'Nitch' OR 'Neesh'? Or something else?

Hi dude,

I say "neesh", because I believe it's a derivation of a French word.

And because I'm English

Steve

Well, since the word's origin is French, I would say "neesh" would be the proper pronunciation...

At some point I spent days researching this issue ( I am serious) and it seems like both pronunciations are correct, "NEESH" is mostly used in "proper English" when "Nitch" came much later and is only used in American English because pronouncing it the proper way was (is) too hard for Americans...

...

Alex

Steve above says it right..

It's neeeeeeeeeeeesh..



Peace

Jay

Yep, Steven's right on both counts.

1. It's a French word.
2. He's English.

But...

Most American's pronounce it "nitch", and if your dictionary has it that way, then go ahead and use it.

Now, there's another French word a lot of people get wrong.

Forte, as in "Internet marketing is his forte". Most people pronounce it as two distinct syllables: for-tay

In this usage that would be incorrect. It's one syllable and pronounced "fort".

I wonder how many people on either side of the pond get that one correct?

All the best,
Michael

hah... lol@ quiche Bev..

Oooh.. let's have quitch for dinner.. lol



Peace

Jay

This topic has come up a few times over the years. As has already been said, seems like the "proper English" folks say neesh, where the American folks say nitch. How you say it probably depends on your target market.

Which reminds me -- you could just say "market segment" or "segment of your market."

I pronounce it nitch.

And what about celtic?! Is it Seltic or Ketlic?

Is it the Boston Keltics?

Anyhow, I'm off to get some Superbowl Party tickets! My wife won't let me go to the Lingerie Bowl, so we'll hit one of the big parties instead. LOL

AL

This topic could go on forever.

For every example like niche/quiche, you could point out examples like bomb/tomb.

Similar spelling doesn't always mean there's a similar pronounciation.

Say it how you like.

To all of us who say "neesh", wouldn't we know what someone means if they say "nitch"? If so, then that's what counts.

Words communicate ideas, if those ideas are communicated then a disagreement on how a word is said becomes moot.

We all mispronounce some words, without ever knowing it, but in this case the reference dictionary Sagar's using says "nitch" is acceptable - so it's acceptable.

All the best,
Michael

NEEESSH

'Nitch' sounds like a nasty itch

In the UK: I'm going to put on a bathing suit and go to the biche.

In America: My ex-girlfriend was a real biche.

hmmm...

AL

Otk folkts.
Ift yout want to sayt niTTch, go aheadt andt sayt it

I believe in the original prononciation and will use "neesh" - I guess I don't like it when a word from another language is vandalized like that. If you are going to completely change the way it's pronounced, you might as well create you own word...

Well, looks like I'm going to go the "neesh" way from now on in my videos. For the videos where I've already done the "nitch" thing, let it be

Now to practice not pronouncing both ways in the SAME video!

Sagar

I've always used "neesh" up until getting involved with Internet Marketing. Because a huge portion of the target market is in the US, and because US IM'ers (big and small) almost always use "nitch" on video/audio content, I've decided that would be the best pronounciation to use in the IM world. To save confusion. Those who use "neesh" generally understand "nitch" - but not all those that use "nitch" realise straight away what a "neesh" is from my experience.

However, I will still spell things like "colour" as such, and "semi" without the "eye" at the end.

God, Not this old Chestnut again!

I thought this was settled a long time ago already..

Here's how it works...

Folks in the English speaking part of the world, pronounce it as "Neesh"

Folks in the American-English speaking part of the world, pronounce it as "Nitch"

You can go on all day about how this or that word is spelled or looks similar but is pronounced differently or it's native root. That matters not one jot.

The only thing that matters is which you are comfortable with and who you are marketing to.

You don't need to change your pronunciation just because you are marketing to a different market. Most folks are intelligent enough to realise that words are pronounced differently depending on the speakers culture.

Although I do occasionally get Emails pointing out that I have mispelled a word, such as "Through" instead of "Thru" or "Colour" instead of "Color".

I usually gently point out that. as a Brit, my spelling is based on my culture and education, not theirs.

I pronounce it Nick-Hee. Is that wrong? Can someone call me and tell me how to pronounce it? I didn't bother reading the previous posts.

:p

Yaga Yo !!

Heres what I think ...

I say Neeeesh .... The times I hear nitch is either if the speaker is from the USA or if it is a person that meets with American folk regular

Like when I have been to a seminar before it seem to be the UK peeps saying neesh

Just my thoughts

Dean

There's no "T" in "rich," either.

Anyhow, just to be different I will pronounce it "nee-shay" and that pronunciation belongs solely to me. I am filing the service mark application as we speak.

Everyone is hereby on notice: say "nee-shay" and prepare to be served.

I say it neesh, nitch just sounds so harsh and not right when I say it.

I'm English and say neesh

A couple of years ago I was in a conference in Florida and it took me quite a while to figure out what the American presenter meant when he mentioned "nitch market"!

