So How Should a British person say these American Football words?

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Offense

Defense

It's a quandry?

Whatever decision you make you come off sounding like an idiot, either an idiot who's never watched the game, or an idiot affecting americanisms.

― trappist monkey, Monday, 26 September 2005 11:47 (twenty years ago)

controversy!

― N_RQ, Monday, 26 September 2005 11:47 (twenty years ago)

ALOOMINUM

― Sociah T Azzahole (blueski), Monday, 26 September 2005 11:49 (twenty years ago)

offense(ce) and defense(ce) are both words in british english too.. so you just say them normally?

― ken c (ken c), Monday, 26 September 2005 11:54 (twenty years ago)

I think using the American pronunciations is acceptable in this instance, since you're referring to something very specifically aAmerican (a defence in American Football), not the Arsenal back 4. Mixing up the pronunciations is fine. It's like referring to 9/11 as 9/11 and not 11/9.

― Come Back Johnny B (Johnney B), Monday, 26 September 2005 12:08 (twenty years ago)

Oh Fence.

Dee Fence.

Not,

Off Fence
Der Fence

― mark grout (mark grout), Monday, 26 September 2005 12:12 (twenty years ago)

i prefer to sit on der fence on this one

― ken c (ken c), Monday, 26 September 2005 12:16 (twenty years ago)

DE FENCE IS NOT ON OFFER

― Stewiah T Leezahole (blueski), Monday, 26 September 2005 12:17 (twenty years ago)

It is "Off-fence", or at least closer to "Off-fence" than to "Oh-fence". "Ah-fence" maybe is closer, emphasis on the first syllable.

DEE-fence.

― Allyzay knows a little German (allyzay), Monday, 26 September 2005 13:19 (twenty years ago)

i think you either switch accent for the entire football conversation, or just pronounce the words like you normally would. mixing and matching would just be weird.

― ken c (ken c), Monday, 26 September 2005 13:23 (twenty years ago)

so you'll also be saying things like "iinnd zahhhhhn" and "tuuttcchhchdahaahhhhhnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn"

― ken c (ken c), Monday, 26 September 2005 13:24 (twenty years ago)

they won by faaaahhhhhveeeeee points

― ken c (ken c), Monday, 26 September 2005 13:25 (twenty years ago)

Well yes I would have to agree with that. I mean I wouldn't think it very odd if a British person, speaking to me about yesterday's games, spoke in their normal accent when pronouncing words, I mean I'd think it odder if they put on a very American accent to say "offense" and "defense".

― Allyzay knows a little German (allyzay), Monday, 26 September 2005 13:25 (twenty years ago)

It's not american accent, just american pronounciation. So "deeee-fence" instead of "de-fairnce".

― Come Back Johnny B (Johnney B), Monday, 26 September 2005 14:21 (twenty years ago)

Americans are clever and have different ways of pronouncing these words, each of which mean different things.

If one is watching sports, one says "OFF-fense" and "OFF-fense-ive," and "DE-fense" and "DE-fensive." He is an offensive lineman.

If one is in court, one says "oh-FENSE" and "oh-FENSE-ive," "de-FENSE" and "de-FENSE-ive." This is your third offense, and it is particularly offensive, what with all the poop and stuff.

In this way, when I say that someone is an "OFF-fense-ive lineman," it is clear that I mean he stands in front of the quarterback, and not that his personal habits disgust me. I think this is a very clever distinction, and if the English have not yet adopted it, they should think about it. No pressure, or anything, it just might come in handy.

The sports usage here is not limited to football.

― nabisco (nabisco), Monday, 26 September 2005 14:25 (twenty years ago)

yeah but the point was that a lot of words are pronounced differently in america.

xpost!

― ken c (ken c), Monday, 26 September 2005 14:25 (twenty years ago)

in the uk we just work out what those words means without having to pronounce the same word differently, we're smart like that!!

― ken c (ken c), Monday, 26 September 2005 14:28 (twenty years ago)

-s

― ken c (ken c), Monday, 26 September 2005 14:28 (twenty years ago)

but i've got to say that offensive thing is pretty neat though. and subtle!

― ken c (ken c), Monday, 26 September 2005 14:29 (twenty years ago)

erm, by "that offensive thing" i meant that thing to do with the word "offensive"

how should i have pronounced that?

