A VILLAGE near Chester has been named as one of the top five most mispronounced places in the UK.
Cholmondeley has appeared on the list alongside the likes of Hunstanton, Teignmouth, and Gateacre.
Driving experts from LeaseCar.uk have revealed some of the most baffling place names and spellings on Britain’s maps and Satnavs.
If you’re planning a road trip to a novel UK destination this year, it’ll help if you’re able to tell where you’re going.
There are many place names that even local residents will struggle to get their heads round – from Cholmondeley and Happisbrugh to Ruislip and Leominister.
Tim Alcock from LeaseCar.uk said: “The English language can be challenging at best. Not only do we have words that are spelled and pronounced the same but have different meanings – read, bank, bat and bear are good examples – to complicate things further, some words contain heaps of letters that just aren’t needed.
“You see this a lot with place names like Leominister, which might as well be spelt Lemster, and Happisburgh, which sounds more like Hays-bruh, rendering the majority of the word useless.
“In order to prevent confusion, we’ve listed 15 places around the UK that are most often mispronounced, so that drivers can travel with ease and as little embarrassment as possible.”
The list is:
1. Marylebone (London)
Wrong: Ma-ree-lee-bone
Right: Mar-lee-bone
2. Teignmouth (Devon)
Wrong: Tane-mouth
Right: Tin-muth
3. Bicester (Oxfordshire)
Wrong: Bi-ses-ter
Right: Bis-ter
4. Hunstanton (Norfolk)
Wrong: Hun-stan-ton
Right: Hun-ston
5. Cholmondeley (Cheshire)
Wrong: Chol-mon-de-lee
Right: Chum-lee
6. Godmanchester (Cambridgeshire)
Wrong: God-man-ches-ter OR Gum-ster
Right: God-munch-ester
7. Southwell (Nottinghamshire)
Wrong: South-well
Right: Suth-ul
8. Magdalen College (Oxford/Cambridge)
Wrong: Mag-de-lain
Right: Maud-lin
9. Leominister (Herefordshire)
Wrong: Lee-o-min-ster
Right: Lemster
10. Shrewsbury (Shropshire)
Wrong: Shrews-bury
Right: Shroos-bree
11. Happisbrugh (Norfolk)
Wrong: Happ-is-bruh
Right: Hays-bruh
12. Gloucester (Gloucestershire)
Wrong: Glos-es-ter
Right: Glos-ter
13. Belvoir Castle (Grantham, Leicestershire)
Wrong: Bel-vwar Castle
Right: Beaver Castle
14. Ruislip (Greater London)
Wrong: Roo-i-slip
Right: Ry-slip
15. Gateacre (Liverpool)
Wrong: Gate-acre
Right: Gatt-a-ker
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