Today we're going to talk about brands names
and how to pronounce them.
So, before we begin today's lesson,
we'd like to remind you to subscribe to our channel
for more video lessons
on how you can practice and improve your English.
So a while back we received a comment
from somebody who asked
I hope you guys can create a video
that will teach us how to say some brands correctly.
And that is exactly what we're going to do today.
YAY!
As always, we appreciate your feedback.
And if you have any questions, we'll do our
best to answer them.
Hopefully with a video.
So, what we're going to do today
is we're going to go over 25 words.
25 brands that we're going to pronounce for you.
But this pronunciation that we're doing
is the American or English pronunciation of the brands.
It's how native English speakers would say it.
Keep in mind that a lot of these brands
are not from English speaking countries.
And that means that Americans like me
will take the name and the pronunciation
that it is intended to be and we will
bastardize it and mispronounce it.
And then it just becomes mainstream.
It's important to note that even though
we might not say the pronunciation
the way it is intended to be said,
people need to be able to understand
and hear you and recognize what you're saying.
So that's why this is valuable.
So we'll explain a little more as we go along.
But right now, let's begin.
Number 1 - IKEA
I think that anybody who is not from Sweden
possibly pronounces this wrong.
Because in Sweden they say....if I...
/Ikea/
Maybe I still might be mispronouncing it.
But if you're in the US or Britain
I think most people pronounce it IKEA
and that's what they understand.
IKEA
Yea, get you some end tables
and some of them five-dollar lamps, man.
So if you were to say I'm going shopping today,
I got this new stuff from...
/Ikea/
People in America would be like...
Where is that?
Okay Number 2 - Nutella
Correctly, it's Nutella and that's how I say it.
Because I love it and it's my favorite.
But Americans like Wes will say...
Nutella.
It's similar, but...
there's a little...
Nutella is my favorite brand so far
because of all the chocolate, of course.
She even has a shirt.
Number 3 - Coke
Now this is perhaps one of the most
famous brands in the world.
And most of us, I think, know how to pronounce it.
But make sure you are saying it
with the long /o/ sound.
Coke.
We had a student a while back
who pronounced it with the short /o/.
And kept saying"Cock."
Alright.
That means something different.
It is slang in English for...
I remember he was telling us a story
that he went out to a restaurant
and the waitress asked him,
"What would you like to drink?"
And he said, "I would like some cock."
And...it just...yea...
In the end, he eventually did get his Coke.
So everything worked out and
I'm pretty sure he's pronouncing it correctly now.
This is...you know, it's a very innocent mistake.
But...
And this is how pronunciation
can cause a lot of confusion
among different people.
Give me cock.
Please give me cock.
I want a cock.
It's a...
Coke.
Number 4 - Tommy Hilfiger
Because this is a name
I think people may mispronounce the last...
the last name.
The first name I think is easy.
Tommy. Everyone knows that.
But Hilfiger might be a little more confusing.
So that's how you pronounce it.
Tommy Hilfiger.
Number 5 - Hyundai
Or as I think a lot of Americans say
/Hundye/
And this one, it's...
Hyundai or Honda.
Hyundai. This is a Korean brand.
So again, it takes on a very different pronunciation.
I'm not really sure why but
That's just the way it is.
Number 6 - Nike
Now I've heard people say /nike/ before.
They drop the /e/ which
kind of makes sense if you think about it.
It's what it looks like.
It looks like.
But it's not.
It's actually Nike.
From the old Greek goddess actually.
Nike.
And because it's an American company
I guess this is the correct pronunciation.
Looks like /nike/.
But we say Nike.
Number 7 - Adidas
This is a German company.
And it's actually a portmanteau
which is the combination of two words.
So you have Adi, which is the nickname of Adolf
and Das from Dassler.
Adolf Dassler.
Who is the person who started all of this.
Adidas.
So if you're looking for this shoe,
it's Adidas.
Number 8 - Sephora
With this word just make sure you know that
the PH makes an /f/ sound.
Sephora.
This is one of Ioana's favorite brands.
Oh yea, I could live there.
Number 9 - Porsche
So in the US, a lot of people either say
Porsche or even shorten it and say Porsch.
But apparently, the company even made a
video as to how to pronounce this a while back.
Porsche. Porsche.
Porsche.
Porsche. Porsche.
I think in the US if you said you want to buy a Porsche,
people would probably ask you what that is.
So again, I think a lot of native English speakers
would say Porsche or Porsch.
We don't drive a Porsche.
...or a Porsch...or a Porsche.
Number 10 - Louis Vuitton
And in French it's Louis Vuitton.
I don't...I said it wrong.
How is it? How does that go again?
I don't know.
Say it again.
Vuitton.
Okay.
Louis Vuitton.
But I would say Louis Vuitton.
Because...
But...I don't know French.
American.
I'm not French either so...
Louis Vuitton.
Anyway, it's Louis Vuitton.
Yea.
Many native English speakers would say Louis Vuitton.
My very own Louis Vuitton.
Number 11 - Samsung
It's a Korean company so I think the correct
pronunciation technically would be
Samsung.
But a lot of people...native English speakers
would say...pronounce it Sam and not Sam.
So, they'd say Samsung.
But if you did say Samsung,
people will still know what you're talking about.
What kind of phone do you have?
I have a Samsung.
What kind of phone do you have?
I have an iPhone.
Number 12 - Versace
Now, the correct pronunciation in Italian is Versace.
