Scallops! Correcting other people's speech?

[ddiogyn]

At the supermarket fish counter today i asked for some scallops (which i pronounced to rhyme with 'pallets'). The person behind the counter replied "You mean scollops, it's pronounced SCOL-LOPS" (rhyming with 'dollops').

I found this quite rude, but just ignored it and repeated my request with the 'correct' pronunciation (my OED lists both pronunciations as acceptable, although i am aware scallops-rhyming-with-dollops is more common).

How do you pronounce 'scallops'?

Would you ever correct a complete stranger's pronunciation/grammar/anything?

[Caro]

Scallops, vaguely rhyming with pallets for me. And no, I would never correct a stranger. In fact, I'm now pronouncing my favourite spanish sausage as cho-reet-so instead of cho-reetho just to fit in

[taff]

um...sca-laps...
but i'm welsh so no-one understands me usually anyway...

[Nicos]

Would you ever correct a complete stranger's pronunciation/grammar/anything?

Never- unless they asked!

Gawd...it's so frustrating at times here when my French accent/intenation isn't quite right
Most peeps offer the correct version if they see me struggling- but some do the pouty lip thing and give a shrug and walk away.

There is not excuse for rudeness-it's a sign of arrogance and they probably needed a darned good slap when they were younger!

ps- and I say scolups ( I had a northern upbringing!)


Next time you should ask which genus they are

[rustylady]

Scollups - and no I wouldn't ever correct anyone unless they asked for help.

[TonyF]

Why not get really posey and call them St Jacques, which is their shortened French name and everybody calls them the same thing here?

I have some good French friends who correct my pronunciation occasionally but then they let me correct their English too but they're friends, I wouldn't dream of doing it to s atranger unless asked to do so and as for being corrected in a shop, not on at all, tho J and I have helped the local fish restaurant/shop with a translated menu and a list of fish and similar names in English.

[Patchninja]

Certainly NOT in those circumstances. Anyway, it's interesting if you Google the words, you so get both though scallop seems to win out in popularity so the person was plain wrong!

[bobleponge]

I'm a scallops/pallets bloke, but I'm used to being corrected in my pronunciation, usually with a whack round the back of the head if she's already corrected me once!

[swansea girl]

scollups ... only person I correct is my son "its mAm not mUm" ...but I don't worry too much as he only does it to wind me up.

[Polly Fouracre]

I say scollops and if I were correted by the fishmonger I think I might say Oh! I meant pork chops" and go to the butcher!

[Two_Sheds]

I correct OH when he asks for see-a-batter

He just won't say ciabatta (cha-batta). Me, I'm happy to be corrected if I'm wrong, I don't take it as a personal slight

[petal]

Scollops, must be a northern thing. i am used to correcting kids i teach all the time but that tends to be me reacting to the 'aint dun nuffink' nonsense.

[Florence Fennel]

Scollops, me too, but then I'm oop north. It really annoys me when Yorkshire folk say tablits, but I would feel it rude to correct them.

[Two_Sheds]

It really annoys me when Yorkshire folk say tablits

as opposed to ...? tab-letts?

[rustylady]

I think we're all entitled to our own dialects. As for local pronunciation foibles, I can give you some cracking examples of Cornish & Devon place names and ask for your interpretation if you like.