How do you pronounce...

[Rosebloom]

I spend so much time reading about jewelry but have few people that I speak with about it in real life. So, I've realized there's a handful of words I have no idea how to pronounce despite reading and writing about them regularly! Please, help me not sound like an idiot!

Here are a few that I'd love your help with:
Melee - melly? or may-lay?
Spinel - spi-NEL? or SPIN-el?
Mege (as in Leon) - MEY-zay?
Craeynest - CRAY-nest?
Paraiba - pear-A-ba?
Kelege (as in Jack) - ka-LEGE?

Thank you! And feel free to throw in others that you might not understand in case the experts here can help us all!

 

[Dee*Jay]

I can offer guidance on three...

Melee rhymes with belly

Mege is meZJAY ( this one is really hard to explain phonetically)

Jack kaLEGE

 

[VRBeauty]

Here's how how I understand these words should be pronounced - but bear in mind that I'm no expert either!


Melee - may*-lay (sort of an eh-ay mix - I assume it's "from the French")
Spinel - spi-NEL
Paraiba - pear-eye-ba (or more accurately, pear ah-ee ba, the middle syllable is a dipthong)


Personally, I'd like to know how to pronounce "culet." I'm pretty sure it's not pronounced the same as "cutlet," which is how my mind was seeing it for awhile!

 

[lin_ny]

Here's how how I understand these words should be pronounced - but bear in mind that I'm no expert either!


Melee - may*-lay (sort of an eh-ay mix - I assume it's "from the French")
Spinel - spi-NEL
Paraiba - pear-eye-ba (or more accurately, pear ah-ee ba, the middle syllable is a dipthong)


Personally, I'd like to know how to pronounce "culet." I'm pretty sure it's not pronounced the same as "cutlet," which is how my mind was seeing it for awhile!

To me, it's always been koo-let. Now I'm thinking I'm crazy too.

I just looked it up - apparently it's 'kyoo-let'!

 

[VRBeauty]

Here's how how I understand these words should be pronounced - but bear in mind that I'm no expert either!


Melee - may*-lay (sort of an eh-ay mix - I assume it's "from the French")
Spinel - spi-NEL
Paraiba - pear-eye-ba (or more accurately, pear ah-ee ba, the middle syllable is a dipthong)


Personally, I'd like to know how to pronounce "culet." I'm pretty sure it's not pronounced the same as "cutlet," which is how my mind was seeing it for awhile!

To me, it's always been koo-let. Now I'm thinking I'm crazy too.

I just looked it up - apparently it's 'kyoo-let'!

Obviously I got the wrong emotie there!

Thanks lin_ny - "kyoo-let" it is! How kewl!

 

[Rosebloom]

Thank you all for the tips! Seriously, I will feel so silly talking about "melly" (melee). I'm going to need to practice saying that with a straight face. And once early on I made the "cutlet" mistake. Tres embarrassing.

 

[JaneSmith]

I spend so much time reading about jewelry but have few people that I speak with about it in real life. So, I've realized there's a handful of words I have no idea how to pronounce despite reading and writing about them regularly! Please, help me not sound like an idiot!

Here are a few that I'd love your help with:
Melee - melly? or may-lay?
Spinel - spi-NEL? or SPIN-el?
Mege (as in Leon) - MEY-zay?
Craeynest - CRAY-nest?
Paraiba - pear-A-ba?
Kelege (as in Jack) - ka-LEGE?

Thank you! And feel free to throw in others that you might not understand in case the experts here can help us all!

Ha. I thought this was another tomayto/tomahto thing.

Melee - may-lay.
Spinel - spin-elle.
Paraiba - para-eeba. It's Portuguese.

I don't know the others.

 

[Deactivated member 42515]

Rosebloom, you always make the best threads. This is something I've always wanted to ask but was too much of a wussy!

There's a lot of times I thought I was saying the word right but then a vendor or jeweler says it totally different and I'm like huh.... Like culet... Or melee.

 

[KaeKae]

I think this is a great question, Rosebloom!

If I may ask a question about one of words? Is melee plural or singular? I ask because a friend, who once worked in a jewelry store, always refers to them as 'melens.' That would be pronounced like the fruit, melon, in the plural. I thought maybe she had been taught wrong, and the teacher (a manager or another salesperson, I assume) had confused the singular and plural, then added an s, if that makes any sense.

 

[Lew Lew]

I've read on here and on other jewelry forums that melee is pronounced "melly" (rhymes with belly, jelly, etc.), at least in the context of jewelry. Outside the context of jewelry it's pronounced "meh-lay" or "may-lay".

The word has french origins, and by French standards, yes, it *should be* pronounced "maylay".


