# Furrin English



## bazz cargo (Jul 26, 2015)

I have a title.

*Star Quay*

In the UK it is pronounced as Star Key. Does this work in other countries?


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## AtleanWordsmith (Jul 26, 2015)

Works here in the States, though you should definitely be expecting quite a few "Star Kway?  What's a Kway?"s


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## LeeC (Jul 26, 2015)

Seeing the word I think of it as associated with stone (as like quarry) and pronounce it k(w)ā. I think of it like a levee (as in "The day the music died"). Of course one could get carried away with word associations, like a queer quay 

On the other hand hearing it pronounced as "key" in a context other than door key, I'd think of it like the Florida Keys.

Hearing/seeing "Star Quay" (pronounced kē or k(w)ā) though would baffle me, and googling it without context only adds to the confusion (there being many more waterfront structures/markets/whatever than Si-Fi associations which you're likely thinking of).  

So to a non Si-Fi thinking old fart like me, Star Quay conjures up the same disassociated silliness as queer quay   It might even be a pun for Rock Hudson. Of course I tend to the humor in life with no disrespect intended.


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## aj47 (Jul 26, 2015)

star kway

A quay is some kind of dock for boats.


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## InstituteMan (Jul 26, 2015)

It's definitely a kway here in 'Merica.


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## patskywriter (Jul 26, 2015)

I'm somewhat familiar with things like (car) boot = trunk, trainers = sneakers/gym shoes, and lorry = truck, but "quay" is something I hadn't come across until I saw the word used on Doctor Who a couple of years ago. Most folks I know would pronounce it "kway," and then as AtleanWordsmith said, would then ask, "What's a kway?"


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## AtleanWordsmith (Jul 26, 2015)

Just to clarify, I'm here in good ol' Murrica and I've always pronounced it "Key," though "Kway" seems to be a perfectly legitimate pronunciation, too, according to Webster.

For those who don't know, a quay is a structure built on or near a body of water to serve as a landing site for boats, etc.


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## musichal (Jul 26, 2015)

I've always said 'key.'


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## Angelicpersona (Jul 26, 2015)

One of my favorite songs of all times is Chris De Burgh's "Patricia the Stripper". I learned all the words to it when I was just a young'un to annoy the piss out of my cousin Patricia.
There's a part in the beginning of the song that goes -
"I'm going out to dinner with a gorgeous singer
To a little place I found down by the quay.
Her name is Patricia, she calls herself Delicia.
The reason isn't very hard to see."

When put that way, there's no quibbling about the pronunciation


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## Bishop (Jul 26, 2015)

From the mind of a dumb American such as myself, it reads "Star Kway," as said before.


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## ppsage (Jul 27, 2015)

Definitely key.


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## Phil Istine (Jul 27, 2015)

This is a new one on me.  As a Brit, it is definitely "key".  I had no idea that (most?) Americans pronounce it differently.
Could have some fun with that in the limericks thread


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## popsprocket (Jul 27, 2015)

Mmm I would have picked it as 'kway' first or 'kay' as a second guess.


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## Pluralized (Jul 27, 2015)

Would've guessed 'Kay,' only because of the song 'Rocky Road to Dublin' which is where 92% of my pronunciations are derived. Dropkick Murphys version being best, of course.

[video=youtube_share;mCoUj3kSwrc]http://youtu.be/mCoUj3kSwrc[/video]


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## Sam (Jul 27, 2015)

It should be pronounced 'key' everywhere. 

Don't say 'kway'. Seriously. You just make yourself sound foolish.


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## Pluralized (Jul 27, 2015)

Dubliners say 'Kay' also, at 1:36. What a great song. 

[video=youtube_share;jxBKgOyMzSc]http://youtu.be/jxBKgOyMzSc[/video]

Nobody would actually say 'kway' would they??

Hmmm, Circle-Quay. I could see that catching on in the land of the lardasses.


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## AtleanWordsmith (Jul 27, 2015)

Plenty of people probably would say "kway" if they saw the word without hearing it first.


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## Terry D (Jul 27, 2015)

The Oxford dictionary gives both pronunciations. I think someone seeing it for the first time might also get this word confused with 'cay', a low reef. Since both are associated with water and coasts.


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## scrub puller (Jul 27, 2015)

Yair . . .

This stuff fascinates me . . . I have always wondered how Americans came to drop the "aitch" from "herb" and pronounce it "'erb" . . . is this common throughout the US?

Cheers.


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## Blade (Jul 27, 2015)

In some areas at least 'quay' is a distinct word meaning a landing spot or dock for boats. Thinking here "Queen's Quay" in Toronto.:-k


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## JustRob (Jul 27, 2015)

My angel and I jokingly refer to Torquay in Devon as "Torkway" and we couldn't remember why but I've now found the origin. I tried getting the Microsoft text to voice facility on our laptop to speak the name and it said "Torkway" but that was because it was set to American pronunciation. When I set it to UK pronunciation it says "Torkey" correctly. I had extracted route directions for a holiday in Devon from Google Maps and happened to get the computer to read them out, much to our amusement.

Place names are always complete unknowns to pronounce if they aren't familiar. I doubt that anyone would guess how to pronounce Trottiscliffe in Kent. In fact many place names in Kent are confusing.


