I often hear people say ‘Can I have an expresso please’ in the coffee queue. This just sounds wrong to me, and makes me angry inside, then I go home and take it out on my wife.

The question is, is ‘expresso’ wrong, or am I just being a pretentious middle-class knob?

yes to both

poppa – you are entirely correct and entitled to tut at them in a disparaging way

It’s Espresso.

But, if you are looking for a good coffee machine on Ebay then it’s worth searching for Expresso since there’s a few sales as that. These sales tend to be overlooked by most more knowledgeable buyers who correctly search of an Espresso machine and you can often pick up a bargain at the expense of the seller who can’t spell 🙂

As a society, I think we’re too tollerant. I say let ’em have it with both barrels.

But maybe that’s because I don’t like coffee.

I often hear people around me talk about “somethink”. I’m pretty certain they’re taking about “something”.

I just shake my closed hand in front of them, and tell them to smell the aroma. Always worked for Gareth Hunt.

Espresso as despite what people may think it was originally about speed not pressure.

I seem to hear a lot of people saying “pacific” instead of “specific”, are they truly that ignorant?

Don’t get me started on ‘lar tay’.

And I’m a southerner who likes putting in an extra r or two.

Blatantly instead of patently.

i have one of these Le Presso, great bit of kit !!

(i have no links with the provider just a satisfied customer, please delete if this breaks and rules or is offensive)

Ah I had a suspicion I was right, about the second part at least.

No one I know says ‘somethink’, I believe the correct pronunciation is ‘somefink’.

Ooh ooh ooh, another one I don’t like is the Australian pronunctiation of pasta:

Paaarsta!

Always worked for Gareth Hunt.

How come he’s dead now then ?

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c3y0CD2CoCs[/video]

1:14

(mild comic violence)

Americans saying “erbs” is my pet hate. They insist on spelling everything as it’s pronounced, so why can’t they pronounce ‘herbs’ as it’s spelt?

Nice one. My pet hate is “pacific” (an ocean) in place of “specific” (not an ocean).

Although somebody winds me up on purpose pronouncing “L’Occitane” as “Locksatane” which def makes me a middle class snob.

Apparently it’s a Bristol thing to randomly add the letter L to the end of words. Totally baffling…

[edit to go back on topic]

Expressol!

[/edit]

Well it depends where you are 😉
Expresso is french. Most likely the frenchisation of the italian word espresso.
So now (and that is going to really hurt me to admit) marc stands correct as the english language has imported the word from italian. It’s therefore espresso.

I think you should expresso espresso yourself better

I think the problem you have is queuing in a cafe to buy coffee.

Drink water or beer when out of the house during the day. Perfect espresso coffee can only be experienced at home.

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYi8lA9y_BY[/video]

Presumably using an espresso machine powered by feelings of smug self-satisfaction.

😉

And WTF is a laaaaaaaaaaaaaaaartaaaaaaaaaaaaay?

They insist on spelling everything as it’s pronounced

No, they don’t.

The differences in spelling date back to before there were dictionaries and therefore a definitive spelling on either side of the Atlantic. Webster came up with his dictionary in the US with what he felt was appropriate, and someone over here did the same independently.

Only the truly ignorant get sarky with Americans for differences like this, imagining things here have always been as they are now and they somehow distorted the ‘real’ thing.

Latte is Italian for milk, anyone care to enlighten us how the Italians pronounce it. Some where betwen Latty and Laah-tey I expect.

Pretty frigging ridiculous to argue over the correct English pronounciation of words that aren’t even English anyway. As if your bastardisation of Italian is somehow more worthy than anyone else’s.

Peasant!

Pheasant!

laaaaaartay + 1

Grrrr…

As if your bastardisation of Italian is somehow more worthy than anyone else’s.

Eh? It’s the bastardisation I’m complaining about. 🙄

@molgrips

Not getting sarky with anyone. You certainly seem to have your panties in a bunch though. Must be difficult being surrounded by the ‘truly ignorant’. That was sarky by the way.

okay, now i would like to check the work ‘schedule’ before the next meeting with my boss

is it pronunced ‘shed-ule’ or ‘sked-ule’?

i use shed-ule, maybe i should start using the word timetable instead…

ASK not axe. “I’ll just axe that bloke.” That’s a bit extreme is it not? Just question him a bit.

Shed-ule imo CP

ASK not axe

Or even wore arksk – it’s more difficult to say than ask FFS 😈

As for lartay – makes me want to kill a kitten.

Worst of the local ones here is breakfastses for the plural of breakfast.

I often hear people say ‘Can I have an expresso please’

Of course that’s wrong, it’s “can I get a skinny latte please?”

Expresso is french. Most likely the frenchisation of the italian word espresso.

And in France you can be super-pretentious and ask for “un express”.

Which is beside the point for me, as my morning coffee is served by

and I can barely speak, never mind specify what coffee I want.

for blutac, not as pretty mind:
aeropress

@ speechless DrJ – not surprised mate; that’s a LOT of make up !

People who can’t pronounce “Beaujolais” make my **** blood boil.

WTF are they doing drinking French wine when they can’t even speak French.

ristretto is where it’s at
espresso is for lazies

As long as you get a small strong cup of coffee does it really matter?

I tend to say “sommat” instead of “something”. I know I’m doing it.

Espresso.

BTW this is a very useful website for the pedantic git exacting writer: Common Errors in English – Online

Are we getting all uppity about regional dialects?

Lartey? Lat tey? Car sell/Cassle (castle)? GrASS/GrARSE.

i say something, gimme, and i’m sure many other things that would make plenty here cringe. i don’t care. i can correct myself fanks.

however, aluminum (pronounced the uk way but missing the second i) boils my urine, as does brought/bought, pacific is a bit annoying.

it all smacks a bit of ‘but, but, you are wrong, i had an education, i know’
parliament is another.

see, i’m doing it now.