# Proper Pronunciation of all D&D words!



## Oryan77 (May 20, 2006)

I thought it might be helpful to compile an official mega list of proper pronunciation for D&D names. So I'm asking the Enworld community to help out   

I've seen lots of threads on how to pronounce words, but I don't think I've seen anything compiled together with actual sources. Please direct me to a site that has an official list if I am wrong. I know I've read posts by Monte Cook where he said the Planescape's City of Doors is pronounced "Sig-il" and not "Sij-il", but I can't find the source for that in order to show people. So I'd like to make this thread the place to go to prove our friends wrong.

If you have proof on how to pronounce a D&D word that people have trouble with, please post your findings here and I will add it to the list. You must be able to provide the source of your proof. It could be an article from a magazine or book, an official website posting, or whatever.

For now, as I think of words, I will add them to the list (feel free to suggest words to add). But I won't put the pronunciation after the word until I can show proof that that is the way it is pronounced.

Also, I don't have access to these books, but if you do, can you type up the pronunciations that it lists and post it here?

- "Ay pronunseeAYshun gyd" by Frank Mentzer in Dragon #93 (Jan. 1985)
- For help pronouncing words and names specific to the Forgotten Realms setting, see the Forgotten Realms box and the trilogy of Forgotten Realms deity books.
- For help pronouncing the names of the various tanar'ri and baatezu types, see MC8 Outer Planes Appendix.

______________________________________________

Sources:

- Dictionary
- http://www.wizards.com/dnd/DnDArchives_FAQ.asp

______________________________________________


*Aarakocra: *a-rah-KO-krah
*Aasimar: *
*Aasimon: *
*Acheron: *
*Arquebus: *AR-keh-bus
*Baatezu: *bay-AH-teh-zu or BAH-teh-zu
*Baator: *
*Bardiche: *bar-DEESH
*Bulette: *boo-LAY
*Catoblepus: *kuht-OH-bleh-puhs, also kah-TA-ble-pus
*Chatkcha: *CHAT-k-cha (thri-kreen throwing weapon)
*Chimera: *ky-MAEE-ruh, or ky-MAIR-ruh (rhymes with "care of")
*Chitin: *KITE-in
*Coup de grace: *
*Cuirass: *KWEE-rass
*Drizzt Do'Urden: *
*Drow: *DRAU (as in drowsy; rhymes with now and how)
*Dweomer: *DWEH-mer (rhymes with "hem her"), or DWIH-mer; sometimes DWEE-mer
*Falchion: *FAL-chun
*Geas: *GEE-ass, or GYASS (both with a hard "g")
*Genasi: *
*Gygax: *GY-gaks
*Halberd: *HAL-berd, (not HAL-bread)
*Herb: *ERB
*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
*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
*Sahuagin: *sah-HWAH-gin
*Scythe: *syth (rhymes with tithe)
*Sigil: *
*Styx: *
*Svirfneblin: *svirf-NEB-lin
*Tanar'ri: *tah-NAHR-ree
*Tarrasque: *tah-RASK
*THAC0: *either THAK-oh, or THAKE-oh
*Tiefling: *
*Vargouille: *var-GWEEL
*Vrock: *vrahk
*Wyvern: *WIH-vern (as in did learn), or WHY-vern
*Xaositects: *
*Yggdrasil: *
*Ysgard: *
*Zaknafein: *zack-NAY-fee-in


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## Crothian (May 20, 2006)

In the Dragon Compendium Vol 1 they have a very nice 4 pages of double columned pronunciation guide.


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## LostSoul (May 20, 2006)

Oryan77 said:
			
		

> *Bulette: *boo-LAY
> *Drow: *DRAU (as in drowsy; rhymes with now and how)




I don't care what they say, it's Boo-let.

I've always pronounced drow to rhyme with row.  Which gets me strange looks when I play with different people.


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## resistor (May 20, 2006)

Oryan77 said:
			
		

> *Bulette: *boo-LAY




That's horrible, even by the fakey French phonology.  If it were meant to be boo-LAY, it should be spelled "bulet."  As written, it's boo-LET.


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## Hairfoot (May 20, 2006)

LostSoul said:
			
		

> I don't care what they say, it's Boo-let.
> 
> I've always pronounced drow to rhyme with row.  Which gets me strange looks when I play with different people.



Agreed on both counts.  I can't imagine where "boo-lay" comes from.  The "-ette" part specifically denotes the pronunciation.  Otherwise they would be "bullet".

The drow thing alone will invite a flame war, so I'm steering clear of this thread from now.

EDIT: beaten to the punch by registor.


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## Oryan77 (May 20, 2006)

Crothian said:
			
		

> In the Dragon Compendium Vol 1 they have a very nice 4 pages of double columned pronunciation guide.



Is there anything wrong with copying that list and posting it online or would that be illegal? I don't own that magazine but it would be great if some bored Enworlder typed it all out for us   



			
				LostSoul said:
			
		

> I've always pronounced drow to rhyme with row.  Which gets me strange looks when I play with different people.



I used to pronounce Drow the same way until I met a guy a couple years ago that pronounced it like cow. For some reason, the cow version stuck in my head and I now say it that way. I didn't even do it intentionally.


