Noah Webster at 250

[Paul Johnston]

We had a street (and park) in Hinsdale, IL where I lived as a kid
named Stough.  There, it was [staU].  They also had (algae-filled)
sloughs [slaUz] around there, though not in Stough Park.

Paul Johnston
On Oct 23, 2008, at 3:34 PM, Alison Murie wrote:

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> Poster:       Alison Murie <sagehen7470 at ATT.NET>
> Subject:      Re: Noah Webster at 250
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> I had a teacher in third grade, back before  WWII, whose name was
> Stough.  She used to challenge incoming classes to decide how to
> pronounce her name..  Was it "Stuff" as in enough; was it "Stup" as in
> hiccough; was it "Stoff" as in cough; was it "Stew" as in through; was
> it like plough, &c.?   Oddly enough, instead of making me remember
> what the answer was, I'm not sure, nearly seventy years later.  I
> *think* it turned out to be "Stoh" like stowaway. (Can't think of
> another analog.)
> AM
> On Oct 22, 2008, at 12:56 AM, Douglas G. Wilson wrote:
>
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>> Poster:       "Douglas G. Wilson" <douglas at NB.NET>
>> Subject:      Re: Noah Webster at 250
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>> Wilson Gray wrote:
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>>> Poster:       Wilson Gray <hwgray at GMAIL.COM>
>>> Subject:      Re: Noah Webster at 250
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>>> Dennis Baron writes:
>>>
>>> "...plow, not plough ..."
>>>
>>> Back in the 'Forties, there was a soap-operatic, cartoon-serial
>>> entitled _The Gumps_. One day, the Gumps were expecting as dinner
>>> guest an English gentleman named "Plough." Confusion reigned as to
>>> how
>>> this name might be pronounced, so that introductions would not pose
>>> an
>>> embarrassing problem. Various solutions were proposed. I went with
>>> "Pluff," myself. It seemed obvious.
>>>
>>> When Mr. Plough arrived and was forced to explain to his American
>>> hosts that his name was pronounced "Plow," exactly as spelled,
>>> millions of Americans, including your humble correspondent, were
>>> taken
>>> completely by surprise. My WAG is that not ten percent of the
>>> strip's
>>> readers had any idea as to what what the point of this was. I didn't
>>> even believe that "Plough" could be pronounced "Plow." Hence, I had
>>> not the slightest idea WTF the strip's point was, until perhaps a
>>> dekkid later.
>> -
>>
>> Here ...
>>
>> http://www.sff.net/people/Brenda/
>>
>> ... is a science-fiction author named "Clough", whose books I read
>> years
>> ago. (Perhaps like some kindred spirits subscribing to this list?)
>> Back
>> when, I would have had no idea how to pronounce the surname. Now,
>> thanks
>> to the Internet, I am apprised of the 'correct' pronunciation,
>> "cluff"
>> (hope it's not another Internet lie). Some others with the same name
>> orthographically are called "clow", I think.
>>
>> -- Doug Wilson
>>
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