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## Angelicpersona (Jul 27, 2015)

JustRob said:


> Place names are always complete unknowns to pronounce if they aren't familiar. I doubt that anyone would guess how to pronounce Trottiscliffe in Kent. In fact many place names in Kent are confusing.


Okay, you've got me curious - how DO you pronounce Trottiscliffe?


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## bdcharles (Jul 28, 2015)

Angelicpersona said:


> Okay, you've got me curious - how DO you pronounce Trottiscliffe?



It's pronounced "Troove", I think.


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## AtleanWordsmith (Jul 28, 2015)

Angelicpersona said:


> Okay, you've got me curious - how DO you pronounce Trottiscliffe?



"Trosley.". Ah, the wonderful world of English.


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## JustRob (Jul 28, 2015)

AtleanWordsmith said:


> "Trosley.". Ah, the wonderful world of English.



Yes. I don't think we cope too well with those native American place names either though. I correspond with someone in Virginia who does civil war enactments and I never can understand half the place names.

Of course we have Wales though. At least I think it's still more or less ours.

Then there's the inhabitants of Bristol who add an "L" to the end of everything that they say, although they do it without realising and deny it. If this is consistently true then the town may actually be named Brist, but how can we be sure?


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## Ariel (Jul 28, 2015)

I've always heard it pronounced Kway.


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## bazz cargo (Jul 28, 2015)

Um, thanks everyone. Now I'm more confused. 

I know they dropped the A from Led Zeppelin to save the USofA from calling them Leed Zep.

Just possibly my title may court controversy and infamy could await.


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## Andrew Styles (Jul 28, 2015)

My initial though wat Kway as well. Qey would be a bit easier for Americans, (silly us) but I don;t know if that's doable for your stories.


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## AtleanWordsmith (Jul 28, 2015)

bazz cargo said:


> Um, thanks everyone. Now I'm more confused.
> 
> I know they dropped the A from Led Zeppelin to save the USofA from calling them Leed Zep.
> 
> Just possibly my title may court controversy and infamy could await.



"We're seeing some intense fighting following the release of bazz cargo's _Star Quay._ Camp Kway activists ambushed a Camp Key awareness parade just a few moments ago.  Several are dead, many more are injured.  We have no updates regarding Camp Kay, which is... oh my goodness, is that... it appears that Camp Kay has hijacked a blimp and members are now pouring burning oil on the remaining Camp Key and Kway activists.  Oh, the humanity!  Are you getting this, Bob?  No, seriously, this is some good-"

_Shot cuts back to newsroom_

"Thank you, Roy, for that _astounding_ coverage.  In local news, a man was found stung to death after assaulting his own shed..."


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## escorial (Jul 29, 2015)

bazz cargo said:


> I have a title.
> 
> *Star Quay*
> 
> In the UK it is pronounced as Star Key. Does this work in other countries?



View attachment 9119


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## Bloggsworth (Jul 29, 2015)

I give you any word in Welsh or the Scottish and Irish branches of Gaelic. For instance, Naimh in Irish Gaelic is pronounce Neeve, Siobhan is pronounced Shivawn. David Cameron is currently arranging a relief convoy to the Czech Republic, it seem that they have a critical shortage of vowels... 

I give you "Boo-eee," or in English "Buoy," pronounced boy.


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## bazz cargo (Jul 29, 2015)

I now wonder if Camp Quay has a penchant for musical theatre.


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## AtleanWordsmith (Jul 29, 2015)

If you'd read the pamphlet, you'd see it actually has musichal theatre.


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## Schrody (Jul 30, 2015)

Silly Bazz, of course not.  It would be probably pronounced as "Kuej" or "Kway" if talking with an American English accent.


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## bazz cargo (Jul 30, 2015)

I may go with Space Dock Alpha instead.


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## AtleanWordsmith (Jul 30, 2015)

bazz cargo said:


> I may go with Space Dock Alpha instead.



_Star Quay_ is a much more elegant title, though.  I'd stick with it.  After all, in the end, does it really matter too much if someone doesn't know to pronounce "quay" properly?


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## Sonata (Jul 31, 2015)

How would you, yes, you, pronounce the English/British surname Featherstonhaugh?

A prize for the correct answer.


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## AtleanWordsmith (Jul 31, 2015)

I would be tempted to be a smartass and say something like "Feetrawnak", but I'll bet it's actually pronounced like "Fanshaw," isn't it?


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## Sonata (Jul 31, 2015)

OK, so how do you pronounce Ghoti?


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## AtleanWordsmith (Jul 31, 2015)

"Fish," because English.

Wasn't that one proposed to sort of poke fun at the way we pronounce certain spellings of words?


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## Phil Istine (Jul 31, 2015)

The surnames Cockburn and Mainwearing used to throw me out.


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## AtleanWordsmith (Jul 31, 2015)

I think that if my last name was "Cockburn," I'd have it legally changed, no matter how it was supposed to be pronounced, haha.


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## musichal (Jul 31, 2015)

AtleanWordsmith said:


> I think that if my last name was "Cockburn," I'd have it legally changed, no matter how it was supposed to be pronounced, haha.



nude sunbathing?


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## AtleanWordsmith (Jul 31, 2015)

musichal said:


> nude sunbathing?



I suppose that's one way to get it, though I was thinking more along the lines of "friction-induced."


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