Language Test: Answer Key

From this test.


7. Which choice below regarding the English word "forte" (as in "I'm not so good at driving; that's not my forte") best sums up how it should be pronounced?

D is the best answer, believe it or not. The long explanation on it might have been a giveaway, but yes, the original pronunciation sounded more like "for," because it's from the French phrase "pas mon fort." Officially, the pronunciation of "forte" in English is "fort," but "for-TAY" and "FOR-tay" are both accepted and understood ways to express a strength of yours by way of this phrase that got butchered on its journey into English. I'm also aware that "forte," pronounced "FOR-tay," is really Italian for "loud," and it's well-known because it's used in musical dynamics when reading sheet music.

I personally avoid using the expression because I don't want to hear whining about how it should be "fort" from pedants and I don't want to get confused faces from Joe Mama when they think I should be pronouncing it with two syllables.

Look it up in various dictionaries and you may see the "fort" pronunication and/or two-syllable variants, but feel free to Google it to see how much disagreement there is. You'll understand why D is the best answer, I think.

My source on this is here if you'd like another person's thoughts on it.


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