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## Starman (May 20, 2006)

Oryan77 said:
			
		

> I know I've read posts by Monte Cook where he said the Planescape's City of Doors is pronounced "Sig-il" and not "Sij-il", but I can't find the source for that in order to show people. So I'd like to make this thread the place to go to prove our friends wrong.




Hmmm...my sources say that either pronunciation is correct.


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## Oryan77 (May 20, 2006)

Starman said:
			
		

> Hmmm...my sources say that either pronunciation is correct.



Oh! I remember where I got the info. It's from one of the Planescape books. It might actually be on the cd that came with Player's Primer to the Outlands. I remember a character commenting about primes pronouncing it Sij-il and he said that only a clueless berk will pronounce it that way...something like that.


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## Pbartender (May 20, 2006)

Oryan77 said:
			
		

> *THAC0: *either THAK-oh, or THAKE-oh




You've got that one wrong...

It should be pronounced "AHB-soh-leet".


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## Thunderfoot (May 20, 2006)

*Coup de grace:  * 
KEW - DAY - grah (French in origin)

*Styx:  * 
STICKS /single syllable/ (Greek in origin)


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## LostSoul (May 20, 2006)

Thunderfoot said:
			
		

> *Coup de grace:  *
> KEW - DAY - grah (French in origin)




That's wrong.

KEW - DUH - GRAHCE is more like it.  Not "duh" as in "duuuh", though.

If we used French, that would be "coup des gras".

edit: My French is really Quebecois.


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## davidschwartznz (May 20, 2006)

Oryan77 said:
			
		

> Planescape's City of Doors is pronounced "Sig-il" and not "Sij-il", but I can't find the source for that in order to show people.



Try the dictionary; it's an actual word.


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## Dog Moon (May 20, 2006)

LostSoul said:
			
		

> That's wrong.
> 
> KEW - DUH - GRAHCE is more like it.  Not "duh" as in "duuuh", though.
> 
> ...




Actually, I think YOU'RE wrong.  Well, I don't really know if you are or not, but I've always pronounced it Koo de Grah. [de like den without the 'n']

Go-go too many different ways to pronounce things.


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## Oryan77 (May 20, 2006)

davidschwartznz said:
			
		

> Try the dictionary; it's an actual word.



And that's the reason "clueless" (planescape term) say it as sij'il, they think it's the same word that's in the dictionary. The city is not named after a "sigil" and is not pronounced the same way  according to planars and people who live in Sigil 

In order to avoid arguements, I was asking for official sources to back up claims on pronunciation. We've all seen threads bleed into several pages worth of debates. I figured we should only post pronunciations when we can follow it up with the source. 

I'm going to try to find the Planescape reference to Sigil that I was talking about once I get the chance...unless someone can beat me to it


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## Psion (May 20, 2006)

resistor said:
			
		

> That's horrible, even by the fakey French phonology.  If it were meant to be boo-LAY, it should be spelled "bulet."  As written, it's boo-LET.




Yes.

I am glad to say that the list in the DCv1 finally provides the proper pronunciation.


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## Zander (May 20, 2006)

Dog Moon said:
			
		

> Actually, I think YOU'RE wrong.  Well, I don't really know if you are or not, but I've always pronounced it Koo de Grah.



I'm afraid LostSoul is right.

A few years ago, I recorded a WAV file with the correct pronunciation and posted it on these boards.


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## Psion (May 20, 2006)

davidschwartznz said:
			
		

> Try the dictionary; it's an actual word.




I think most roleplayers, especially in a game with a spell called _sepia snake sigil_, understand that.

It is an actual word. But the fictional word for the city _Sigil_ is different than the RL word for a seal or magical sign _sigil_.

As for the source: there was a CD in Player's Primer to the Outlands that had pronunciations.

(That said, I never could wrap my head around that one and pronounce it like the RL word...)


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## Clueless (May 20, 2006)

Oryan77 said:
			
		

> I'm going to try to find the Planescape reference to Sigil that I was talking about once I get the chance...unless someone can beat me to it




*cough* Planescape Lingo Note the correct prounounciation of the name of our fair city, fines for misprounounciation are 30gp per incident as proven before the Sigil Advisory Council.


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## Welverin (May 20, 2006)

Oryan77 said:
			
		

> And that's the reason "clueless" (planescape term) say it as sij'il, they think it's the same word that's in the dictionary. The city is not named after a "sigil" and is not pronounced the same way  according to planars and people who live in Sigil




Based on the bulette error, I wouldn't be surprised if the folks at TSR just got it wrong.


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## Zapak Vim (May 20, 2006)

*Paladin*

which is it?
PAL-a-din?
or 
Pal-AD-in

I dunno

and Mielikki (the goddess used in FR) is originally finnish, so its pronounced Mee-a(as in cat) - Lik - Ki with the emphasis on the KK at the end. cos thats how you do it in finnish, so the FR books pronunciation is wrong


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## Ripzerai (May 20, 2006)

Zapak Vim said:
			
		

> which is it?
> PAL-a-din?
> or
> Pal-AD-in




PAL-a-din.


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## Ripzerai (May 20, 2006)

Welverin said:
			
		

> Based on the bulette error, I wouldn't be surprised if the folks at TSR just got it wrong.




