* (from a non-native speaker’s point of view)

One might argue that the idea in the above title is relative. Of course, what is difficult to one person might be a welcome challenge and a wonderful brain-teaser to another. But if we take into account certain criteria, some sort of a list can actually be created.

We are sure that at some point, you have seen the funny Google pronunciation video that has gone viral, which gives mispronunciation a whole new dimension. Let’s look a little deeper into some other examples.

Pronunciation vs. writing

Generally speaking, struggles with pronunciation in any foreign language can be attributed to the divide between how a word is spelled and how that word spoken. The fact that we cannot always rely on what we see written down is a thorn in the side of language learners and it’s something non-native speakers of English often grumble about. The word that comes to mind here is the word “queue”.

Even the physical movements of mouth, tongue and teeth are also an important factor in how well someone hits a foreign accent. And getting used to an unfamiliar sound is basically muscle memory. There are certain types of sounds that can be universally tricky for our mouth, lips and tongue to handle, regardless of how familiar someone is with the words that contain them.

So, what’s up with English, then?

There are certainly languages which are more challenging when it comes to the gap between the written word and how it’s pronounced (French comes to mind, German is not a picnic either, although it does tend to have a more predictable spelling system), but English is an interesting example because it is such a universal language and there is this prevailing notion that English is easy to learn. It’s poetic, pleasant to the ear, omnipresent and just so very familiar.

The usual suspects

The below list is a subjective choice of commonly used words that are tricky to pronounce and certainly not an exhaustive list. The list was compiled trying to accommodate the words that foreign speakers of English most struggle with because the so-called pronunciation logic gets in the way and they just can’t seem to come to terms with how certain words are actually pronounced.

1. Rural /ˈrʊər(ə)l/

It has to do with the combination of letters and that mysterious r sound that some language learners just can’t get right. The sounds in the word, including vowels, are actually articulated in the same area of mouth and so it all gets jam-packed in there. Juror and murderer are similarly tough nuts to crack.

2. Sixth /sɪksθ/

Its plural version is arguably an even bigger tongue-twister. Actually, all ordinal numbers that end with -th are rather difficult to handle.

3. Choir /ˈkwʌɪə/

You might have the urge to pronounce -ch the usual way, but things are not black and white here and one is in for a surprise. Once you fully internalise how it’s really pronounced, you’ll never attempt to say it any other way.

4. Colonel /ˈkəːn(ə)l/

Even though the word is French by origin, there’s no excuse for having such a strange pronunciation, right?! It lacks r, but the sound is used when spoken, the second o is silent, which only adds to further confusion. In fact, there used to be an r in the place of the first l, but that changed in the course of history. Go figure!

5. Often /ˈɒf(ə)n/

This is a very frequently used and very familiar word, but it’s often pronounced incorrectly as well. The culprit here is the letter t, which is silent and should be left alone even if you feel a wretched urge to pronounce it.

6. Suite /swiːt/

Here’s another tricky one, where the first instinct would be to pronounce it differently from what it’s actually pronounced. It looks like a fine men’s suit but it’s actually far sweeter than you’d think.

7. Pronunciation /prəˌnʌnsɪˈeɪʃ(ə)n/

Yes, there is some irony in that, but the word that means the way in which a word is pronounced is actually really difficult to pronounce in itself.

8. Entrepreneur /ˌɒntrəprəˈnəː/

Here’s another excellent tongue-twister worthy of attention. Granted, it is a loanword from French, which certainly explains its structure and the way it is pronounced. And it certainly sounds much more fancy than an under-taker, which is the literal translation of the French counterpart.

9. Squirrel /ˈskwɪr(ə)l/

These lovely little creatures have been given a name that is notoriously difficult to pronounce for non-native English speakers. Couldn’t they have been given some simple name, like cats and dogs and pigs have.  The word actually comes from Greek, combining two expressions that mean shadow and tail.

10. Receipt /rɪˈsiːt/

Actually, this final heading equally belongs to the word Recipe /ˈrɛsɪpi/, because the two are frequently confused, owing to the similar spelling, though their pronunciation and meaning differ. Note, however, that once upon a time receipt meant the same as recipe.

Some more words to tickle your pickle

The above words are not difficult just for English learners, but also for native speakers, which can make many English learners sigh with relief. There’s a reason why spelling bee competitions are common in countries where English is spoken. Now that we’ve presented some very familiar and commonly used words that are difficult to pronounce or at least their pronunciation is not as clear-cut as one would expect, we dare you to dig into the pronunciation of the following words, which are perhaps less common. But try tackle them, anyway, just for the fun of it: drawers, Wednesday, Worcestershire, poignant, mischievous, nausea, heir, tortoise, wristwatch, draught, scissors, ignominious, brewery, pauciloquy (brevity in speech), sesquipedalian (using a lot of long words), stultiloquence (senseless talk).