But if you're talking to somebody who is
a native English speaker and you want them to
understand you, you'd say Versace.
There you go.
You got the /e/ at the end, Versace.
Do you have a Versace?
No.
Too expensive.
Number 13 is a car company
and it is pronounced Chevrolet.
I'm not really sure the history behind this word.
The spelling is not necessarily like it sounds.
Especially the T at the end.
It's not pronounced, so we just say Chevrolet.
Or a Chevy.
Yea, or you could say Chevy for short.
Not Chevrolet.
In my broken down Chevrolet.
Number 14 - Stella Artois
BEER!
Or you could just...
Yea, it's pretty good.
You could just say Stella.
But...I mean I think that's pretty close to the actual
French pronunciation.
Stella Artois.
Yea, so Stella.
Stella Artois.
I'll have a Stella.
So if you want a beer, it's a Stella Artois or a Stella.
Stella Artois.
Number 15 - Adobe
So, this is a word that many of you might know
from computers.
And it's pronounced Adobe.
So that first A is the schwa, that /uh/ sound.
And the E at the end is the long /e/ sound.
It's not /A/dobe. It's not /A/dobe.
It's Adobe.
Or Ado/bey/.
Ado/bey/.
Not /bey/, just Adobe.
I can see people saying that.
Please don't ignore me like I was just some
update from Adobe.
Number 16 - Abercrombie & Fitch
Now this is a really long name, so it's
mispronounced many time.
But that's the correct pronunciation.
Actually, Wes I think says "Finch."
But it's Abercrombie & Fitch.
I used to but from now on...
No more?
The T is silent, so keep that in mind.
In Fitch...Abercrombie & Fitch.
Number 17 - Volkswagen
This is a German car company
so I think in German they would pronounce it
Volkswagen.
Is that pretty good?
I think so.
In the US, a lot of native English speakers
would say Volkswagen.
So you would here that W sound in there.
Volkswagen.
That's how they say it.
What like the back of a Volkswagen?
Volkswagen!
Have you ever had one?
No.
I like the buggies...the old like...sixties.
Number 18 - Anthropologie
Now, this is French sounding so
I've heard people say Anthropologie.
But it's Anthropologie.
It's an American company.
So it's Anthropologie.
It just looks fancy.
Do you shop there?
No, it's so expensive.
Like one thing is like $400.
Number 19 - Huwawei
This is a company from China.
Whose pronunciation again...
not like it sounds.
I think a lot of people would say
Huwawei.
They would pronounce the H.
Even though I think it might just be Huwawei.
And I should probably know this because
BOOM!
I have a Huwawei.
He's very proud of it.
I am very proud of my Huwawei.
Now let's see if they'll be able to pronounce it.
How would you pronounce this word?
/How-wee/
/Hu-way/
/Hu-wi-wee/.../Hu-wi/
Yea this...this was okay...this was...it was...
It...it does the job.
Most of the time.
Number 20 - Levi's
This is actually another one of my favorite brands.
Because they're classic jeans.
And it just...they...fit really well.
But it's not Levi or Levi Strauss.
It's just Levi's.
Girl you got to be right, killin' in your Levi's.
High on your lovin's got me buzzin' like a streetlight.
Number 21 - for all you beer lover's out there - Budweiser.
You can find it all over the world.
But the correct pronunciation is Budweiser.
Or I guess you could shorten and say Bud.
Can I help you?
Yes.
I'd like a Budweiser please.
Number 22 - H & M
Now H & M is different in each country I think.
So I know in Romania for example
some people say H & M.
Because...
Do they?
Yea. Yea.
H & M in English, so if you want to find this
store, and we all know we love H & M,
because it's cheap and trendy.
There you go.
That's where you go.
H & M.
Just pronouncing the two letters as they are
in the English alphabet.
Yep.
Number 23 - Jack Daniel's
This is a whiskey brand.
So if you're out and you want to get some whiskey,
it is pronounced Jack Daniel's.
I know I've heard some people,
depending on where they are, like...
in East Asia...Daniel.
But Daniel.
Jack Daniel's.
Or you could just say Jack.
Yea, Jack and Coke.
Jack and Coke.
Or if you would like...
Jack and Cock.
No, you don't want to say Jack and Cock.
Or if you'd like ice in the drink, you could say
I'd like some Jack on the rocks.
That's another expression for you.
Ice...on the rocks.
Two Jack Daniel's, one on the rocks, and a Heineken.
Number 24 - Nestle
Now this is another European company.
and I think correctly it's Nestle.
But Americans will pronounce it Nestle.
Nestle.
Yea.
Nestle. Again, you don't pronounce the T.
Nestle.
Good...good chocolates though.
Win this one and there's Nestle Quick for everyone.
Quick? Nestle Quick?
I got to have you Nestle Quick.
Number 25 - Corona
This is a beer from Mexico.
So, the pronunciation...Corona.
A lot of native English speakers would just say Corona.
Corona.
So if you'd like to try a Mexican beer,
you can order a Corona.
More of a Corona man myself.
Now what we'd like you to do
is write and tell us your favorite brand
in the comments below.
Tell us why you like it. How often you use it...
Try to write as much as possible
because that's another way of practicing your English.
Also, we'd like you to share this video
especially if you have heard others
mispronounce any of these brands.
Let's discuss and share.
Thanks for watching, and we will see you next time.
Bye!