And yes, David Cook admitted that he didn't at first realize the word had another pronunciation. The quote about how pronouncing it with a soft 'g' is illegal was an in-joke to that effect, as other folks at TSR clued him in.


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## Oryan77 (May 20, 2006)

Clueless said:
			
		

> *cough* Planescape Lingo Note the correct prounounciation of the name of our fair city, fines for misprounounciation are 30gp per incident as proven before the Sigil Advisory Council.



I actually listened to those for the first time 2 days ago, it was interesting. There were a couple that I didn't believe were pronounced correctly. That is fan created right?



			
				Welverin said:
			
		

> Based on the bulette error, I wouldn't be surprised if the folks at TSR just got it wrong.



That's something that has always puzzled me. I don't understand why people always compare a "D&D" word as being pronounced incorrectly because "that's not how you say it in french/dutch/german/russian/ect". The same thing with the whole Sigil debate and it being a word in the dictionary. We are talking about words from a fantasy setting, not a French culture from planet Earth or an 'English' dictionary.

Personally, if TSR/WotC says a word is pronounced a certain way in their fantasy world, then I'm not going to tell them they are wrong unless they contradict themselves. But then again, I'm the guy that doesn't understand why everyones impersonation of a Dwarf is always Scottish and Humans are always English. 

I'm more interested in compiling a list of pronunciations from official D&D sources...not what fans assume it is for whatever reasons they come up with in their logic. After completing an "official" list, then it's up to the individual to use whatever version he prefers. I wasn't intending on this thread to be a discussion on "right or wrong". I just wanted to see if there are sources from the guys that stuck those words in our D&D books


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## Ripzerai (May 20, 2006)

Oryan77 said:
			
		

> I actually listened to those for the first time 2 days ago, it was interesting. There were a couple that I didn't believe were pronounced correctly. That is fan created right?




No, it actually used to be on the WotC site. And yes, it does contradict the earlier pronunciation guide from the _Outer Planes Appendix_ in places.

Sigil the city is indeed named after sigils the glyphs, but it's its own thing now.


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## Oryan77 (May 20, 2006)

If anyone can provide a link to a statement from a TSR/WotC creator giving proof on the *real* way to say Bulette or any other words, that would be great. Then I can change the above list and add in the explanation/source.


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## Oryan77 (May 20, 2006)

Ripzerai said:
			
		

> No, it actually used to be on the WotC site. And yes, it does contradict the earlier pronunciation guide from the _Outer Planes Appendix_ in places.
> 
> Sigil the city is indeed named after sigils the glyphs, but it's its own thing now.



As far as I know, Sigil was never nicknamed "The city of seals" or "The city of magical symbols". It's called "The Cage" or "The city of doors". I also have never read anything comparinng the city Sigil to seals or magic symbols...so why would the city be named after the word in the dictionary? Maybe it has been called "Sij-il" before in official sources, but I've never seen it....but I have _heard_ it called "Sig-il" in an official Planescape source, so that's what I'll use


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## Huw (May 20, 2006)

(Warning 1: I'm British so my phonetic guides might be a bit different)
(Warning 2: These are my pronunciations, not necessarily official ones)

*Aasimar: * AR-see-mar
*Aasimon: * AR- see-mon
*Acheron: * ACK-eron (this has been in another thread)
*Baator: * Bar-tor (like the capital of Mongolia   )
*Bulette: *boo-LAY
No, no, no! boo-LET
*Coup de grace: * koo-duh-grass
*Herb: *ERB
No! HERB
*Ixitxachitl: *iks-it-ZATCH-i-til or ik-zit-zah-chih-tull
This looks vaguely Nahuatl, so I'd go for ish-it-shatch-itl.
*Melee: *MAY-lay
No! may-LAY. It's French
*Styx: *STICKS
*Tiefling: * TEEF-ling (tief=German "deep" or "abyssal")
*Xaositects: * kay-OS-i-tects (X=Greek Chi, i.e. "Chaositects")


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## Pbartender (May 20, 2006)

Huw said:
			
		

> *Aasimar: * AR-see-mar
> *Aasimon: * AR- see-mon
> *Baator: * Bar-tor




Sounds Piratey.  Yar!  

On a side note, I think I'm going to start spelling the name of the City of Doors, "Siggle" (Rhymes with giggle!)...  It'll make it a lot easier for my players to pronounce right.


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## Ripzerai (May 20, 2006)

Oryan77 said:
			
		

> As far as I know, Sigil was never nicknamed "The city of seals" or "The city of magical symbols". It's called "The Cage" or "The city of doors".




David "Zeb" Cook has admitted to naming it after sigils or glyphs. I think the interview isn't online anymore, but basically he said what I said - it was an error on his part where he mispronounced it.

Keep in mind, I'm not telling you that you should change your pronuciation guide accordingly; that's not my goal at all. I'm just correcting a misapprehension on your part: it _is_ named after the English word.



> I also have never read anything comparinng the city Sigil to seals or magic symbols.




Have you ever read _Faction War_? Look in page 37: 

"Here's the dark of it: Before the legendary wizard was entombed in the gem, he prepared a gargantuan spell woven directly Into the essence of Sigil. In other words, he literally turned the city _into_ a sigil, one that he hoped to use to strike the Lady down."


