Repost - World Playing with Homonyms

Homonyms/ Homophones

July 7, 2006

Po-tay-to, po-tah-to

I keep messing up allowed and aloud. Silly really, but that’s the thing I’ve been doing.

Other common homonym confusions:

their/there/they’re

two/to/too

effect/affect

except/accept

T. Heywood from Kara’s office/ they would

Your call/ York Hall, my freshman year dorm

would/wood

Yankees Suck/ I love the Sox

PBR/ NPR

pin/ pen/ pan

Only in Boston: our/ are (ow-ah)

our/hour

here/hear

Only in Boston: khakis/ car keys

Only in Boston: laud/ Lord (lawhd heyah ow-ah prayah)

tin/ten

pitcher/picture

John King Read My Email, I sway-yah

John King Busts Out the Accent Even Mo-wah

Boston Public Library

Last week, during Super Tuesday, I blogged about CNN's John King and his Boston accent. And guess what?

Ooo, it was crazy tonight during the - as the Weymouth-native, national newsman , Mark Shields, deemed it - "Crabcake Primary" (which Colbert and Stewart teased mercilessly).

John King even mentioned his accent during Potomac Primry coverage tonight. There he was, up at his fancy board, touching it and zooming on places and being all fancy and whatnot...and then it slipped out: "mah-jins". Instead of "margins". Then he said, "Sorry, my Boston accent coming out." Then it wouldn't go away. The moowah he talked, the thickah it goit.

It was awesome.

Gettin' Tie-yed

Green Monster (Monstah), Fenway Park (Pahk), Prudential Center (Centah/ the Prud)

On Hiding Your Boston Accent If You're Journalist

I love when I listen to a journalist and can guess where they're from in the Boston area.

For instance, one day a few years ago I had just tuned in to Morning Edition and heard someone reading a "This I Believe" essay. I turned to my commuter mate and said, "This man is from the South Shore - Weymouth or Quincy."

As we wound our way down the secluded Maine backroads, she looked at me funny and said, "How do you know that?"

"He talks like everyone I know."

I was right, too. It was Mark Shields.

A few months ago, I was listening to All Things Considered and something about the way Tom Bowman said his name - with a bit of a twist on the "o"s...made me think he was a Bostonian of some sort. I guessed Braintree. I emailed this guess to my source at NPR and he wrote back about 15 minutes later, "Norwood." It's good to know people.

And just now, during CNN's coverage of Super Tuesday, John King said one word - I don't remember exactly what; it was some word that ended in an "er" - but his er word ended with an "ah" and I knew. I said aloud "Metrowest" - thinking Dedham, West Roxbury, etc. A google search yields that he went to Boston Latin. It's bothering me not knowing exactly, so, of course, I emailed him...

I doubt he'll write back though.

(CNN photo of John King - click on photo to get to his CNN homepage)