However, since the entire industry refers to it as "melly (rhymes with belly)", that's become the accepted pronounciation.

https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/pronounce-melee.13705/

 

[JewelFreak]

Melee (may-lay is closest for an English speaker, yes, French, it means "mixed" or "jumble." How it came to be used for gems is a mystery, except it's a jumble of small cut stones?) Can't imagine calling it melly, maybe people do, I've never heard that. It is a collective noun, so singular. "I want melee on the shank." I'd also say, "I looked at a variety of colored melee." Unless you're talking about a mob rumble, I don't think it has a plural.

When people write "cutlet" I picture a pork chop! There is no T. Right, it's KYOO-let.

I say Para-ee-ba, don't know what others say. Yes, it's Portuguese -- anybody who speaks that language know if Brazilians elide the "i"?

--- Laurie

 

[Enerchi]

I was confused on the "CULL-et" vs "KYOO-let" pronunciation as well but after hearing 2 vendors say it the correct way - #2 - I've amended my ways!!

 

[Mayk]

I LOVE this thread. I'm sure people think I'm a hick redneck with my pronunciation of these terms!

I still have no idea reading this how to pronounce Leon's last name.

Note to self. You can't take the country outta the gurl!

 

[chrono]

Melee - may-lay.
Spinel - spin-elle.
Paraiba - para-eeba.

I say it this way too for all the above.

 

[missy]

Thank you all for the tips! Seriously, I will feel so silly talking about "melly" (melee). I'm going to need to practice saying that with a straight face. And once early on I made the "cutlet" mistake. Tres embarrassing.

Oh, I made this mistake too! I was embarrassed lol.

 

[LaraOnline]

I am totally egg-on-face.
I cannot imagine saying 'melly' like telly... and culet for me has been 'koolay' all these years lol

also loupe, which in my world has always been 'loopay'...
henceforthL 'loop'



I am ashamed

 

[iheartscience]

I spend so much time reading about jewelry but have few people that I speak with about it in real life. So, I've realized there's a handful of words I have no idea how to pronounce despite reading and writing about them regularly! Please, help me not sound like an idiot!

Here are a few that I'd love your help with:
Melee - melly? or may-lay? Melly! This has been asked a few times and that's how the jewelers pronounce it.
Spinel - spi-NEL? or SPIN-el? I believe spi-NEL.
Mege (as in Leon) - MEY-zay? Me-zjay
Craeynest - CRAY-nest? That's how I say it in my head!
Paraiba - pear-A-ba? I'm with you! ???
Kelege (as in Jack) - ka-LEGE? Also how I say it in my head!

Thank you! And feel free to throw in others that you might not understand in case the experts here can help us all!

 

[VRBeauty]

I've read on here and on other jewelry forums that melee is pronounced "melly" (rhymes with belly, jelly, etc.), at least in the context of jewelry. Outside the context of jewelry it's pronounced "meh-lay" or "may-lay".

The word has french origins, and by French standards, yes, it *should be* pronounced "maylay".


However, since the entire industry refers to it as "melly (rhymes with belly)", that's become the accepted pronounciation.

https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/pronounce-melee.13705/

"Melly as in belly"? MELLY????

Say it isn't so!

I'm not sure I could force myself to pronounce it that way!

There's an otherwise terrific little coffee shop near my office that sells a wonderful concoction that they call... cafe con chocolate. NOT cafe con cocolat, NOT coffee with chocolate, but cafe con chocolate. I asked for it that way once but felt like such a fool that I started asking for it as "coffee with chocolate." My Spanish is all but nonexistent, so asking for "cafe con cocolat" seemed like a real stretch since it wasn't actually offered that way on the board! Then one day a new employee who was taking my order gave me a puzzled look when I asked for my "coffee with chocolate." He asked me if I meant "cafe con chocolate." I told him "yes, but that's wrong linguistically, and I just can't bring myself to pronounce it that way." (I said it jokingly, but I still at the memory.)

He turned to the barista and called for a "cafe con."

Problem solved!

 

[VapidLapid]

Culet, i think, comes from the same root as culo, and is essentially the bottom, or posterior of the stone.
Pronounced Coo Lay, the ending suggests the diminutive, so little bottom, or cute little bottom of the stone.

Melly, or as it is pronounced on the lower east side, schmelly, is like a schmear of diamond, and is often served with whitefish, which I call wildflash.

 

[JewelFreak]

I'll take a schmear of diamond, and a bagel.

Merriam Webster re culet: "French, from diminutive of cul backside, from Latin culus; akin to Old Irish cúl: back.
First Known Use: 1678. Preferred pronunciation: kyü-lət, 2nd preference: kə-lət\

 

[VapidLapid]

Re: Melly

A friend of mine says it is may-lay like the peninsula, and that in some parts of the world, jewelery with a lot of pavé is said to be done in the Malasian style.

I think he may be making that up.

 

[rubybeth]

Melly like belly, really? I want a vendor or appraiser to tell us their opinion on that one. I pronounce it like 'MAY-lay' like you would pronounce it if you were talking about a mob of people. I think of it as both singular and plural. I took 3 years of high school French and some linguistics classes so can read the phonetic alphabet, but I could be wrong on this.