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## Aloïsius (May 20, 2006)

Dog Moon said:
			
		

> Actually, I think YOU'RE wrong.  Well, I don't really know if you are or not, but I've always pronounced it Koo de Grah. [de like den without the 'n']
> 
> Go-go too many different ways to pronounce things.





Koo  duh  Grass.   I'm french. It's an approximation. I can record it, if you want ?


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## Tonguez (May 20, 2006)

You know wants funny - Sigil is a city on the planes visited by creatures from throughout the multiverse, for all we know the correct ponounciation is GGRRFFFTTHHKLLPPKKMMNNHHT


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## delericho (May 20, 2006)

LostSoul said:
			
		

> I've always pronounced drow to rhyme with row.




Funny.

Is that row as in "row, row, row your boat", or row as in argument?

Incidentally, DC1 says either is correct.


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## Ripzerai (May 20, 2006)

Blackguard is pronounced like "blaggard," incidently, if you go by the English word.


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## Psion (May 20, 2006)

Oryan77 said:
			
		

> If anyone can provide a link to a statement from a TSR/WotC creator giving proof on the *real* way to say Bulette or any other words, that would be great. Then I can change the above list and add in the explanation/source.




No link, but as I already said, the Dragon Compendium has an (apparently revised) listing.

It says, regarding bulette: boo-LET, or byoo-LET; also boo-LAY or byoo-LAY

Almost as if the author was trying to pay some heed to what the original article was, but knew in his heart what was right...


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## Odhanan (May 21, 2006)

resistor said:
			
		

> That's horrible, even by the fakey French phonology.  If it were meant to be boo-LAY, it should be spelled "bulet."  As written, it's boo-LET.



Actually, the French pronunciation agrees with you there. It would be "Buh-let" (with "uh" as in the German "Fuhrer" ).


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## Odhanan (May 21, 2006)

Interesting. I was just talking about these pronunciations with Nerissa, my fiancee, and she was telling me "but you know, the alternate pronunciations of names in D&D could be used in-game." 
I asked: "How?"
She answered: "Well, for instance, naming a drow with another pronunciation could be an insult for them, as if you're treating them like they're from the surface world".

Smart.


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## Terwox (May 21, 2006)

My group pronounces "coup de grace" as 
"koop duh gracie" (the last word is higher pitched.)
I'm happy with it!


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## Justin (May 21, 2006)

Huw said:
			
		

> *Bulette: *boo-LAY
> No, no, no! boo-LET




No, no, no! LAND-shark.


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## Odhanan (May 21, 2006)

Terwox said:
			
		

> My group pronounces "coup de grace" as
> "koop duh gracie" (the last word is higher pitched.)
> I'm happy with it!



The proper French would be kinda like:
Koo-duh-grASS


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## blargney the second (May 21, 2006)

Oryan77 said:
			
		

> *Bulette: *boo-LAY
> *Coup de Grace: *
> *Genasi: *
> *Vargouille: *var-GWEEL




byoo-LET
KOO-duh-grAHSS
guh-NAZ-ee
var-GOO-ee  (I've also heard it as vargoyle, but ick!)

-blarg-NEE thuh SECK-und


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## Viktyr Gehrig (May 21, 2006)

> Aasimar:
> Aasimon:




AA-ze-mar and -mon, respectively.



> Baator:




Bay-tor or bay-uh-tor



> Dweomer: DWEH-mer (rhymes with "hem her"), or DWIH-mer; sometimes DWEE-mer




I'd argue for DWEE-oh-mer, personally.



> Geas: GEE-ass, or GYASS (both with a hard "g")




GAYSH. Word's Gaelic.



> Genasi:




This one stumps me. Ain't figured it out, and I've never seen a pronunciation guide. Is it supposed to derive from "genie"?



> Styx:




STIX. People wonder about this?



> Tiefling:




TEEF-ling



> Xaositects:




kay-OSS-ih-tekts.



> Yggdrasil:
> Ysgard:




EEG-dra-zill and
EEZ-gard, respectively.


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## Clueless (May 21, 2006)

Korimyr the Rat said:
			
		

> Genasi
> This one stumps me. Ain't figured it out, and I've never seen a pronunciation guide. Is it supposed to derive from "genie"?




I dunno about it deriving from genie, btu the way I say it:

Geh-NA-zee


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## davidschwartznz (May 21, 2006)

Oryan77 said:
			
		

> And that's the reason "clueless" (planescape term) say it as sij'il, they think it's the same word that's in the dictionary.



[checks dictionary] What do you know? "sij-il" is also an acceptable pronounciation. That's what I get for learning it with the proper latinate pronounciation.


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## Ripzerai (May 21, 2006)

Korimyr the Rat said:
			
		

> Is it [genasi] supposed to derive from "genie"?




Yes. They first appeared by that name in the _Planewalker's Handbook_.

"The genasi are planetouched beings, the descendents of a union of a human and an elemental creature (often a djinni, hence the name genasi)." - Planewalker's Handbook, page 71.


