You're Saying It Wrong
Saturdays
From KMUW Studios and part of the NPR Podcast Network, You're Saying It Wrong is a podcast that looks at what we get wrong—and what we sometimes get right—when it comes to this English language. Hosted by KMUW's Fletcher Powell, each episode features a conversation with the sister and brother who wrote the book on it. Literally. You're Saying It Wrong: A Pronunciation Guide to the 150 Most Commonly Mispronounced Words and Their Tangled Histories of Misuse is by Kathryn Petras and Ross Petras.
On June 24, 2022, You’re Saying It Wrong received first place in Division B for Interview Podcasts from the Public Media Journalists Association. The awards recognize the best work in public media journalism from across the country.
Latest Episodes
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A listener email prompts us to try to get a handle on Irish spellings and pronunciations. It doesn't go well! -
What happens when you remove an entire verb from the English language? Chaos! Well, not quite. But it used to cause Kathy quite a bit of consternation. Also: we try to nail down the correct spellings of various grunts and murmurs. -
We tackle a few listener emails about some unusual pet peeves, including people tacking an extra sound on the end of the word "height," and another wondering why people say they want to "try and" do something. -
We'll dive into some common mistakes and pet peeves we have regarding the literary world, and then Kathy and Ross challenge Fletcher to another round of "Related... Or NOT??" -
Pet peeves, grammar groaners, and other language catastrophes are on the agenda this week, as we come up with a rock-solid rule grammatical rule that no one will ever question or disagree with.
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Homonyms, synonyms, antonyms... we'll look at some "wordly" similarities and differences, and explore the vague space in between.
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We'll look at the surprising origins of some common summer-related words, phrases, and idioms. -
We'll look at some questionable language decisions the American Founding Fathers made when writing some of the country's most important documents.
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Collectable or collectible? Why is it a computer and not a computor? Or is it? We look at the confusing and sometimes (seemingly) chaotic world of suffixes.
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When we disagree about what a word means or how to pronounce it, how do we know who's right and who's wrong? And what if we're both right?
