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Wednesday, February 5, 2025

D&D pronunciations, many

 Too fun to pass this up, let's go compare. I'll highlight my way in red if they provide it, or a new sub entry if I was way off

https://www.enworld.org/threads/d-d-pronunciation-guide.661505/

The Big Ones
  • Coup de Grace is the subject of many arguments. People will often gleefully tell you it's pronounced "coo de grah" because of the way "gras" is pronounced in "Mardi Gras". They're wrong. "Grace" (which means "mercy") and "Gras" (which means "fat") are entirely different words. They have different letters in them and everything, just like other words which aren't the same words as each other do. "Grace" has a strong "ss" sound at the end of it, and the phrase is pronounced "coo de grass" (that's a hard "a" like Americans pronounce "ass", not like how the English pronounce "arse"). You can hear a Frenchman pronouncing it here. Don't walk around saying "blow of fat", for pity's sake!
  • Blackguard is pronounced "blaggard". It's not just a D&D word, it's an actual, real word. Listen to it here.
  • Drow rhymes with "cow". Page 9 of A Grand Tour of the Realms (2nd Edition Forgotten Realms boxed set) states, "Dark elves, also called Drow (pronounced to rhyme with now or how)..."
  • Geas is an old celtic word pronounced "gesh". Listen to it here. WotC and TSR before them tend to say "GEE-ASS".
  • Gaol is the British spelling of "jail" and is pronounced the same way. It's a current spelling, not an old-timey spelling.
  • Guenhwyvar, Drizzt's panther, is an old spelling of "Guinevere", King Arthur's wife (you can hear that here). However, the panther is not pronounced that way.
  • Ye is pronounced "the"; or, more accurately, there was no such word as "ye" in the sense of "Ye Olde Shoppe" (though the word 'ye' did mean 'you'). In the 9th-12th century, the English used the letter thorn (þ) to represent the “th” sound. Later, as printing became widely used, they instead used the y key which was understood to mean a thorn, or the sound "th".
  • Arcana has two different pronunciations. The British pronunciation is ar-KANE-uh, while the American pronunciation is ar-CAN-uh.
  • EN World is pronounced "ee-en-world"; the "E.N." part is the initials of Eric Noah, who most assuredly was not named "En".
  • Erinyes is understandably awkward to say. It's the plural of Erinys, an alternate name for the Greek Furies. You say it ih-rin-ee-eez (listen here; the top entry is the singular Erinys, but just below is the plural, Erinyes).
OTHERS
  • Aarakocra: a-rah-KO-krah          
  • Arquebus: AR-keh-bus
  • Baatezu: bay-AH-teh-zu or BAH-teh-zu
  • Bardiche: bar-DEESH
  • Bulette: boo-LAY (note that this one is universally condemned by gamers everywhere, so we suggest ignoring WotC and saying "boo-lett")
    • Lol, yeah I always said something like "boo let" but, hey, Dragon Mag #1 says "Boo Lay" in jest vs. the French so why not. 
  • Catoblepus: kuht-OH-bleh-puhs, also kah-TA-ble-pus
  • Chatkcha: CHAT-k-cha (thri-kreen throwing weapon)
    • Never heard of it, but ... are they saying you hear the "K" in there, wow. 
  • Chimera: ky-MAEE-ruh, or ky-MAIR-ruh (rhymes with "care of")
  • Chitin: KITE-in
    • I'm maybe more like "KY tun", KY using the long i sound. 
  • Cuirass: KWEE-rass
    • OMG, I've been way off. French? 
    • M-W.com permits that and   kyu̇-rass
      • Middle English curas, from Middle French cuirasse, probably from Old Occitan coirassa, from Late Latin coreacea, feminine of coreaceus leathern, from Latin corium skin, leather; akin to Old English heortha deerskin, Latin cortex bark, Greek keirein to cut — more at shear
  • Drow: DRAU (as in drowsy; rhymes with now and how)
    • For so long I said "Droe" like "snow". Still slips out sometimes. 
  • Dweomer: DWEH-mer (rhymes with "hem her"), or DWIH-mer; sometimes DWEE-mer
    • Definitely DWEE mer for me. 
  • Falchion: FAL-chun
    • I think it's "Fal shun" ... it's Fr or something. 
    • M-W.com says (ˈfȯl-chən  ) also tho. WTF? 
      • Middle English fauchoun, from Anglo-French fauchun, from faucher to mow, from Vulgar Latin *falcare, from Latin falc-, falx
  • Geas: GEE-ass, or GYASS (both with a hard "g") (this one's wrong; it's "gesh" - see above)
    • I've said "GAY uss" forever... figuring it was like 'Gaea' the Greek Earth/Goddess word. Well there are 3 spellings and pronunciations of that word too, so nevermind. 
    • Geas is an old celtic word pronounced "gesh". Listen to it here. WotC and TSR before them tend to say "GEE-ASS".
  • Gygax: GY-gaks ((like Guy Gaks))
  • Halberd: HAL-berd, (not HAL-bread)
  • Herb: ERB (if you're American; "Herb" if you're British)
    • The Brits musta got me
  • Ioun: EYE-oon
  • Iuz: YOOZ or EE-uz
  • Ixitxachitl: iks-it-ZATCH-i-til or ik-zit-zah-chih-tull
  • Lich: LITCH (as in ditch), not LIKE or LICK (seriously, try saying 'Wrath of the Lich King" with a "lick" pronunciation of 'lich')
  • Lycanthrope: LY-kun-throhp, LY-kan-throhp (like lichen rope/my tan rope)
  • Lycanthropy: ly-KAN-thruh-pee
  • Mage: MAGE (as in age), not MADGE (as in badger)
  • Melee: MAY-lay
  • Otyugh: AHT-yuhg
    • I was saying "OH TEE UG"
  • Sahuagin: sah-HWAH-gin
  • Scythe: syth (rhymes with tithe)
    • Oh, the other "TH" sound
  • Svirfneblin: svirf-NEB-lin
  • Tanar'ri: tah-NAHR-ree
  • Tarrasque: tah-RASK
  • THAC0: either THAK-oh, or THAKE-oh
  • Vargouille: var-GWEEL
    • Do what?
  • Vrock: vrahk
  • Wyvern: WIH-vern (as in did learn), or WHY-vern
    • As in "WHY did I try to Learn" ... maybe? =]
  • Zaknafein: zack-NAY-fee-in
    • Holy cow, I missed that one. Been sayin' Zak nuh feen


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