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## Zendragon (May 22, 2006)

STYX- Greatest rock band of the '70's
DROW- rhymes with OW, as in get that poisoned crossbow bolt out of my eye


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## Agamon (May 22, 2006)

Yeah, it's a personal pet peeve of mine when people pronounce "Bulette" as "Bulet" and "coup de grace" as "coup des gras".  Grrrr.


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## ssampier (May 27, 2006)

Ripzerai said:
			
		

> Blackguard is pronounced like "blaggard," incidently, if you go by the English word.




I've always pronounced it as BLACK-guard. A blaggard is something different entirely.


black·guard   ( P )  Pronunciation Key  (blgrd, -ärd)
n.

   1. A thoroughly unprincipled person; a scoundrel.
   2. A foul-mouthed person.

Neither fits the black-guard as detailed in the DMG in my mind.

Come get me, grammar police.


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## Glyfair (May 27, 2006)

Odhanan said:
			
		

> Interesting. I was just talking about these pronunciations with Nerissa, my fiancee, and she was telling me "but you know, the alternate pronunciations of names in D&D could be used in-game."
> I asked: "How?"
> She answered: "Well, for instance, naming a drow with another pronunciation could be an insult for them, as if you're treating them like they're from the surface world".



I tend to agree with Keith Baker's comments when asked how to pronounce certain Eberron words.  He'll say "I pronounce it...."  However, he'll comment that varying pronunciations aren't unlikely.  

For example, Drow might rhyme with "Cow" in Northern Breland, but in Southern Breland it could rhyme with row (as in "row, row, your boat."

Rather than saying a particular pronunciation is wrong, it's probably easier (and less contentious) to say they are regional variations.


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## Gansk (May 27, 2006)

Since when does "syth" rhyme with "tithe"?


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## Viktyr Gehrig (May 28, 2006)

Gansk said:
			
		

> Since when does "syth" rhyme with "tithe"?




Always has, unless you're one o' them funny "linguistic" types that can actually tell the difference between "dh" and "th".


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## Chimera (May 28, 2006)

Bull Et.

Tare-ASK.

Imagine my surprise (and amusement) when I joined a group where the GM pronounced these as;

Bull- etty

and 

Tear - Askew.

Of course, the same guy pronounces Scimitar as "smitar" and Periapt as "pear-ih-pat".


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## Agamon (May 28, 2006)

And then there's your name. Ky-meer-ah.  Not chym-er-ah, as I've too often heard.  :roll eyes:


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## Chimera (May 28, 2006)

Agamon said:
			
		

> And then there's your name. Ky-meer-ah. Not chym-er-ah, as I've too often heard.




I've been using it in one form or fashion for at least 20 years and have heard an amazing number of variations, some so bizarre I didn't even recognize them when spoken.

I've always pronounced it Ky-mare-uh.



Yours must be pronounced Egg-em-on, eh?


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## Zhnov (Jul 22, 2006)

*Fochlucan ?*

Any ideas on how to pronounce "Fochlucan" as in Fochlucan Lyrist?

Z


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## the Jester (Jul 22, 2006)

Zhnov said:
			
		

> Any ideas on how to pronounce "Fochlucan" as in Fochlucan Lyrist?
> 
> Z




Don't know if it's proper, but my pronounciation of it is:

FOCK-luke-in

I would guess that a gaelic speaker would give you a more accurate but substantially more difficult answer.


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## Angel Tarragon (Jul 22, 2006)

the Jester said:
			
		

> Don't know if it's proper, but my pronounciation of it is:
> 
> FOCK-luke-in



That would be my best guess, it is how I pronounce it as well.

Very cool thread. Bookmarked!


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## arscott (Jul 22, 2006)

resistor said:
			
		

> That's horrible, even by the fakey French phonology.  If it were meant to be boo-LAY, it should be spelled "bulet."  As written, it's boo-LET.



The worst one for that is Ixitxachitl.  the guide has it as 'iks-it-ZATCH-i-til' or 'ik-zit-zah-chih-tull', but it's clearly meant to look aztec (where the X is a ch or sh sound).

As for drow, everyone knows it rhymes with bow, sow, and row.


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## Contrarian (Jul 22, 2006)

Oryan77 said:
			
		

> That's something that has always puzzled me. I don't understand why people always compare a "D&D" word as being pronounced incorrectly because "that's not how you say it in french/dutch/german/russian/ect". The same thing with the whole Sigil debate and it being a word in the dictionary. We are talking about words from a fantasy setting, not a French culture from planet Earth or an 'English' dictionary.




Whenever somebody pulls the "That's not how bulette would be pronounced in French!" crap with me, I alway respond "It's not French, it's Suloise."

99% of them have no idea what I'm talking about.  Damn kids.



			
				Oryan77 said:
			
		

> If anyone can provide a link to a statement from a TSR/WotC creator giving proof on the *real* way to say Bulette or any other words, that would be great. Then I can change the above list and add in the explanation/source.




"Ay pronunseeAYshun gyd" by Frank Mentzer, _Dragon_ #93 (and probably the source of  that _Dragon Compendium_ article people keep mentioning), gives the acceptible pronunciations as "boo-LET, or byoo-LET; also boo-LAY, or byoo-LAY". ("let" rhymes with "met" in his orthography.) He claims to have listed pronunciations in order of "most common or preferred."

