Editing 2814: Perseids Pronunciation

{{comic
| number    = 2814
| date      = August 11, 2023
| title     = Perseids Pronunciation
| image     = perseids_pronunciation_2x.png
| imagesize = 291x414px
| noexpand  = true
| titletext = When speaking out loud, you can can [sic] call it the 'Perseids meatier shower' and no one will ever know. (If you do get caught somehow, just tell them to Google the 'Kentucky meat shower' and that will distract them while you escape.)
}}

==Explanation==

This comic references the {{w|Perseids meteor shower}}, which is active in July and August. Their name ultimately derives from the ancient Greek hero ''Perseus'' (for ''his'' pronunciation, check {{w|Perseus}}). There are various ways of pronouncing ''Perseids'', and [[Randall]] gives the obvious ones before the comic spirals into virtual nonsense, or possibly parodies of {{wiktionary|va-jay-jay|common euphemistic replacement words}}. This is written from an American English perspective.

It should be noted that the last consonant is often pronounced as a "z" sound rather than "s" (the technical term is "voiced"), which is not reflected in these spellings.


{| class="wikitable"
! scope="col"| Section
! scope="col"| Term
! scope="col"| Explanation

|-
! rowspan="2"| Generally accepted
| PER-see-ids
| Standard 3-syllable English pronunciation.
|-
| PURSE-yids
| Standard 2.5 syllable pronunciation, nearly indistinguishable from the previous.
|-
! rowspan="2"| Also heard sometimes
| Per-SEE-ids
| The emPHAsis on the seCOND sylLAble is nonstandard.
|-
| Per-SAY-ids
| Accepted British pronunciation of Perseids with "classical" pronunciation of the "ei" digraph.
|-
! rowspan="3"| Generally frowned on
| Per-SIDES
| Two syllables with a Germanic pronunciation of the "ei" digraph.
|-
| Per-ZAY-uds
| Voiced "S" phoneme. Could be acceptable in New Zealand.
|-
| PER-suds
| Two syllables, ignoring the digraph altogether and making it schwa.
|-
!rowspan="9"| Definitely wrong
| Perky-ids
| Backformed from the C=S equivalence but from the wrong kide.
|-
| Pewpewpews
| An onomatopoeia for [[2817: Electron Holes|electron hole guns]] and fictional laser guns.
|-
| Per-say-says
| This is a tradition of rhyming lazy/cute slang, like referring to the vagina as {{wiktionary|va-jay-jay}}.
|-
| Percies
| "Percies" is plural of Percy, the short form of Perseus, and could easily be an abbreviated/informal form of "Perseids", especially when spoken.
|-
| Purps
| "Purps" is close to "Perps", a short slang form of Perpetrator (generally the person responsible for a crime). Conceivably an evolution of pronunciation from re-extending the even more abbreviated "Pers" with a new plosive ending re-added.
|-
| Percies Purps
| Together, this would be a name of a criminal gang, led by Perseus or Perseid.
|- <!-- Seems like enough people want to keep the incorrect 4-term explanation, well at least also keep the correct 2-terms explanation as well -->
| Pepsids
| "Pepsids" could refer to {{w|Famotidine|Pepcid}} (an antacid), or it could also be referencing the {{w|Pepsi}} brand, through insertion of a single plosive 'p' in the loosely pronounced original word.
|-
| Peeps
| "Peeps", derived vocally similarly to "purps", are possibly shorebirds that are not always easy to identify (for example the {{w|Least Sandpiper}}), also known as "{{w|stints}}". Or, continuing the bird theme, could directly reference {{w|Peeps|a spongy candy}} which is shaped and decorated like baby chickens. It is also a common slang term for "people"; particularly an in-group that the speaker identifies with, as in "my peeps".
|-
| Pepsids Peeps
| Together, these would be people who bond over their reliance on Pepcid (and their interest in the Perseids, hence spelling it with an S)
|}

The title text mentions how "meteor" sounds like "meatier," {{w|Homophone|although the meanings are completely different}}. It suggests telling people about the {{w|Kentucky meat shower}}, an anomalous weather event in 1876, as a [[2467: Wikipedia Caltrops|way to distract]] them. It also has the word "can" twice.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

:How to pronounce the name of the Perseids meteor shower

:Generally accepted
::PER-see-ids
::PURSE-yids

:Also heard sometimes
::Per-SEE-ids
::Per-SAY-ids

:Generally frowned on
::Per-SIDES
::Per-ZAY-uds
::PER-suds

:''Definitely'' wrong
::Perky-ids
::Pewpewpews
::Per-say-says
::Percies Purps
::Pepsids Peeps

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Language]]
[[Category:Astronomy]]