Phrasing and Pronuncation

Phrasing

In addition to the difference in accent, which I’ve discussed, Kiwis also have their own unique speech patterns and phrasing. As far as I can tell, many of them are quite similar to British patterns, but I assume that there has been some divergence over the years. And it sounds different with the accents. Anyway, I thought I’d share some of my favourite Kiwi phrases so far.

“can’t be bothered” means it’s not worth the effort. (e.g. You can give me a call if you need something, but can’t be bothered to come to the office.) This is my most favourite one so far.

“sort it out” is their version of “figure it out.” Even though I know this, I often get an image in my head of someone divvying up piles of whatever we’re “sorting out,” which is funny when it’s phone numbers, people, locations, etc.

“fussed about” is about equivalent to “bothered by.” (e.g. It’s going to rain tomorrow, but I’m not fussed about it.)

“have” is, obviously, a word that we Americans use frequently as well, but Kiwis use it so much more, and in different ways. For example, where an American would say, “Let’s look,” a Kiwi would say, “Let’s have a look.” Also, Kiwis “have a chat,” “have a go” (try), “have a nap,” etc. It gives a nice ring to the phrases, but I am not used to it yet.

Pronunciation

In Maori, “wh” is pronounced as an “f” sound. I had to laugh at myself for my reaction to this, which was, “Why would they have such a silly rule?” This coming from a person who pronounces “laugh” as “laf,” and “phone” as “fone.” And who is silly?

Anyhow, this means that Kowhai Park, where we went yesterday, is pronounced Kofai Park. A certain Maori cultural ritual/dance is called a “powhiri,” pronounced “pofiri.” There are also cities in this category, such as “Whakatane,” pronounced “Fakatane.”

You may have noticed that Whanganui fits this pattern. However, because it is often spelled just with a “W” at the beginning, it is always pronounced with the “w” sound at the beginning, regardless of how you spell it. Moreover, the Whanganui River, which runs through the city, is always spelled with the “Wh,” but pronounced the same as the city. So I guess we live in the exception.

While we are on the subject of “Whagnanui,” I should mention that I was pronouncing it wrong before we got here. With my Kansas accent, I was saying “Whang” as if it rhymes with “rang,” when, in fact, it rhymes with “rung.” And I was saying “an” as I would in “ant,” but it should be like the “u” in “undo.” So rather than “Whanganui,” it sounds like “Whungunui.” And the part I had right is the “oooie” at the end. This is all (except the “wh”) consistent with Maori pronunciation, in which the short “a” always sounds like the “a” in “about.” This is hard for me, because that particular sound doesn’t make me think “a” at all, it makes me think “u.” But Whanganui rolls off the tongue just fine now that I’m used to it, so I’m sure the rest will come.