Mentzer, in addition to being a longtime TSR editor (and the lead designer for Basic/Expert/Companion/Masters/Immortals boxed sets), is well-known as a Friend of Gygax.  I'd say he's about as official as it got in 1985.

The 2E _Monstrous Compendium_ page for the Bullette, on the other hand, gives "boo-LAY" as the only pronunciation.  That's as offiical as it gets for 1989.

See where I'm going with this?  With a company that's been know to retcon the shapes of continents, there is no true-and-eternal pronunciation of a word.  (Oh wait -- that's true in the real world, too.  Figure that.)

I still go by the Mentzer guide for most things, except of course for bulette, because I just like saying "boo-LAY".


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## Mark Hope (Jul 22, 2006)

arscott said:
			
		

> As for drow, everyone knows it rhymes with bow, sow, and row.



It's spelled DROW, but it is actually pronounced THROTE-war-blur-MAN-groe-ve.


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## Turjan (Jul 23, 2006)

Agamon said:
			
		

> Yeah, it's a personal pet peeve of mine when people pronounce "Bulette" as "Bulet" and "coup de grace" as "coup des gras".  Grrrr.



Oh, you know people who know something about pronunciation?

Personally, COO-de-GrAH calls for a mental image where the combatant dips his hand deeply into a bucket of lard and hits his opponent with a nice handful of the greasy stuff in the face .


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## Charwoman Gene (Jul 23, 2006)

"Bulette" is pronounced "CAN-dee-gram"


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## mhacdebhandia (Jul 23, 2006)

I know Baator is supposed to be pronounced *bay*-ah-tor, but I can't bring myself to say that. So it's *baah*-tor for me. Similarly, *baah*-teh-zoo[/b].

Apparently some people pronounce eladrin eh-*lay*-dren (at least, I think Keith Baker does, since he once called eladrin "elaydren", which is the name of a character in the Eberron adventure path), but I would say *ell*-a-drin.


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## theredrobedwizard (Jul 23, 2006)

My takes.

Aarakocra: ar-ah-KOH-cruh
Aasimar: AY-sih-mar
Aasimon: AY-sih-mon
Acheron: ah-SHER-on
Arquebus: AR-kweh-bus
Baatezu: BAYT-zoo
Baator: BAY-tor
Bardiche: BAR-dish
Blackguard: Black-Guard.
Bulette: BYOO-lay
Catoblepus: kah-toh-blee-pahs
Chatkcha: CHA-tch-kah
Chimera: ky-MAY-rah
Chitin: KITE-in
Coup de grace: Koo-day-grahz (koop duh grayc)
Cuirass: Kyu-rass
Drizzt Do'Urden: Stu-pid Jak'tard
Drow: DROW (see Plow, Cow, etc)
Dweomer: DWEE-oh-mer
Falchion: FAL-chee-on
Fochlucan: fock-LUKE-in
Geas: GAY-iss
Genasi: jen-a-SIGH
Gygax: GY-gaks
Halberd: HAL-berd
Herb: herb
Ioun: eye-OON
Iuz: eye-OOZ
Ixitxachitl: ich-it-CHASH-it-al
Lich: LITCH (as in ditch)
Lycanthrope: ly-KAN-throw'p
Lycanthropy: ly-KAN-throw-pee
Mage: MAGE (as in age)
Melee: MAY-lay
Otyugh: Oh-tee-ug
Sahuagin: SAH-hoo-ah-gin
Scythe: SY-dh
Sigil: SIG-il (note: I pronounced the other version like this as well until I was "corrected".)
Styx: Sticks
Svirfneblin: sverf-NEB-lin
Tanar'ri: tah-NAH-ree
Tarrasque: tar-ask
THAC0: THAK-oh.
Tiefling: TEE-fling
Vargouille: VARG-oil.
Vrock: vrock
Wyvern: WIH-vern
Xaositects: Kay-oss-i-tekts
Yggdrasil: IG-drah-sil
Ysgard: EYES-gard.
Zaknafein: zak-NAH-feen

-TRRW


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## cmrscorpio (Jul 23, 2006)

The proper pronunciation of Sigil, City of Doors, was provided in the original boxed set, page 4 of Sigil and Beyond in the flavor text quote. It is pronounced with a "g" sound.


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## Charwoman Gene (Jul 23, 2006)

cmrscorpio said:
			
		

> The proper pronunciation of Sigil, City of Doors, was provided in the original boxed set, page 4 of Sigil and Beyond in the flavor text quote. It is pronounced with a "g" sound.




That has been debunked.  The designer thought the word "sigil" had a "g-like-grape" sound.


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## Charwoman Gene (Jul 23, 2006)

Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.
Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.
Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.
Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.
Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.Drow rhymes with Cow.


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## Taraxia (Jul 23, 2006)

Oryan77 said:
			
		

> Oh! I remember where I got the info. It's from one of the Planescape books. It might actually be on the cd that came with Player's Primer to the Outlands. I remember a character commenting about primes pronouncing it Sij-il and he said that only a clueless berk will pronounce it that way...something like that.




