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Tom Scott | It’s pronounced GIF. @TomScottGo | Uploaded 3 years ago | Updated 12 hours ago
Is there a "right" way to pronounce it? And why is it so complicated? β€’
Written with Molly Ruhl and Gretchen McCulloch. Gretchen's podcast has an episode all about this: lingthusiasm.com/post/180153994181/lingthusiasm-episode-26-why-do-c-and-g-come-in

Gretchen's book BECAUSE INTERNET, all about the evolution of internet language, is available:
πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ US: amzn.to/30tLpjT
πŸ‡¨πŸ‡¦ CA: amzn.to/2JsTYWH
πŸ‡¬πŸ‡§ UK: amzn.to/31K8eRD

(Those are affiliate links that give a commission to me or Gretchen, depending on country!)

Graphics by William Marler: wmad.co.uk
Audio mix by Graham Haerther: haerther.net

REFERENCES:

Buck, S. 2014. 70% of People Worldwide Pronounce 'GIF' With a Hard 'G'. mashable.com/2014/10/21/mispronounced-words-tech
O'Leary, A. (2013, May 21). An Honor for the Creator of the GIF. New York Times. Retrieved from bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/05/21/an-honor-for-the-creator-of-the-gif
Olsen, S. The Gif Pronunciation Page. web.archive.org/web/20200225141100/olsenhome.com/gif
Baio, A. 2014. β€˜JIF’ Is the Format. β€˜GIF’ Is the Culture. medium.com/message/jif-is-the-format-gif-is-the-culture-af8673796c44
McCulloch, G. 2015. Why the pronunciation of gif really can go either way. mentalfloss.com/article/69147/why-pronunciation-gif-really-can-go-either-way
Dow, M. 2020. It's 'gif and gif': The english lexicon goes both ways. mcdowlinguist.github.io/2020/08/31/gif-pronunciation.html

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It’s pronounced GIF.This tiny railroad across the sea has an important jobHill Hill Hill Hill, debunked, debunkedTen years ago, I predicted 2022. Did I get it right?Why The Web Is Such A MessHigh explosives doesnt just mean bigger boomNo-one is going to save CovehitheGrizzly bear GoPro selfie: raw unedited footageDISCONNECTED with Alec of Technology Connections, Sally Le Page, and Arun from mrwhosethebossWould you swim in power plant wastewater?Flying here is (surprisingly) legalThese chickens save lives.

It’s pronounced GIF. @TomScottGo

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