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Even locals get tripped up by these tongue twisters<\/p>\nWe have a fair few pronunciation pitfalls in our regionEven locals get tripped up by these tongue twisters<\/p>\n
There’s nothing quite like the panic of staring at a road sign and having no idea how to pronounce it – and even the Midlands has it’s fair share of linguistic minefields.<\/p>\n
Not only can they be a trap for outsiders, but let\u2019s be honest, plenty of us locals are guilty of butchering these names too.<\/p>\n
From fiercely debated town names to silent letters that completely defy logic, our region is packed with place names which look one way but sound another.<\/p>\n
We’ve listed the biggest pronunciation puzzles the Midlands has to offer.<\/p>\n
READ MORE: <\/strong>How Birmingham gang plotted horrific shooting of dad on school run<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Caldmore<\/strong><\/p>\n One of our all time favourites, a true masterclass in deception. This is pronounced ‘karma’. Honestly, just trust us.<\/p>\n Weoley Castle<\/strong><\/p>\n Don’t let the spelling fool you. Think of a bike stunt or a bin – it’s ‘wheelie’.<\/p>\n Wilnecote<\/strong><\/p>\n A head scratcher. You might think ‘wilncut’ but apparently locals say ‘wincut’. Tamworth<\/a> folk, please explain.<\/p>\n Nechells<\/strong><\/p>\n Don’t let the spelling trick you into thinking of the Seychelles. It’s not ‘neeshells’, it’s ‘neechuls’.<\/p>\n Belvoir Road<\/strong><\/p>\n One from our neighbours in Burton. Logic might tell you it’s ‘bell-vwah’ but you’re not even close. This one’s beaver, like the animal. Really, it is.<\/p>\n Wednesbury<\/strong><\/p>\n Don’t overcomplicate this (yes, we’re talking to our friends across the pond). If you can pronounce Wednesday, it’s simple – it’s ‘wens-bree’.<\/p>\n Alvechurch<\/strong><\/p>\n Pretty sure some train announcements destroy this one. There aren’t three syllables, it’s just ‘alv-church’.<\/p>\n Bordesley Green<\/strong><\/p>\n Another syllable trap here, it’s shorter on the tongue. This one’s pronounced ‘bords-lee’ not ‘bor-des-lee.<\/p>\n Shrewsbury<\/strong><\/p>\n The ultimate Midlands pronunciation test. Are you Team ‘shroos-bury’ or Team ‘shrows-bury’? Depending on who you ask, both (or neither) are correct.<\/p>\n Smethwick<\/strong><\/p>\n Pronouncing the ‘w’ is the quickest way to reveal you’re not from around here. Drop it to get ‘smeth-ick’.<\/p>\n Brewood<\/strong><\/p>\n This is a trap, do not fall for it. In South Staffordshire, we say ‘brood’.<\/p>\n Rowley Regis<\/strong><\/p>\n Think ‘row’, rhyming with cow, not low. As for the second part, it’s ‘re-juss’. Put it together and you get ‘row-lee ree-juss’.<\/p>\n Giggetty Lane<\/strong><\/p>\n A wonderful one from Wombourne. Think of doing a ‘jig’ rather than going to a ‘gig’ so it’s ‘jiggetty’.<\/p>\n Tettenhall<\/strong><\/p>\n Why use three syllables when two will do? Let’s condense this right down. In Wolverhampton, this one’s ‘tet-nul’.<\/p>\n Billesley<\/strong><\/p>\n This isn’t the time to articulate every letter. Skip the middle vowel entirely. It’s not ‘bill-es-lee’, it\u2019s a snappy ‘bills-lee’.<\/p>\n Cradley Heath<\/strong><\/p>\n An important one in the Black Country. Think of a baby’s cradle with this one. Avoid the trap of ‘crad-lee’, it’s ‘crayd-lee’.<\/p>\n Great Wyrley<\/strong><\/p>\n A stumbling block for many. Don’t get this wrong by saying ‘wire-lee’ instead of ‘wurl-lee’.<\/p>\n Halfpenny Green<\/strong><\/p>\n A South Staffordshire puzzle. Locals say ‘hayp-knee’, although we’ve also heard ‘ha’penny’.<\/p>\n Rugeley<\/strong><\/p>\n You’ve got a 50\/50 chance of getting this right. Depending on who you ask (and perhaps how old they are), you’ll hear ‘rouge-lee’ or ‘rudge-lee’.<\/p>\n Moseley<\/strong><\/p>\n Think of mowing the grass and combine it was a ‘z’ sound – you get the correct pronunciation of ‘mowz-lee’. Definitely not ‘moss-lee’.<\/p>\n Seisdon<\/strong><\/p>\n Don’t let the spelling trick you into saying ‘size-don’ when you’re in South Staffordshire. Think of the word ‘seize’ (as in seizing the day) and you will get ‘seize-don’.<\/p>\n Wightwick<\/strong><\/p>\n A classic trap which might trick you into saying ‘white-wick’. This Wolverhampton neighbourhood is ‘wit-tik’.<\/p>\n Walsall<\/strong><\/p>\n Think of the Polish capital Warsaw. Locally, we skip the first ‘l’ sound and say ‘war-sawl’.<\/p>\n Hednesford<\/strong><\/p>\n If you are pronouncing the ‘d’, you’ve already failed. The ‘d’ and second ‘e’ are silent, making ‘hens-fud’.<\/p>\n Aldridge<\/strong><\/p>\n Don’t think of the name ‘Al’ (or the Paul Simon song). It’s always ‘all-dridge’.<\/p>\n Knowle<\/strong><\/p>\n You probably know this one already, right? The first letter is strictly for show. It’s ‘nole’.<\/p>\n Walmley<\/strong><\/p>\n A simpler one from Sutton Coldfield<\/a>. It sounds exactly like the word warmly.<\/p>\n Styvechale\/Stivichall<\/strong><\/p>\n Two accepted spellings for this place in Coventry. However you write it, don’t let that rogue ‘v’ trip you up when you say it. It’s ‘sty-chel’ or ‘sty-chal’.<\/p>\n Shenstone<\/strong><\/p>\n Don’t pronounce the ‘stone’ like a rock. In true Midlands fashion, soften the ending so it’s simply ‘shen-stun’.<\/p>\n Coseley<\/strong><\/p>\n Lengthen the first vowel to make ‘oh’ and add a ‘z’ sound too. We say ‘cohz-lee’ round here.<\/p>\n Patshull<\/strong><\/p>\n The ‘h’ is purely decorative. It’s ‘pat-sull’ not ‘pat-shull’ for this South Staffordshire village.<\/p>\n Wythall<\/strong><\/p>\n Don’t let that ‘y’ throw you off. We say ‘with-all’, nice and simple.<\/p>\n Gnosall<\/strong><\/p>\n A Staffordshire village with a silent ‘g’. This is ‘no-sawl’ and definitely doesn’t sound like ‘nozzle’.<\/p>\n Leominster<\/strong><\/p>\n The spelling looks fancy but it’s easier than you think. Crossing the border into Herefordshire, you need to say ‘lem-ster’.<\/p>\n Alcester<\/strong><\/p>\n Smooth this one right down when you’re in Warwickshire<\/a> to ‘ullster’.<\/p>\n Worcester<\/strong><\/p>\n An easy one for us locals but a nightmare for some tourists. It’s ‘wusster’.<\/p>\n Trysull<\/strong><\/p>\n