Last Saturday I suggested a word game for times when you are really, really bored on long car trips. See how many ways the people in the car can spell a word phonetically. The classic example is FIDO. Fido is a generic name for a dog in the US but no one ever names a dog Fido. Nevertheless, it can be spelled at least 54 ways. Can you get 54 or can you suggest another challenging word?

I will try a few, but I am sure I can't get 54! BTW, I do know someone who named his dog Fido.

phy-doe
f-eye-doe
ph-eye-doh
fy-doh
fy-doe

Is that what you mean? I am not sure how you can get 54.

fydough
fyedough
phydough

ghighddeau

fayedo
fayedough
fayedoe
fayedoh
phayedo
phayedough
phayedoe
phayedoh

The paradigmatic way-out spelling is "Phydeau" (or sometimes "-x").

(...by the same people who bring you your morning cup of kawphy)

Let's analyse

FIDO

ways to write the F

f
ph
gh (as in rough)

ways to writh the I
i
y
ai
ay
aye
eye
igh (as in high)
is (as in island)
ye (as in bye)
ei (heirarchy)
ie (pie)

ways to write D

I can only think of

d
dd

ways to write O

o
oh
ough
oe
eau
ow
ew (sew, thanks neveu)
owe (thanks jo)
oa (boat)
au (au contraire)
ot (Merlot)

If anyone has any to add please do.
Combinations of the above.

3x11x2x11=726

This message has been edited. Last edited by: BobHale,

quote:

ways to write D

I can only think of

d
dd

tt as in little; for "O" ew as in sew (Midwestern American accent, at least).

tt? anyone agree? they're different in my accent.

ew, now added to the count

not to pick nits or anything, while I saw "ow" listed, I didn't see "owe."

and the count just keeps on climbing

Can we use French loan (there's another O) words? Au contraire? Merlot?

If we're using French -eau endings for O, how about the plural, -eaux?

Wow! I didn't think I would generate so much interest wih Fido. I loved all your suggestions. Missann

Since Bob Hale calculated 726, I counted 8 suggestions. I didn't understant the tt so I didn't count that. Thus 726x 8 variables = 5,808.
That's impressive when you consider that a dog doesn't know he has a name. He is just dogto himself.

The tau, as in Asian philosophy, is pronounced DOW. Can we use t for a d sound?

hello to all. When i'm at work i send text messages to my wife on our cell phone. if I sent her "fido bit me", I would type 3436 248 63. that is fido spelled 3436.

Hi, what would Michelle Pfeiffer say if she was asked? "pf" sounds like "f" (like in swimming, the p is silent). this sounds like a valid addition to me.

quote:

this sounds like a valid addition to me.

Sounds pfine to me, too.

I accept tt as in little, which I had questioned above, and tau as in Asian pholosophy and pf as in Pfeiffer, bringing the total to 46,400. Now am I pushing it to ask you to accept th as a d sound, as in Brooklyn, where they say dese and dose for these and those? I'm not sure how to count lop's 3436 but it is clever.

A few more from the MW dictionary

gaff
calf

geyser
coyote

dhow
seemed
could

pharaoh
yeoman
brooch
boulder
quahog
cupola