Things that people say that make them sound too pretentious

[Anonymous]

I'm from East Asia. Even though English is my second language, I have a bigger vocabulary than 90% of native-born Americans I encounter. To have my friends tell me that they think I'm pretentious simply for the fact that I use words like "nadir" and "gossamer" is truly amusing and eye-opening.

#sorrynotsorry

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't think most of these examples qualify as pretentious.

I think it's pretentious when people are speaking English and suddenly pronounce a French or Spanish word like a native speaker. Or if they have a name like Suzanne and insist that you pronounce it "SuzAHN"

Pak EEE stahn

Alex Trebek (Jeopardy) does this all the time and my husband and I always groan. He *has* to pronounce any foreign word with a flamboyant accent, just so the audience knows how intelligent he is.

See this kind of thing would never occur to me that people are taking personally. To be fair, he is Canadian and this is a common thing there. When you are more well travelled or grow up surrounded by various nationalities and languages it becomes second nature to pronounce things correctly and you don't do it to piss people off, you do it because that is how the words are pronounced. When people don't pronounce words correctly (eg EYE-RACK instead of Iraq) that is when you get made fun of like "I'm going to pronounce your FOREIGN words the 'MERICAN way!"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm from East Asia. Even though English is my second language, I have a bigger vocabulary than 90% of native-born Americans I encounter. To have my friends tell me that they think I'm pretentious simply for the fact that I use words like "nadir" and "gossamer" is truly amusing and eye-opening.

#sorrynotsorry

That's probably just because in casual conversation, there is usually a better word than those two. You sound like you talk like a twat or aren't as fluent as you think.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm from East Asia. Even though English is my second language, I have a bigger vocabulary than 90% of native-born Americans I encounter. To have my friends tell me that they think I'm pretentious simply for the fact that I use words like "nadir" and "gossamer" is truly amusing and eye-opening.

#sorrynotsorry

That's probably just because in casual conversation, there is usually a better word than those two. You sound like you talk like a twat or aren't as fluent as you think.

Agree! Using big words that your listener may not know it usually the domain of the uneducated with the "word of the day" calendar in this country. I feel bad for your friends because you sound like a judgmental b*tch!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm from East Asia. Even though English is my second language, I have a bigger vocabulary than 90% of native-born Americans I encounter. To have my friends tell me that they think I'm pretentious simply for the fact that I use words like "nadir" and "gossamer" is truly amusing and eye-opening.

#sorrynotsorry

We just say lowest and fine.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't think most of these examples qualify as pretentious.

I think it's pretentious when people are speaking English and suddenly pronounce a French or Spanish word like a native speaker. Or if they have a name like Suzanne and insist that you pronounce it "SuzAHN"

Alex Trebek!

Lol I knew this white, American born guy from Nebraska named Martin who insisted
On being called marteeen

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm from East Asia. Even though English is my second language, I have a bigger vocabulary than 90% of native-born Americans I encounter. To have my friends tell me that they think I'm pretentious simply for the fact that I use words like "nadir" and "gossamer" is truly amusing and eye-opening.

#sorrynotsorry

I would LOVE being friends with you - I'd always be making a mental note of words to look up and learn to use properly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My pretentious (also charming and eccentric southern) grandmother called her sideboard a hunt board. But she was really into steeple chasing and so would invite the "hunt" back to the house where the buffet was set on the hunt board.

I didn't realize this would be perceived as pretentious until I met people who didn't have grandmothers who were into horses.

I love that. Makes me think of camilla duchess of Cornwall.

But a hunt board is different than a sideboard. The hunt board has longer legs because it goes outside (the servants carry it, presumably) and riders get refreshments from it while still on horseback (hence the need for it to be taller).

My Midwestern mom called our sideboard a buffet. When I was shopping online, I found that the thing I wanted was often referred to as an enfilade.

Love,
Someone who had to repress a snicker when a person at a party actually asked me "Do you ride?" I thought that line only existed in jokes.

We have another winner for most pretentious post!

True about the Hunt board - it was carried outsie to be used by those still on horseback and is significantly taller than a normal sideboard. Its not prententious to know this. People acquire knoledge in many ways and knwoing things dioesnt make you prententious. How you say it may, acting as if everyone shuld know that is obnoxious, bu tknowing facts in and of themselves is not pretentious.

As for someone asking "do you ride," there is nothing prententious about it. If you ride, you ride. I dont ride but all kinds of folks ride and its a perfectly harmless question..

PP with the horsey grandmother here- you are right I was not into the horses or the events, but I loved her hunt board because it made the best fort with those longer legs. Now that I think about it there was a sideboard and a china cabinet in that furniture set.

