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Author Topic: How to pronounce "vs."  (Read 7557 times)

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Offline inthesuburbs

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How to pronounce "vs."
« on: October 11, 2008, 05:13:05 PM »
First, I heard it from a high school kid at the coffee shop, who said her homecoming game would be "verse" the rival school.

Then I heard it from a college kid doing a sports broadcast. He was going to watch the "Reds verse the Dodgers."

And this week, I heard it from a young reporter in our news department, in a podcast, when he referred to the debate of "Palin verse Biden."

That's how they said it. Not versus, but verse. Sure, that's how it's abbreviated, but not how it's pronounced.

As nicely as I could, I asked the reporter to re-record the podcast, and sent him to the Web for a pronunciation:

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/versus

My high school football coach was the Latin teacher, and a good one. I guess we're a long way from those days.

Feeling old...




« Last Edit: October 11, 2008, 05:17:20 PM by inthesuburbs »
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Overrated

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Re: How to pronounce "vs."
« Reply #1 on: October 11, 2008, 05:16:15 PM »
You're obviously well-versused in this matter.
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Offline KYSportsWriter

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Re: How to pronounce "vs."
« Reply #2 on: October 11, 2008, 07:39:51 PM »
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Offline shockey

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Re: How to pronounce "vs."
« Reply #3 on: October 11, 2008, 07:52:20 PM »
it's "versus." but the vernacular of youth has seen it evolve to where kids ask, "who are they 'versing?'" as if it's a verb.
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Offline Magnum

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Re: How to pronounce "vs."
« Reply #4 on: October 11, 2008, 07:54:12 PM »
You mean it's not pronounced vizz?
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Offline Rockbottom

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Re: How to pronounce "vs."
« Reply #5 on: October 11, 2008, 07:57:17 PM »
Against.

:)

rb
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Offline Bruce Leroy

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Re: How to pronounce "vs."
« Reply #6 on: October 12, 2008, 01:28:39 AM »
I didn't know this was a big deal. The word is versus, but people shorten it when they say it. Just like it can be shortened from versus to vs. in print.
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Offline SF_Express

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Re: How to pronounce "vs."
« Reply #7 on: October 12, 2008, 08:39:30 AM »
I know a lot of people who say "verse."

"versus" is right ... but George Bush still says "nucular" ... so whatever....
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Offline txsportsscribe

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Re: How to pronounce "vs."
« Reply #8 on: October 12, 2008, 08:54:03 AM »
i've never heard anyone say it as "verse."
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Offline spaceman

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Re: How to pronounce "vs."
« Reply #9 on: October 12, 2008, 09:05:22 AM »
It's versus.  Would you pronounce the abbreviation of "et cetera" differently, just because it's abbreviated?
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Offline Some Guy

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Re: How to pronounce "vs."
« Reply #10 on: October 12, 2008, 10:05:24 AM »
Quote from: txsportsscribe on October 12, 2008, 08:54:03 AM
i've never heard anyone say it as "verse."

Really? Seems to be the popular way kids pronounce it in my neck of the woods ... in texas.

It's not that they're shortening it ... they just think the word is "verse." Ask 100 kids to spell out the abbreviation "vs." and I guarantee 90 of them write "verse."
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shotglass

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Re: How to pronounce "vs."
« Reply #11 on: October 12, 2008, 12:32:39 PM »
Of course, I become irritated at the suggestion that we adjust the English language by the way the "kids are using it."

The "kids" can learn the right way.
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Offline imjustagirl

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Re: How to pronounce "vs."
« Reply #12 on: October 12, 2008, 01:02:51 PM »
I also have never heard of this pronunciation.
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Offline JakeandElwood

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Re: How to pronounce "vs."
« Reply #13 on: October 12, 2008, 01:10:15 PM »
Quote from: imjustagirl on October 12, 2008, 01:02:51 PM
I also have never heard of this pronunciation.

yep.
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Offline Johnny Dangerously

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Re: How to pronounce "vs."
« Reply #14 on: October 12, 2008, 01:14:29 PM »
I have. And yeah, it's usually from kids. You know how they love to shorten things to make them sound cool.

Late.
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Offline joe_schmoe

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Re: How to pronounce "vs."
« Reply #15 on: October 12, 2008, 02:07:05 PM »
Texas is a big state. I ain't ever heard "verse" used in my part of the state either.
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Offline Dyno

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Re: How to pronounce "vs."
« Reply #16 on: October 12, 2008, 02:12:41 PM »
I've heard it.  I hate it.  I'm glad you said something.
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Offline KG

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Re: How to pronounce "vs."
« Reply #17 on: October 12, 2008, 06:25:21 PM »
My niece asked me to verse her on a video game.
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Offline BB Bobcat

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Re: How to pronounce "vs."
« Reply #18 on: October 12, 2008, 06:52:23 PM »
a radio guy here used to say verse and it drove me nuts. I've never said verse.
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Offline Point of Order

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Re: How to pronounce "vs."
« Reply #19 on: October 12, 2008, 06:59:21 PM »
My friend used "verse" in a moot court competition last year and one of the professor/judges blasted him for it.  No one really likes her, though.
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Offline spaceman

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Re: How to pronounce "vs."
« Reply #20 on: October 12, 2008, 10:20:43 PM »
she deserved it
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markvid

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Re: How to pronounce "vs."
« Reply #21 on: October 13, 2008, 05:10:53 AM »
I used to pronounce it OLN.
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Online Shoeless Joe

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Re: How to pronounce "vs."
« Reply #22 on: October 13, 2008, 05:58:51 AM »
It's not just kids. They hear it from TV talking heads all the time. It drives me nuts. There is one guy on Fox Soccer Channel that always says "verse" -- and he's not even British.
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Offline Diabeetus

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Re: How to pronounce "vs."
« Reply #23 on: October 13, 2008, 08:03:23 AM »
Never heard it.

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Offline Joe Williams

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Re: How to pronounce "vs."
« Reply #24 on: October 13, 2008, 08:11:32 AM »
Quote from: Point of Order on October 12, 2008, 06:59:21 PM
My friend used "verse" in a moot court competition last year and one of the professor/judges blasted him for it.  No one really likes her, though.

I'm no lawyer and I don't play one on TV. But I do watch some of them on TV. Don't they always shorten the pronunciation of "vs." to "vee?" As in "Roe vee Wade?"

If that's not only acceptable but proper and lawyerly, then I can't blame the "kids" for going with "verse." Hmmm... actually, I can. They should have shortened theirs to "vee" way ahead of the shysters, if coolness really mattered.
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