― ken c (ken c), Monday, 26 September 2005 14:30 (twenty years ago)

Can we talk about the useful distinction, in baseball, of the past tense of "fly out" being "flied out"?

― jaymc (jaymc), Monday, 26 September 2005 14:32 (twenty years ago)

don't forget skied and skied!

football(soccer) (actual any kind of ball sport i guess) "oh no he skied it"

skiing "ooh he skied well"

― ken c (ken c), Monday, 26 September 2005 14:37 (twenty years ago)

live and live!!!!

soccer "i'm surprised he still lives after that tackle"
soccer "yeah dude seriously lives are at risk when this dude is playing"
soccer "join us LIVE after the break"

― ken c (ken c), Monday, 26 September 2005 14:39 (twenty years ago)

read and read!

"oh he read that well"
"yes he reads it so well"

― ken c (ken c), Monday, 26 September 2005 14:41 (twenty years ago)

Ken C presents "Fun With Homographs!"

― jaymc (jaymc), Monday, 26 September 2005 14:42 (twenty years ago)

homophobe

― ken c (ken c), Monday, 26 September 2005 14:45 (twenty years ago)

For some dork reason I'm cracking up at the thought of someone being a "DE-fense attorney."

― nabisco (nabisco), Monday, 26 September 2005 14:54 (twenty years ago)

haaawwwt daaawwwwg!

― Teh HoBB (the pirate king), Monday, 26 September 2005 15:05 (twenty years ago)

I love when I can ignore 3 ken c post in a row.

― ~~~~ DODONGO DISLIKES SMOKE ~~~~ (ex machina), Monday, 26 September 2005 15:10 (twenty years ago)

the reason we don't need two different ways of saying offense is that we use the word attack in sporting terms...

― CarsmileSteve (CarsmileSteve), Monday, 26 September 2005 15:16 (twenty years ago)

For some dork reason I'm cracking up at the thought of someone being a "DE-fense attorney."

That would be whoever represented Ray Lewis at his murder trial, right?

― jaymc (jaymc), Monday, 26 September 2005 15:19 (twenty years ago)

down here it's "aww-feeyunce"

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Monday, 26 September 2005 15:21 (twenty years ago)

an american woman at work keeps using british slang. the first time i heard her say "god, i'm dying for a fag" i i nearly fell out my chair.

― dog latin (dog latin), Monday, 26 September 2005 15:22 (twenty years ago)

I love when I can ignore 3 ken c post in a row.

you mean a hat-trick?

which is pronounced "hattrick", rhyming with patrick. To distinguish it from a trick that you do with a hat.

― ken c (ken c), Monday, 26 September 2005 15:26 (twenty years ago)

an american woman at work keeps using british slang. the first time i heard her say "god, i'm dying for a fag" i i nearly fell out my chair.

maybe she's a fag hag

― ken c (ken c), Monday, 26 September 2005 15:27 (twenty years ago)

It might be Oh-fence if you're in Green Bay

― Jimmy Mod Loves Alan Canseco (The Famous Jimmy Mod), Monday, 26 September 2005 15:27 (twenty years ago)

which is pronounced "hattrick", rhyming with patrick. To distinguish it from a trick that you do with a hat.

No need to draw the distinction, because the latter is commonly referred to as 'headgear sourcery'.

― Teh HoBB (the pirate king), Monday, 26 September 2005 15:31 (twenty years ago)

Let me get this straight: British people and American people pronounce some words differently? Hilarious!

― polyphonic (polyphonic), Monday, 26 September 2005 15:32 (twenty years ago)

you got it wrong - americans and british people both sometimes pronounce the same word differently in different situations. the words that americans and british do this trick to are sometimes different. i.e. americans have some words that have multiple pronunciations that british only have one pronunciation for, and vice versa, and that's the bit that's hilarious!

― ken c (ken c), Monday, 26 September 2005 15:37 (twenty years ago)

"OFF-ence"

― Spencer Chow (spencermfi), Monday, 26 September 2005 15:39 (twenty years ago)

head-gear-SOURCE-uh-ry

― Teh HoBB (the pirate king), Monday, 26 September 2005 15:40 (twenty years ago)

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