To me, culet is like queue-let (kyoo-let).

I have a spinel ring and I say spin-EL, with the emphasis on the EL since I once was complimented by someone who actually recognized what it was and she said it like that.

Paraiba I never gave much thought to, but this says 'para-EE-ba' - http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/paraiba You can use that feature for any of these words, if you type 'define _____' into Google, it usually gives you an audio pronounciation.

Also, it bugs the dickens out of me when people write 'loop' instead of loupe. I imagine them looking at a diamond through a little loop of yarn whenever I read that spelling. What can I say, I'm a knitter!

 

[aviastar]

Melly like belly, really? I want a vendor or appraiser to tell us their opinion on that one. I pronounce it like 'MAY-lay' like you would pronounce it if you were talking about a mob of people. I think of it as both singular and plural. I took 3 years of high school French and some linguistics classes so can read the phonetic alphabet, but I could be wrong on this.

To me, culet is like queue-let (kyoo-let).

I have a spinel ring and I say spin-EL, with the emphasis on the EL since I once was complimented by someone who actually recognized what it was and she said it like that.

Paraiba I never gave much thought to, but this says 'para-EE-ba' - http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/paraiba You can use that feature for any of these words, if you type 'define _____' into Google, it usually gives you an audio pronounciation.

Also, it bugs the dickens out of me when people write 'loop' instead of loupe. I imagine them looking at a diamond through a little loop of yarn whenever I read that spelling. What can I say, I'm a knitter!

I asked my jeweler about this a while ago, he says melly- cause they are gemstones not a bar brawl!

 

[mayerling]

I've read on here and on other jewelry forums that melee is pronounced "melly" (rhymes with belly, jelly, etc.), at least in the context of jewelry. Outside the context of jewelry it's pronounced "meh-lay" or "may-lay".

The word has french origins, and by French standards, yes, it *should be* pronounced "maylay".


However, since the entire industry refers to it as "melly (rhymes with belly)", that's become the accepted pronounciation.

https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/pronounce-melee.13705/

"Melly as in belly"? MELLY????

Say it isn't so!

I'm not sure I could force myself to pronounce it that way!

There's an otherwise terrific little coffee shop near my office that sells a wonderful concoction that they call... cafe con chocolate. NOT cafe con cocolat, NOT coffee with chocolate, but cafe con chocolate. I asked for it that way once but felt like such a fool that I started asking for it as "coffee with chocolate." My Spanish is all but nonexistent, so asking for "cafe con cocolat" seemed like a real stretch since it wasn't actually offered that way on the board! Then one day a new employee who was taking my order gave me a puzzled look when I asked for my "coffee with chocolate." He asked me if I meant "cafe con chocolate." I told him "yes, but that's wrong linguistically, and I just can't bring myself to pronounce it that way." (I said it jokingly, but I still at the memory.)

He turned to the barista and called for a "cafe con."

Problem solved!

I thought 'chocolate' is how a Spanish person would write and pronounce that piece of food, obviously a different pronunciation from that of an English speaker. I've never seen or heard of 'cocolat'.

 

[JaneSmith]

Culet, i think, comes from the same root as culo, and is essentially the bottom, or posterior of the stone.
Pronounced Coo Lay, the ending suggests the diminutive, so little bottom, or cute little bottom of the stone.

Melly, or as it is pronounced on the lower east side, schmelly, is like a schmear of diamond, and is often served with whitefish, which I call wildflash.

Culo is a slightly vulgar Spanish word for ass.

 

[GemFever]

Likey this thread I'm also one of those with memories of cutlets in the past...

I'm not sure I could bring myself to say melly for melee. According to dictionary.com, it's may-lay. I always say in my head me-layh. If I have to say it outloud, I'll say "those small stones"

Another pronunciation question -- what about Mahenge spinels? I always thought Mahenge like stoneheNGE. But I heard someone say Mahenge... like... hm. What word to compare it to. Well, the g like in gate, and e on the end like in... I dunno, the German Engel.

 

[VapidLapid]

muh hen gay

 

[Rosebloom]

This is fascinating. I'll try to compile all this later this evening (at the theater now!). Thanks for everyone's help!

 

[Haven]

Great thread!
When my jeweler told me melee is pronounced "MEL-ee" I thought he was joking at first!

 

[VRBeauty]

I thought 'chocolate' is how a Spanish person would write and pronounce that piece of food, obviously a different pronunciation from that of an English speaker. I've never seen or heard of 'cocolat'.

Oh my goodness - I looked it up, and you're absolutely right! "Cocolat" has its roots in Berkeley as it turns out - it's the name of a popular dessert shop going way back to my time there, and for some reason I associated it with Spanish!



If y'all don't mind, I think I'd better just excuse myself from these pronunciation threads. My batting average gets worse each time I post!