Hi there, and welcome back.
In this video, we’re going to look at ten world-famous brand names that you are probably
pronouncing wrongly, and I’ll also show you how to say them correctly.
Now before we get into it, a quick note: many of these names are proper nouns (and some
of them come from languages other than English).
So getting the names exactly right is not important.
But, in many situations, especially in your work life, if you try to say brand names correctly,
it will make you look more professional, and hey, you can impress your family and friends
as well.
So with that in mind, let’s begin.
Number one is the multinational fast food chain – McDonald’s.
I’ve heard many of my students mispronounce it as mc-do-naald’s.
This word is actually a surname (that is, it’s a family name) that comes from the
regions of Scotland and Ireland.
To say it correctly, say ‘donald’ – the first syllable is ‘don’ and the second
is ‘uld’ – ‘donald’.
So the company’s name is McDonald’s.
Now, they have a mascot – that is, a character that represents the company.
This is a clown that you often see in advertisements, and his name is Ronald McDonald.
The Ronald rhymes with Donald.
Another fast food company whose name is often pronounced wrongly is Pizza Hut.
That’s because many people say the word ‘pizza’ wrong.
So I guess the names of most pizza chains are mispronounced as well, including Domino’s,
Papa John’s and Little Caesars.
So here’s how you correct the mistake – say ‘peet-suh’.
It’s not pisa and it’s not peed-zuh.
It’s ‘peet’ and ‘suh’.
So: Pizza Hut.
Domino’s Pizza.
Papa John’s Pizza, Little Caesars Pizza etc.
Number three is the internet shopping giant - Amazon.
This word is commonly mispronounced Amaze-on.
When you say it correctly, the first syllable is /ae/, and the stress is on this first syllable.
So – Amazon is correct – once again, Amazon.
Next up is Disney, the company famous for its cartoons, animated films and for the most
popular theme park in the world, Disneyland.
Its full name is “The Walt Disney Company” named after its founder.
So what’s the problem with the way people say the name?
Well, let me ask you – how do you say this word?
If you said ‘Di[s]ney’, that’s the mistake – the ‘s’ in the middle is actually
a /z/ sound as you can see in the pronunciation symbols.
So it’s ‘Disney’ – remember that.
Number five is the popular brand of denim jeans – Levi’s.
The company that owns this brand is called Levi Strauss and company – this company
was also named after its founder, by the way.
The name is often pronounced wrongly as /leveez/ - that’s not correct.
Remember that the correct way to say it is Lee-vaiz.
Levi’s.
Up next is the sportswear manufacturer – Nike.
That’s right – it’s not Naik – there are two syllables – ‘nai’ and ‘key’.
In fact, the company’s co-founder Phil Knight himself confirmed in 2014 that the correct
way to say the company’s name is ‘Nike’.
Another sportswear manufacturer whose name is commonly mispronounced is – Adidas.
Many people say /uh-DEE-dus/, and there are a lot of myths (that is, false stories) about
what the name means.
Some say it’s “All Day I Dream About Soccer”.
Others say it’s “All Day I Dream About Sports.”
Those are not true.
The company’s name is simply an abbreviation (or shortening) of its founder’s name – Adi
Dassler, a German businessman.
So the correct pronunciation is with the stress on the first syllable (aah).
Adidas.
Number eight is the American software company Adobe Systems.
You might be familiar with their very popular products such as Adobe Reader (which is used
to read PDF files), Photoshop (which is used for image editing) and Flash (which is an
animation program).
The word ‘adobe’ is a real English word and it refers to a kind of clay that is used
to build houses in some parts of the world.
It is often pronounced wrongly as ‘adoub’ – but that ‘e’ at the end is not silent
– it should be said as an ‘i’ sound – so it’s Adobe.
Number nine is this German car manufacturer.
Now before I say the name, I want to point out that this is a German name, so unless
you speak the language (I don’t), it’s going to be difficult to get it exactly right.
In English, it’s generally pronounced Mercedes-Benz.
Mer-say (like to ‘say something) – dees.
Benz.
Mer-say-deez Benz.
And number ten is yet another German car manufacturer: Volkswagen.
I personally used to say /volks-wagon/.
But I have since learned that the initial ‘v’ is actually pronounced as an ‘f’
sound in German.
So the first part of the name sounds like the English word ‘folks’, and the meaning
of Volkswagen is apparently “people’s car” like “the car of common folks”.
Also notice the ‘w’ in the second part of the name represents not a ‘w’ sound
but a ‘v’ sound.
So Volkswagen is the correct way to say it.
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