Pronunciation Poise: February

Is saying “February” really that complicated? Well, yes. The name actually has a complex history and isn't as easy to say as many may think. Try giving it your best shot.

What is the most correct way to pronounce "February," in American English?

1. feb-ye-ree

2. feb-roo-air-ee

3. feb-yoo-air-ee

4. 2 and 3 equally correct.

And the correct answer is the fourth option, “2 and 3 equally correct.” In American English, the most common pronunciation for the month we’re in is “feb-yoo-air-ee,” but the older and more traditional pronunciation is “feb-roo-air-ee.” However, at this point, both pronunciations have become equally standard and are listed as such in most major dictionaries. In fact, the “feb-yoo-air-ee” pronunciation comes from the loss of the first “r” as a result of a linguistic process that has been occurring for over 150 years with that word now. The process is dissimilation, or the change or omission of one of two identical or closely related sounds in a word. Simply put, in the case of a word like “February,” we don’t like to have two "r's" so close to each other and will often drop one. As examples, consider the pronunciation, or nonpronunciation, of the “r” in these words: su(r)prise, pa(r)ticular, cate(r)pillar, entrep(r)eneur and interp(r)etation. These "r's" are commonly dropped, and neither language experts nor average English speakers raise much fuss over it. So whether you use the more common “feb-yoo-air-ee,” or the more traditional “feb-roo-air-ee,” you’re in good company, and you’re correct either way.