don't know how to say it. That would drive me crazy and I would correct her every time she says it. I have a sister that would not pronounce Massacheutes right drove me nuts. She would mass-a-two=sets. I told her she had nothing wrong with her speech, she just had to learn to speak right .

Answer 8

You're sounding like Vicki Pollard from Little Britain.
.

Answer 9

I would say A and B. I have a friend who says and spells Monday as Mundy and tomorrow as tomorra. It drives me nuts but I don't feel like I should correct her cuz she is 32 years old and probably has been doing it her whole life.

Answer 10

B
doesn't know what the word looks like in print and is repeating words she has heard. without seeing the word, she says it the incorrect way she might have heard it (my husband always says ambidextrious-he knows the word but puts the "I" in there cuz he's never seen it written).