It’s safe to say that the desirability of UK staycations has boomed in popularity over recent years, and with the ongoing cost of living crisis, I reckon this holiday trend is set to continue.
But before you pack your suitcase and race down the motorway, ask yourself this – how confident are you in pronouncing the UK town or city you are holidaying to?
With this in mind, here is a roundup of the classic UK tourist hotspots that tend to get mispronounced.
Are you guilty of mispronouncing the below?
Edinburgh (‘Ed-in-bruh’ or ‘Ed-in-bur-uh’)
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Scotland’s capital city may be considered a tongue-twister to pronounce, with many calling it ‘Edin-bra’, but in theory, the pronunciation of Edinburgh is easier than you may think.
In fact, there are two universal pronunciations – the short being ‘Ed-in-bruh’ and the longer being ‘Ed-in-bur-uh’.
Gloucestershire (‘Glost-uh-shuh’)
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Non-UK residents tend to pronounce the ‘shire’ in UK places quite literally like the Shire from Lord of the Rings.
That said, the South West county of Gloucestershire is a spot that tends to get mispronounced, with the correct pronunciation being ‘Glost-uh-shuh’.
Derby (‘Da-bee’)
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Even though it only contains two syllables, Derby is surprisingly a common UK destination that tends to get said wrong.
A lot of people actually pronounce the city like how it’s spelt, but the actual pronunciation is ‘Da-bee’.
Loughborough (‘Luhf-buh-ruh’)
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Even mispronounced by actor Taylor Lautner himself, the town of Loughborough in Leicestershire is another one that confuses many.
Again contrary to its spelling, it is actually pronounced ‘Luhf-buh-ruh’.
Yeovil – (‘Yo-wil’)
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From its stunning architecture to many visitor attractions, Somerset is considered a glorious place to visit.
A prominent town in the South West country is Yeovil, which funnily enough tends to get mispronounced by non-UK residents as ‘Yeo-evil’.
Rather, the correct pronunciation is actually ‘Yo-wil’.
Worcestershire – (‘Wu-stuh-shuh’)
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When it comes to the commonly mispronounced UK places that end in ‘shire’, Worcestershire definitely ranks top.
Not only do people mispronounce the ‘shire’, but they also tend to get the ‘Worcester’ wrong, pronouncing it exactly how it is spelt.
That said, the correct pronunciation of this Southern country is ‘Wu-stuh-shuh’.
Bicester (‘Bi-stuh’)
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From its lush green spaces to cultural heritage, the market town of Bicester is indeed a popular tourist destination in the UK, which makes it all the more important to get the pronunciation of the location right.
Rather than ‘Bic-stir’, it is actually pronounced ‘Bi-stuh’.
What do you make of these UK tourist hotspots that tend to get mispronounced? I’m interested to know how you pronounce them. Let me know in the comments below.
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