Katie

When I started with Internet Marketing and I
saw that word...

I'm Chinese and I say "Huh? Shen Mer Lai De?"
Translated: "Huh? What's that?"

Asher

I pronounce it 'nish'. It seems like I'm one of the only ones who does, judging from the replies in this thread.

If you are making over $5000 a month in your "Niche" then you can call it whatever the heck you want!

If you aren't then you should probably stop worrying about it and get back to marketing!

Both ways are correct according to almighty Webster.

When I was in school, all my business professors pronounced it "nitch"... even the foreign ones.

"You say eether and I say eyether,
You say neether and I say nyther;
Eether, eyether, neether, nyther,
Let's call the whole thing off!
You like potato and I like potahto,
You like tomato and I like tomahto;
Potato, potahto, tomato, tomahto!
Let's call the whole thing off!"

Song by George and Ira Gershwin, from 1937.

New Member lost! Help? 1st day into Kevin Riley's Private Workshop. Forum is for many people. Can you direct me to where I can find a buddie and report my daily activity? Just a newbe lost in the world of wanting money? LOL

Nitch is correct in English.
Thank you!
Barbara Payton
Crown Point, IN USA

I've always thought it was neesh. I have heard people call it nitch but that never really made sense to me because I don't see any T in niche.

I like noosh... but that's just how I roll...

Tsnyder

I started out saying "Nitch", but I've watched so many videos with English, Irish, and Aussies talking that I've converted to "Neesh". Yes! I am now a man without a country. What will be my fate? The Harpies shall surely devour my flesh and pluck my eyes from their bulging, bleeding sockets.

O what a rogue and peasant slave am I!

You could say the wrong pronunciation is so common it has become right but, on the other hand, the fact that it's etymology is French doesn't make it a French word. If you say "This is not my forte", you are not speaking English and French; just English and, in that language, "forte" is pronounced "for-tay" by the majority of speakers.

I guess you could say the same for niche; although how English-speakers came to pronounce it so differently (to each other) is anyones guess. That said, I never really thought Americans put a "t" in it but, rather, were saying "ch" like "church" which can sound like a "t" in some cases (like "rich", which can sound like it has a "t" in it, even when said by Irish, Brits, Aussies, etc.).

No need to re-do it; I think most Americans are probably clever enough to figure it out and will simply assume (correctly) that you are a speaker of non-American English, while, if you used the American pronunciation, non-Americans will simply assume you are either American, or learnt (not learned ) English in America. No big deal either way.

Well, in Ireland at least, it's definitely pronounced "keltic": there is no letter "k" in the Irish alphabet at all but the letter "c" is pronounced almost the same as the English "k" in most cases and, since the pronounciations of a huge number of words in Hiberno-English (the dialect of English spoken in Ireland) is heavily influenced by the Irish language (if the word isn't plucked straight from it), it is pronounced "keltic" by Irish people.

Case closed (within these shores).

Tommy.

pronouncing Niche as "nitch" is like pronouncing Dish as "ditch"...
I don't see the point of adding a "T" in a word that doesn't contain it...

But than again, I don't think we can say that MAJORITY pronounces it one way or another, it differs on the region... and both ways seem "legit".

I'mt offt to workt.

Alex

According to dictionary.com the pronunciation "nitch".

niche definition | Dictionary.com

Merriam Webster uses both pronunciations
niche - Definition from the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary

So I suppose either will do.

I have always heard it pronounced nitch (not neesh) but after being introduced to the IM world and more specifically the WF, I have come to see it being pronounced, "Neesh."

I've found alot of our American friends say 'nitch'. Im an Aussie, so Neesh all the way!

I can't stand it when people say 'Porsh'.... argh...
Porsche is pronounced with two syllables... kinda like: 'Por sha".

Similar with this term, but it's only one syllable, pronounced: "neesh"

neesh i would say

It's soooo "neesh"

I've been pronouncing it "nitch" until I heard someone say "neesh" on a video the other day. First time I ever heard so it made me think for a second.

You learn something new everyday.

I think its neesh (niche). You can't pronounce it as nitch because there is no letter "t", right?

I just call it....Kizzzash...or cash

EDIT: Sometimes cha-ching

Real Men say "nitch"

having said that....both words sound stupid haha.

This is just another variation in pronunciation.

As long as you know what is being talked about is all that matters.

The point made about 'forte' is not entirely accurate.

I'd strongly advise posters here to check out the online Merriam-Webster and Cambridge English dictionaries before posting generalizations about language.

In the case of 'forte', Webster has a long and detailed section on its pronunciation. I think the most important phrase is:

"So you can take your choice, knowing that someone somewhere will dislike whichever variant you choose. All are standard, however. "

You could say that for 'niche' too ;-)


Pearson

When I was watching Dragons Den, the UK TV series, they tend to use the word 'neesh'