Poll: Your Pronunciation of "Meme"?

[SideburnsPuppy]

Used to use it one syllable short E because that's the French pronunciation, but my uncle told me that Richard Dawkins, who he says popularized the term in English, says it's one syllable with a long E.

 

[cartographer54]

Wait, there are people out there who pronounce it "may may"? How does it look like anything other than "meem"? The only way it would be pronounced "may may" is if you put accents over the Es like so: mémé.

May-may sounds ridiculous. What about maym? I've heard people call it that too. Personally, it's 'meem' for me.

 

[Xeros]

I always pronounced it "maim" for some reason.

 

[bojac6]

I have a hard time believing there really are people that pronounce it me-me. I think that sounds really stupid and is completely contrary to how English spellings work.

 

[Maquette]

I've always pronounced it même, as you would say 'la même chose'.

The 'meem' pronunciation just sounds odd to me.

 

[PurplePlatypus]

Meem.
I figure it would follow the silent e rule.

 

[Danny Ocean]

It's meem. If you say otherwise you are wrong.

We need a name for the new replicator, a noun that conveys the idea of a unit of cultural transmission, or a unit of imitation. 'Mimeme' comes from a suitable Greek root, but I want a monosyllable that sounds a bit like 'gene'. I hope my classicist friends will forgive me if I abbreviate mimeme to meme. If it is any consolation, it could alternatively be thought of as being related to 'memory', or to the French word même. It should be pronounced to rhyme with 'cream'.

 

[Eldritch Warlord]

Wow people, really?

"Meem" is the only accepted pronunciation. Haven't you learned that the spelling of a word in English is usually not a good enough indicator of its pronunciation? It takes seconds to look it up in an online dictionary if you don't know.

There is no dispute on this, considering that meme is a coinage with a well documented pronunciation provided by its still living creator. If you pronounce it differently, you're just wrong.

 

[JaymesFogarty]

I always pronounce it," meem," because that's the correct way to pronounce it.

 

[TheGreenManalishi]

same as 'gene', which is the proper way, isn't it?

 

[bobknowsall]

Meem, even though it should sound like mehm because it originates from French. But it'd just sound poncey to say it like that.

 

[Mrkittycat]

pronounced me me until my friend corrected me. Also, the college humor song "you became a meme" helped correct me.

 

[historybuff]

I actually always said, "Meh-m"

 

[Randvek]

There is no dispute on this, considering that meme is a coinage with a well documented pronunciation provided by its still living creator. If you pronounce it differently, you're just wrong.

Do a little research. Dawkins wasn't the first to use this term. Going by pre-Dawkins pronounciation, it would actually be mee-mee.

Which is just as dumb as "meem," honestly. Give me "mehm" all the way.

 

[Andalusa]

I've always pronounced it "meem"
As other people have said: memes, genes.

 

[Rhymenoceros]

I've always called it a meem.
Dunno why.
It just seemed right I guess.

 

[Sir Strange Of The House Lycan]

Mem-Mays

 

[Lord Beautiful]

It can be construed as something other than "meem?" This confuses me.

 

[Cavouku]

I've always pronounced it mehm, not sure why.

Same. I've heard it's supposed to be pronounced "meem", and sorta rhymes with "gene", but I've never cared. Just "Mehm"

 

[LadyRhian]

Meem.