Never Mispronounce These 12 Town Names In Front Of An Oklahoman

If you’re not from around here, there may be some local vocabulary you need to familiarize yourself with (unless you want the wrath of angry Oklahomans). Many of our town names, rivers and lakes get mispronounced, and if you haven’t already found out, will get an Okie all riled up. Here are 12 words to never mispronounce in front of an Oklahoman.

Jimmy Emerson, DVM/Flickr

As one of the most mispronounced words from outsiders, the town of Miami, Oklahoma, is not pronounced like Miami, Florida. If you're still saying it like the city in Florida, here's how it's pronounced in the Sooner State - "My-AM-uh".

Granger Meador/Flickr

It could be a mountain range, trail, river or a business name. No matter which one you are referencing, it's pronounced "WAH-shu-tah".

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Caleb Long/Wikipedia

Just please don't say the sound "cow" in this word. The correct pronunciation is "Co-WEE-tuh".

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Stephanie Sarles/Flickr

Not only do people say this lake and town wrong, but they often misspell it too. The correct pronunciation is "You-FAW-luh".

Jimmy Emerson, DVM/Flickr

"Boy-s City" - Not like the capital of Idaho.

achilleisd.org

It's pronounced "A-chill-EE" so remember it's not like an Achilles heel.

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Jimmy Emerson, DVM/Flickr

It's a funky county name, so if you think you can remember it, here it is: "Pot-eh-wat-o-me".

Jimmy Emerson, DVM/Flickr

One way to remember it is "she" (meaning Carrie Underwood) is from here, so it's pronounced "Sheh-COH-tuh". It's not the Ch sound found in Cheerios, chiggers or chocolate.

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Jimmy Emerson, DVM/Flickr

An Okie from Muskogee would say it, "Mus-KOH-gee".

Robert Nunnally/Flickr

Whether you're talking about the town or the lake, say it like this: "Sky-uh-took".

Jimmy Emerson, DVM/Flickr

There's only one way to say it, "Ok-MUHL-gee". Nothing hard about this one.

Paul L. McCord Jr./Flickr

Yes, you say the "e" sound. Pronunciation is "Win-ee-wood".

Take a look at this humorous video of Californians trying to pronounce our city names in Oklahoma:

What pronunciation gives you the most trouble? I always had trouble with Miami when I first moved to Oklahoma.

It’s usually easy to spot a tourist in Oklahoma if they are butchering our town names, but there are a few other ways to spot them. Click here to find out more.