A fifth of Brits ‘never’ attempt to speak a country’s native language when going abroad, according to a new poll.
53% said they would rather point to something on a menu than risk the embarrassment of saying a word wrong.
The poll of 2,000 adults found that 30% often find themselves mispronouncing foreign words or phrases.
‘Gyros’, ‘tagliatelle’, and Vietnamese noodle soup ‘pho’ were the trickiest foods to pronounce.
While ‘rendezvous’, ‘faux pas’, and ‘pain au chocolat’ topped the list for most awkward-to-pronounce French words.
The study was commissioned by the bakery brand St Pierre to celebrate the launch of its new croissants.
A spokesperson said: ‘Mispronouncing foreign words is a relatable struggle for many of us. It’s a reminder of how diverse and rich languages truly are.’
The top 10 foreign words people found most difficult to pronounce are:
- Hygge
- Tzatziki
- Edamame
- Prosciutto
- Gyros
- Quinoa
- Foie gras
- Pho
- Gnocchi
- Tagliatelle
Though Brits may struggle with other languages while abroad, there’s one term they excel at – beer.
Earlier this year, research found the average UK adult can order a beer in three different languages, while 10% of us can sort out a pint in five or more tongues.
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That’s pretty impressive, but did we ever doubt the British and their beer?
The survey in question featured 75,000 Amazon workers in the UK, as part of the Chatterbox series, which acts as a barometer on the views of citizens of today.
In terms of where we stumble, the most commonly-confused words were found to be ‘fizzy’ and ‘still’, with 38% of Brits making an error there.
‘Left’ and ‘right’ also puzzled 27%, while ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ tripped up a quarter. Hey, at least we’re polite.
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