"French words, when read from printed text, can sound very bizarre when spoken in English.
A typographic example: the old type size nonpareil was pronounced “num-pre” by typesetters, and bourgeois as “burr-jess”.
(Sorry, I forget where I came across that gem.)
Another explanation for “phonetic creep” might be that in hearing an unfamiliar word from a friend or associate there is a certain amount of “noise” in transmission. Accidental interpretation. Or creativity, for that matter.
In an old English joke, the phrase “Send reinforcements, we’re going to advance,” passed along a line of infantry, becomes “Send three and fourpence [three shillings and four pence] we’re going to a dance”.
Thoughts by my friend Nick Shinn
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