[Ads-l] [Non-DoD Source] Re: RES: cache - cachet confusible

MULLINS, WILLIAM D (Bill) CIV USARMY RDECOM AMRDEC (US) william.d.mullins18.civ at MAIL.MIL
Fri May 26 16:51:59 UTC 2017


> 
> Another victim of this generalization may be “forte”:  This started out spelled and pronounced “fort”, sort of like the French nominalized
> adjectives it was borrowed from but later (19th c., apparently) began being spelled “forte”, and eventually the “for-tay” pronunciation
> arose, to the point that it’s now the primary one, according to the OED and AHD.  The latter includes this Usage Note, which points out the
> confusion from the Italian music term:
> 
> ===============
> Usage Note: Forte, meaning “something in which a person excels,” can be pronounced with one syllable, like the French word from which it
> is derived. It can also be pronounced with two syllables (fôr-tā′), which is the more common pronunciation in American English and was
> the choice of 74 percent of the Usage Panel in both our 1996 and 2016 surveys. Some of those who dislike the two-syllable pronunciation
> argue it should only be used for the music term forte, which is derived from Italian.
> 
> https://ahdictionary.com/word/search.html?q=forte
> ===============
> 
> LH
> 

Steve Forte is a casino consultant, and is better at sleight of hand at the card table than just about anyone in the world.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfwvtMdZpec

He pronounces his name "Forty".

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The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org


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