The dictionary says that "si-jil" is the preferred pronunciation for the actual *word* "sigil" (as in a symbol). Whether the city Sigil is actually named after the English word for a symbol is up to you -- pronouncing it with a hard G is certainly a great shibboleth to separate planars from primes, so to speak. I kind of find it annoying, though, as I do all capricious deviations from ordinary orthography. (Especially that "boo-lay" thing. WTF?)


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## Taraxia (Jul 23, 2006)

Oryan77 said:
			
		

> I actually listened to those for the first time 2 days ago, it was interesting. There were a couple that I didn't believe were pronounced correctly. That is fan created right?
> 
> 
> That's something that has always puzzled me. I don't understand why people always compare a "D&D" word as being pronounced incorrectly because "that's not how you say it in french/dutch/german/russian/ect". The same thing with the whole Sigil debate and it being a word in the dictionary. We are talking about words from a fantasy setting, not a French culture from planet Earth or an 'English' dictionary.
> ...




*groan*

Except that words like "paladin" really are words, and unless WotC actually presents them as "foreign" words spoken in a "foreign" language I prefer to sound like I know what I'm talking about and to acknowledge the real-world connections and connotations of D&D terminology instead of participating in the silly fiction that places like Acheron and Elysium and Hades are brand-new original creations of the fine folks at TSR.

Also because I prefer orthography to make some kind of sense, or at least be consistent.


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## Charwoman Gene (Jul 23, 2006)

My takes.

Aarakocra: laym-berd-PEA-puhl
Aasimar: Ay-a-si-mar
Aasimon: Aa-a- si-mon
Acheron: ATCH-er-on
Arquebus: ARK-@-bus (the at is a schwa, and if you don't know what that is get outa the thread)
Baatezu: BAY-A-ted-zoo
Baator: BA-a-tor
Bardiche: bar-DEESH
Blackguard: BLAK-Gurd.
Bulette: boo-LET (After the Suloise)
Catoblepus: kah-toh-buhl-pos
Chatkcha: hoo-cairs-dum-bug-thing
Chimera: chi-MEH-ra
Chitin: KITE-in
Coup de grace: Koo-day-grah
Drow: DROW (see BOW, ROW, etc)
Dweomer: dwee-O-mer
Falchion: FAL-chee-on
Fochlucan: fock-LUKE-in
Lich: LITCH (as in ditch)
Melee: muh-LAY
Otyugh: smel-ee-things
Tanar'ri: tah-nah-REE
Tarrasque: ta-RASK
THAC0: THAK-oh.
Tiefling: TEEF-ling
Wyvern: Why, Vern?
Ysgard: AZ-gard.
Zaknafein: twink


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## Taraxia (Jul 23, 2006)

Some of these are real words:



			
				theredrobedwizard said:
			
		

> Acheron: ah-SHER-on




No. It's Greek, and the hard K sound is always preferable for chi. "AH-ker-on". (Yes, it is a real part of real Greek mythology.)



> Arquebus: AR-kweh-bus




Sure.



> Bardiche: BAR-dish




French. Accent is on the second syllable. Bar-DEESH.

And yes, it's every bit as real a word as "longsword", and changing its pronunciation is no more okay "because it's fantasy" than deciding that "longsword" is pronounced "long-SWORD".



> Blackguard: Black-Guard.




I've had arguments about this. I still prefer "blaggard". For one thing, it describes the blackguard better in a literal sense -- a dishonorable bastard, taken to the extreme --  than taking the term literally, as blackguards are neither required to wear black nor guard things.



> Bulette: BYOO-lay




If you want, though if you do this I want you to write me up a fictional guide to Suloise orthography and point out why the "ette" phoneme sounds like that.

It's not like it even sounds any better or anything. Apparently WotC thinks random silent letters make you sound cultured.



> Chimera: ky-MAY-rah




It's been an English word long enough that it's acceptable, though shortening the vowels is preferable.



> Cuirass: Kyu-rass




Acceptable, though "KWE-rass" is the closer-to-original-French pronunciation. (This, too, is a real, non-fantasy word.)



> Dweomer: DWEE-oh-mer




REAL WORD. It's "dwimmer". Sometimes it's even spelled that way in certain sources. Maybe "dweemer". But that Old English "eo" is not meant to be stretched into two syllables.



> Falchion: FAL-chee-on




No. Real word. "FAL-shon".



> Fochlucan: fock-LUKE-in




Looks Gaelic to me; I'd say "FOCH-luke-ann", with a note that the "u" should be slightly shorter than in the name "Luke", and that the "ch" is like the "ch" in "loch" or "ach".

I'm betting this is, also, a Real Word, but don't know it off the top of my head.



> Geas: GAY-iss




One syllable. Sounds like "geesh", "gaysh" or "gish". Terry Pratchett jokes about it in his books by punning it with "geese".



> Genasi: jen-a-SIGH




Can't find a Real Word source, but this sounds awfully off to me. It's incredibly rare for "i" at the end of a word to become the "ai" diphthong. It's obviously meant to be related to the word "genie" -- I'd pronounce it as close to "genie" as possible, probably "jenn-AHS-ee".



