Definitions
Wiktionary
- n. A jocular constructed word, supposedly pronounced exactly like “fish” (IPA: /fɪʃ/ ) and used to illustrate irregularities in English spelling:
Examples
“One of the champions of such reform was the playwright George Bernard Shaw - he of the word ghoti, pronounced”
“Sure he invented the word "ghoti" but he made the point.”
“He joked that the word "ghoti" was a logical spelling of "fish.”
“Shaw it was who came up with the tired joke of spelling fish as "ghoti" (gh as in laugh; o as in women; ti as in motion).”
“For some reason this reminds me of the old linguistic joke: How do you pronounce the word “ghoti”?”
Suspenseful With A Pencil Ever Since Prince Turned Himself Into A Symbol | ATTACKERMAN
“Spelling fish as “ghoti”: did this really begin with Bernard Shaw?”
“George Bernard Shaw pointed out that we should spell “fish” as ghoti, gh = f (enough) o = i (women) ti = s (emotion).”
This Is An Outrage Haw Can He Say This? « Literacy Instruction « Literacy Help « Literacy News
“The Irish playwright, George Bernard Shaw, is said to have joked that the word ‘fish’ could legitimately be spelled ‘ghoti’ by using the ‘gh’ sound as it is pronounced in ‘enough’, the ‘o’ sound as it is pronounced in ‘women’ and the ‘ti’ sound as it is pronounced in ‘action’.”
“Dans la Language Column du New York Times datée du 27 juin 2010, le linguiste Ben Zimmer examine cette question et conclut comme suit : “La plupart des gens qui verraient le mot ghoti le prononceraient simplement goaty… On ne peut pas tout se permettre en anglais”.”
“Although the first known published reference to ghoti credits one William Ollier (born 1824), the clever misspelling is often attributed to George Bernard Shaw.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘ghoti’.
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Awesome Pronunciations
BRING IT ON!!!!!
!, !!, !!!, !!!!, !!!!!, peter piper, licet mihi venera..., aliquid in aere e..., SHAZAM!, dark-sided, vegan quiche...ev..., konstantinopolita... and 113 more...
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beecher's list
word and phrase fun
hidey hole, ghoti, padiddle, padaddle, metathesis, discombobulate, bass ackwards, no bout adoubt it, lackadaisical, verbemia, verbitis, barack obama
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Like to pronounce incorrectly
bologna, refrigerator, computer, ghoti, sorry, surprise, flaccid, chaos
oroboros Gone ghotion. Nov 14, 2010
Drum A constructed word used to illustrate irregularities in English spelling. It is pronounced 'fish' - gh as in tough. o as in women. ti as in nation.
Aug 15, 2009
divinityatlast In Jr. High my friends and I were avid fans of a band called Ghoti Hook. Because of that band I knew the meaning of this word as a 14 year old. HA! Jul 17, 2009
donricklin There is also Phtholognyrrh pronounced: Turner, According to a Mr. Turner who insisted on signing his name that way according to Robert M. Rennick in I Didn't Catch Your Name, Verbatim® Vol. XXix, No2. Mr Turner explains: " Look, the phth is like phthisic, which is pronounced t; olo is like colonel, which is pronounced ur; gn as in gnat is pronounced n; and yrrh as in myrrh, is pronounced er. So you have Turner. Nothing could be simpler." Reader's Digest, Jan . 1941, p. 42 Sep 1, 2008
skipvia Should be required reading for any linguist. Or educator. Oct 4, 2007
reesetee On my list. The title alone is intriguing. :-) Oct 3, 2007
skipvia From Barry Rudd, not Batman and Robin. Let's give credit where credit is due.
If you haven't read "The Child Buyer," go check it out immediately. Oct 3, 2007
valse Robin: "Ghoti" is "fish"?
Batman: See here. English phonetics. GH becomes F, as in "tough" or "laugh". O becomes I as in "women". TI becomes SH as in "ration" or the word "nation".
Robin: Holy semantics, Batman. You never cease to amaze me! May 24, 2007
nkocharh Wikipedia has a terribly interesting article on this word. Dec 12, 2006