There are very few things that can get my blood boiling more than the mispronunciation of words. I know that we all do it. It’s hard to know how something should be pronounced if you have only read the word. There are words that I may never be able to say in public. I positively cannot get my mouth around “Ucluelet.” I went in circles trying to purchase a copy of Crime and Punishment from a used book seller because I was too embarrassed to say the author’s name aloud. But for some words, I really don’t think that there is much excuse.

Espresso; a lovely sounding word; breathy and steamy. I might even call it an onomatopoeia. (My son Liam just finished an English assignment on this grammar term. I don’t usually go around looking for onomatopoetic words.) Do you see any “X” in “espresso”? So why do people keep trying to put one there.

Espresso is a beverage that is prepared in a defined manner. The word is from the Italian esprimere, meaning “to press out.” The definition of espresso as laid down by the Speciality Coffee Association of America is, “... a 45ml beverage prepared from 7-9 grams of coffee through which clean water of 88-92C has been forced at 9-10 atmospheres of pressure, where the grind of the coffee has made the brewing flow time approximately 22-28 seconds.” How is that for specific! 

Espresso is not a particular grind or roast of bean, nor is it a defined flavour. It is the end-product of this particular procedure solely. It is only by experimentation that you can find just the right coffee grind and roast for a particular clientele. True Italians will drink their espresso so thick and strong that I’m sure it could strip paint. They take their brew with lots of lemon and sugar. North American coffee shops have developed blends that are a little less abrasive for our weaker tummies.

Of course, in Canada, very few people actually enjoy espresso neat. We have managed to come up with a blackboard-full of alternatives. Most of us need to have steamed milk added in large quantities in order not to run for the Tums. And of course, for the lactose intolerant, there is soy milk.

I am sure that the error in pronunciation is an honest one. (I am trying to be generous here.) People just think that the beverage is being expressed from the grounds by the hot water, hence the pronunciation “expresso.” Now all together say: esssss-spressssss-oh. Doesn’t that sound better?

I have just recently come across a marvelous web site, www.m-w.com It is the Miriam-Webster Dictionary site, and it offers an audio pronunciation for most words. I still can’t say Dostoyevski but I do know how it should sound.