Inquiring Minds Must Know (A Poll)

michelle142 · September 2014

My Sister and I were having this discussion yesterday (albeit a stupid, pointless discussion but whatever)...
How do you pronounce "February"?

michelle142 · September 2014

FTR: I sided with "Feb-u-ary", mainly because it flows better off my tongue that way.

Her argument: "Then why is there an 'r' in it?"

Valid point I suppose, but it sounds funny to me when I say it that way.

bhjones1980 · September 2014

People who say "Feb-RU-ary" are asking to get tripped.

michelle142 · September 2014

musicgirl524 said:

michelle142 said:

FTR: I sided with "Feb-u-ary", mainly because it flows better off my tongue that way.
Her argument: "Then why is there an 'r' in it?"

Valid point I suppose, but it sounds funny to me when I say it that way.

Ah, but there are silent letters in the English language all the time!

That's what I said!!

lizjennings81 · September 2014

Both are technically correct. But for me, this hits along the line of dropping the "r" in library. I just don't do it.

Feel free to trip me. I'm an avowed word nerd and will never change. :P

dreemkin84 · September 2014

Who says libary? That's just wrong.

lizjennings81 · September 2014

dreemkin84 said:

Who says libary? That's just wrong.

Lots and lots and LOTS of people. If you need a case study town, Saline, MI, will do.

mandamoochie · September 2014

Yeah... I've heard TONS of people say LIE-BERRY instead of library. that one REALLY drives me nuts.

But, that being said: I am on team Feb-u-ary. 8-}

jennjilljo · September 2014

SS: it depends if I'm reading it off of something, spelling it or just saying it in conversation.

em4iowa · September 2014

It's like sherbet. So many people pronounce is sherbert (with an extra r) that it has become accepted and is now legitimately recognized as a word. :-/

erobbins09 · September 2014

It's so funny how twang's and accents get people off the hook though. A Brit can get away with FebRUary or ElementAry but you are kind of a douche if you emphasize that as an American. I was also on the phone with one of our manufacturers from Mississippi today and she had that awesome old-smoker-southern-broad-who-has-had-a-hard-life thing going... And she kept calling me "Hun" and "Sugar" and missed random letters in all kinds of words and I loved it. Just like the only guys that I will tolerate calling me "mam" are hot southern gentlemen. I am too young to be a mam to anyone else.

lizjennings81 · September 2014

So do people who pronounce it Feb-RU-ary also pronounce elementary as element-ARY? Both are preposterous but my college roommate pronounced it that way. Infuriating.

Only if I'm misquoting Sherlock Holmes!

Feb-RU-ary is one of those things that I learned as a kid learning English; my teachers insisted I not drop the r (so you can blame my pretension on them

). Elementary became one of those words I heard every day, spoken by other kids without the "r," so I also dropped it. February? Not said often when you think about it.

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