Hi guys. I would like to know how you pronounce the word "bouquet".
I'm especially interested in pronunciations from the UK and Australia, but contributions of people from the other English speaking countries are also welcomed.
I would really appreciate if you could tell me which syllable is stressed (first or second), and what vowel is used in the first syllable ( 'oo' as in book, 'oo' as in food, or 'ou' as in low) in the variety of English you speak.
Thank you in advance for your help.
It's pronounced 'boo-kay', with the first syllable with an 'oo' sound as in 'food'.
As for the stress patterns, both forms exist, but it is more common to stress the second syllable, particularly in US English. Some older people in Britain stress the first syllable.
As a general rule, British English tends to stress French words ending in 'et' or 'é' on the first syllable, while American English uses a pronunciation closer to the original French and puts the stress on the second syllable - 'café' and 'ballet', for example, follow this pattern.
You pronounce it "boo-kay" with stress on second syllable because it is a word of French origin.First syllable oo as in food.
Actually, I was sure I'd heard (or even used?) the "bow-kay" pronunciation as well, even though my first thought is to follow the original French pronunciation.
I'm reminded of the TV series <em>Keeping Up Appearances</em>, where the snooty Mrs Hyacinth Bucket insists her surname is pronounced "bouquet". :)
According to the audio file, American English uses the same sound as in 'boat'. And now I think about it, I have heard people use the sound that is in 'book'.
Hmm... so it looks like even native speakers can't agree. This is often the case with so-called 'foreign' words.
Because of being a French word, you should ask for French pronunciation. :-)
/bu'kɛ/