I appreciate the horse event tips as it looks like my daughter inherited the horse bug. And now I am know to ask people if they ride so that I can pick their brains about the many things I do not know. I haven't really met any pretentious horse people though. They are just very precise about their sport.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm from East Asia. Even though English is my second language, I have a bigger vocabulary than 90% of native-born Americans I encounter. To have my friends tell me that they think I'm pretentious simply for the fact that I use words like "nadir" and "gossamer" is truly amusing and eye-opening.

#sorrynotsorry

That's probably just because in casual conversation, there is usually a better word than those two. You sound like you talk like a twat or aren't as fluent as you think.

Agree! Using big words that your listener may not know it usually the domain of the uneducated with the "word of the day" calendar in this country. I feel bad for your friends because you sound like a judgmental b*tch!

+1. People that are educated don't use 10-cent words when 5-cent words will do the trick. Clarity and conciseness are more important than how big your vocabulary is.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My pretentious (also charming and eccentric southern) grandmother called her sideboard a hunt board. But she was really into steeple chasing and so would invite the "hunt" back to the house where the buffet was set on the hunt board.

I didn't realize this would be perceived as pretentious until I met people who didn't have grandmothers who were into horses.

I love that. Makes me think of camilla duchess of Cornwall.

But a hunt board is different than a sideboard. The hunt board has longer legs because it goes outside (the servants carry it, presumably) and riders get refreshments from it while still on horseback (hence the need for it to be taller).

My Midwestern mom called our sideboard a buffet. When I was shopping online, I found that the thing I wanted was often referred to as an enfilade.

Love,
Someone who had to repress a snicker when a person at a party actually asked me "Do you ride?" I thought that line only existed in jokes.

We have another winner for most pretentious post!

True about the Hunt board - it was carried outsie to be used by those still on horseback and is significantly taller than a normal sideboard. Its not prententious to know this. People acquire knoledge in many ways and knwoing things dioesnt make you prententious. How you say it may, acting as if everyone shuld know that is obnoxious, bu tknowing facts in and of themselves is not pretentious.

As for someone asking "do you ride," there is nothing prententious about it. If you ride, you ride. I dont ride but all kinds of folks ride and its a perfectly harmless question..

PP with the horsey grandmother here- you are right I was not into the horses or the events, but I loved her hunt board because it made the best fort with those longer legs. Now that I think about it there was a sideboard and a china cabinet in that furniture set.

I appreciate the horse event tips as it looks like my daughter inherited the horse bug. And now I am know to ask people if they ride so that I can pick their brains about the many things I do not know. I haven't really met any pretentious horse people though. They are just very precise about their sport.

The DCUM equivalent for horses is the Chronicle of the Horse forums. Just explain you are new and trying to learn, or like DCUM they will eat you alive. If you are genuinely looking for help, there is a lot of knowledge on that board. Also some crazies and Armchair Quarterbacks, but generally you can get pretty solid advice. Horses can be expensive but they are well worth it...if your DD is mucking stalls in a barn, she will automatically learn to be more down to earth than 99% of kids. Horse people can't be that pretentious because we spend too many hours per day smelling like horse to get above ourselves!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm from East Asia. Even though English is my second language, I have a bigger vocabulary than 90% of native-born Americans I encounter. To have my friends tell me that they think I'm pretentious simply for the fact that I use words like "nadir" and "gossamer" is truly amusing and eye-opening.

#sorrynotsorry

I'm a US-born native speaker of American English, and I'm sure that I've used "nadir" in regular conversation. But I doubt that I've ever used "gossamer" in regular conversation. In fact I can't think of any regular conversation I would have where "gossamer" would come up. But maybe you talk more about, I don't know, fine fabrics than I do? Or you're a fan of cirrus clouds?

[Anonymous]

My favorite are the people who you have known for years and were called "Kathy" and now insist on Kathleen (even though you've been calling them Kathy for twenty years or more) or the likes...Bob becomes "Robert" etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My favorite are the people who you have known for years and were called "Kathy" and now insist on Kathleen (even though you've been calling them Kathy for twenty years or more) or the likes...Bob becomes "Robert" etc.

Maybe they've hated "Kathy" for 20 years, and they finally decided that enough was enough.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm from East Asia. Even though English is my second language, I have a bigger vocabulary than 90% of native-born Americans I encounter. To have my friends tell me that they think I'm pretentious simply for the fact that I use words like "nadir" and "gossamer" is truly amusing and eye-opening.

#sorrynotsorry

I'm a US-born native speaker of American English, and I'm sure that I've used "nadir" in regular conversation. But I doubt that I've ever used "gossamer" in regular conversation. In fact I can't think of any regular conversation I would have where "gossamer" would come up. But maybe you talk more about, I don't know, fine fabrics than I do? Or you're a fan of cirrus clouds?

It was just one of those things
One of those crazy old things
A trip to the moon on gossamer wings . . .

[Anonymous]

"Meet me at the Member's bar at the Union Club, the Knick is under construction. "