Research conducted by word unscrambling experts at Unscramblerer.com highlights which words prompt the most pronunciation uncertainty among South African users. Their data was analyzed from Jan 1, 2025, to Nov 03, 2025, and search data from Google Trends for “How do you pronounce” and “How to pronounce.
Using Google Trends, they identified the most mispronounced words and utilized Ahrefs to determine the number of related searches. In South Africa, you can explore common mispronunciations on Google Trends by searching phrases like “How do you pronounce,” “pronunciations of,” and “How to pronounce.” Ahrefs highlights various pronunciation searches, such as “croissant pronunciation” or “how do you pronounce jalapeno?” They compiled data from 100 search variations of the most frequently mispronounced terms.
A spokesperson for Unscramblerer.com commented on the research. “Our research about the most searched-for mispronunciations gives an interesting insight into South African culture. Exposure to new words through media, music, pop culture, and social platforms drives curiosity. People often look up pronunciations if there is a gap between how a word or name is spelled and how it sounds.
The English language is particularly irregular in this regard (“Colonel” and “Wednesday” defy phonetic expectations). English spelling only matches pronunciation about 75% of the time (University of Oxford research). A Cambridge University linguistics survey found that over 60% of English speakers admit they regularly mispronounce at least one common word.”
South Africa’s most mispronounced words with pronunciations:
- Schedule (74 400 searches) – SKEJ-ool.
- Croissant (70 800 searches) – Krwah-SAHN.
- Charcuterie (69 600 searches) – Shar-KOO-tuh-ree.
- Aoife (57 600 searches) – EE-fah.
- Worcestershire sauce (56 400 searches) – WUSS-ter-sheer.
- Jalapeno (46 800 searches) – HAH-lah-PEH-nyoh.
- Dachshund (44 400 searches) – DAKS-hund.
- Acai (43 200 searches) – Ah-SIGH-ee.
- Quinoa (40 800 searches) – Keen-waa.
- Chateau (32 700 searches) – Sha-TOH.
- Qatar (31 200 searches) – KAH-tar.
- Tuesday (28 800 searches) – Chooz-day.
- Gyro (25 200 searches) – YEE-roh.
- Nutella (27 600 searches) – Nuh-teh-luh.
- Niche (24 000 searches) –
South Africa’s most mispronounced words by region with pronunciations:
- Mpumalanga – Worcestershire (WUSS-ter-sheer).
- Limpopo – Croissant (Krwah-SAHN).
- Northern Cape – Persuasive (Per-SWAY-siv).
- Eastern Cape – Nonchalant (Non-shuh-LAHNT).
- Free State – Achieve (Uh-CHEEV).
- North West – Jalapeno (HAH-lah-PEH-nyoh).
- Western Cape – Cocoa (KOH-koh).
- Gauteng – Agile (AJ-ile).
- KwaZulu-Natal – Cautious (KAW-shuhs).
”Correct pronunciation is closely tied to perceived intelligence and competence. The desire for correct pronunciation is a mix of avoiding social embarrassment and simple curiosity. No wonder people are searching for how to pronounce words.”
