Anonymous
Post 07/20/2025 15:13     Subject: Foliage - how do you pronounce this word?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I'm taking a gardening course through a program in Illinois. We have had probably half a dozen professional botonists/horticulturalists/professors as speakers so far and all of them pronounce foliage as a two syllable word. Is this right? It's so trivial but this is driving me crazy.


How?


I’ve heard people say “fol yage,” merging the long E sound of the second syllable and the short I sound of the third syllable.


I say it sort of like that — so 2.5 -3 syllables.
Anonymous
Post 07/20/2025 12:21     Subject: Foliage - how do you pronounce this word?
Chip oat lee

CAR MEL

smdh
Anonymous
Post 07/20/2025 11:34     Subject: Foliage - how do you pronounce this word?
Foal-ee-idge
Is how I say it
Anonymous
Post 07/20/2025 10:36     Subject: Foliage - how do you pronounce this word?
2 syllables
Anonymous
Post 07/19/2025 08:27     Subject: Foliage - how do you pronounce this word?
Anonymous wrote:I'm from illinois; guilty as charged. It's /'fol yij/ for me. Rhymes with verbiage, cabbage, marriage. I also say kahrmel.

For those who are bothered by the FOILage pronunciation, maybe remembering it shares roots with gold foil will be curb that angst a bit. (Still wrong)

“Marriage” is a good example of a word that should be 3 syllables but pronounced with 2 by the vast majority of Americans. Not that many people are going to be saying “verbiage”, but I’ve only heard it pronounced verb-ee-yij.
Anonymous
Post 07/19/2025 08:15     Subject: Foliage - how do you pronounce this word?
People here say foal-idge. I grew up saying it with three syllables.
Anonymous
Post 07/19/2025 08:07     Subject: Re:Foliage - how do you pronounce this word?
This is relevant: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=vrlhM7HzJc0

From The Simpsons
Anonymous
Post 07/19/2025 07:50     Subject: Foliage - how do you pronounce this word?
Anonymous wrote:As a midwesterner, I’d really love for you to ask the speakers to pronounce “caramel” and report back here.


I can’t stand it when people drop the second a.
It’s not Mt Carmel. It’s care-uh-mel!

Syrup drives me nuts too- it’s seee-rup not sir-rup
Anonymous
Post 07/19/2025 07:49     Subject: Re:Foliage - how do you pronounce this word?
Anonymous wrote:Foil idge


No
Anonymous
Post 07/19/2025 07:48     Subject: Re:Foliage - how do you pronounce this word?
Anonymous wrote:Foal eee udge


+1
Anonymous
Post 07/19/2025 07:44     Subject: Foliage - how do you pronounce this word?
Foal-lee-edge
Anonymous
Post 07/19/2025 07:43     Subject: Foliage - how do you pronounce this word?
3 syllables. VA born and raised.
Anonymous
Post 07/18/2025 20:18     Subject: Re:Foliage - how do you pronounce this word?
Anonymous wrote:"leaves"


This.
With a Joe Pesci accent.
Anonymous
Post 07/18/2025 19:02     Subject: Foliage - how do you pronounce this word?
foe-lee-idge