> Ixitxachitl: ich-it-CHASH-it-al




EDIT: Looked it up, and yeah, I agree on this one, although the Aztec "x" was closer to a "sh" sound. "Ish-it-SHACH-it-el" is closer to it, with as little sound between the t and l as possible.



> Lich: LITCH (as in ditch)




Yeah. This was actually an obscure English word meaning "corpse" before it meant anything in D&D. Like the term "lich gate".



> Lycanthrope: ly-KAN-throw'p




Real word, and the preferred accent is on the first syllable.



> Scythe: SY-dh




Er, what? Scythe isn't even an uncommon word. Since when does it have two syllables? Are you using "dh" for the "th" sound at the end?



> Tanar'ri: tah-NAH-ree




If that "r'r" is going to mean anything instead of being a pointless embellishment, it probably indicates a stop between those two syllables. Which means when you pronounce it you say "tah-NAHR-ree", with the two R sounds carefully separated, or at least one R sound lengthened. (The last two syllables should rhyme with "sorry", not "sari".)

It's a minor thing, but I absolutely hate apostrophes dropped into a word to make it look "fantastic" without actually giving them some meaningful way to change the pronunciation of the word.

Note that Stargate SG-1 is a show that does a good job of making the apostrophes pronounceable (and consistently pronounced) as stops in words. "Tok'ra" is always TOKE(pause)ra, and doesn't rhyme with "okrah". I like this very much.



> Tarrasque: tar-ask




French, so emphasis on the second syllable. "Tar-RAHSK". Real Word, surprisingly enough, and a real legend.



> Vargouille: VARG-oil.




Not a real word, but still obvious French orthography. "Varg-WEEL", if you care at all about that. (If you don't, it might as well be pronounced "Varg-oily", or "Varg-willay", or "Hubert".)



> Ysgard: EYES-gard.




Since Ysgard is obviously a misspelled Asgard, I prefer to keep the pronounciation as close as possible. "Iss-gard" or "Yiss-guard" works fine for me. Again, real-world examples of an orthography where "y" is prononuced "ai" don't seem that common to me.


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## kolikeos (Jul 23, 2006)

i and my fellow players say coup de grace like this: cut-de-grass (as in 'mowing the lawn') or cup-de-grab (no idea... 'grab anything you can from the body'?) (depending on the weapon used) both are probably incorrect.


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## Turjan (Jul 23, 2006)

Taraxia said:
			
		

> Some of these are real words:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



This has actually also a real word equivalent:

*Bulette*: _German_; from French _boulette de viande_ -  "small ball of beef".


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## glass (Jul 23, 2006)

Contrarian said:
			
		

> Whenever somebody pulls the "That's not how bulette would be pronounced in French!" crap with me, I alway respond "It's not French, it's Suloise."



An Suloise is written in latin letters? That's one hell of a coincidence! 


glass.


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## SpiderMonkey (Jul 23, 2006)

Terwox said:
			
		

> My group pronounces "coup de grace" as
> "koop duh gracie" (the last word is higher pitched.)
> I'm happy with it!




I thought mine was the only group that did this.  For maximum effect, you need to try to do it in the most Mid/Southwestern accent possible; like what French people think Americans sound like--Americans who insist they speak "American."

Good stuff.


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## Hypersmurf (Jul 24, 2006)

Taraxia said:
			
		

> Note that Stargate SG-1 is a show that does a good job of making the apostrophes pronounceable (and consistently pronounced)...




... unless you're General Hammond 

"... but what about the Goold?"

There's at least two more vowel sounds you're skipping, there, General!

-Hyp.


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## shadow (Jul 24, 2006)

You ought to write your pronunciation guide using the IPA (International Phonetics Alphabet) for us linguists out there.


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## glass (Jul 24, 2006)

shadow said:
			
		

> You ought to write your pronunciation guide using the IPA (International Phonetics Alphabet) for us linguists out there.



See, if you hadn't explained in brackets what IPA meant, I could have made a joke about writing anything in India Pale Ale. Spoilsport! 


glass.


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## theredrobedwizard (Jul 24, 2006)

To be fair, Taraxia, I was just posting how I personally pronounce them; not as an end all, be all "this is how it is" guideline.

Honestly, as a typical American, I pronounce things how I think they should be pronounced until I am told otherwise; then promptly ignore the person who told me and continue to pronounce them how I originally did. 

I did realize that some of them (Falchion, Bardiche, Tarrasque, Dweomer, etc) were real words, this is just the way that I pronounce them.  Just seems more natural.  Maybe it's my accent, who knows.

*shrug*

-TRRW


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## Contrarian (Jul 24, 2006)

Taraxia said:
			
		

> It's a minor thing, but I absolutely hate apostrophes dropped into a word to make it look "fantastic" without actually giving them some meaningful way to change the pronunciation of the word.




TSR's _Star Frontiers_ game used to stick apostrophes and hyphens into Vrusk words like _K'tsa-Kar_ all the time.  Since the Vrusk are essentially insectoid, I decided the apostrophe was a clicking noise, and the hyphen was a buzzing noise.  I thought it would add versimilitude, but it mostly made me sound like a lunatic when roleplaying Vrusk NPCs -- "Welcome to Kih-TICK-tsa-BUZZ-Kar, humans!"

Oh well, at least I tried.


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