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Mamdani, Louvre Top 2025 List of Most Mispronounced Words in the U.S.

The annual Babbel–Captioning Group roundup shows how news prominence fused with cross‑language sounds to trip up broadcasters.

Overview

  • Babbel and The Captioning Group released their 2025 U.S. mispronunciations list on Dec. 4, reflecting the words that repeatedly challenged on-air figures.
  • New York mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani’s name featured prominently, with Babbel noting frequent letter swaps in his surname and highlighting his debate correction of Andrew Cuomo.
  • The Louvre’s name drew mistakes after October’s $102 million jewel heist, with Babbel advising a LOOV-ruh rendering with a very soft final syllable.
  • Other entries included acetaminophen, which President Trump stumbled over, Alex Murdaugh’s surname, and the diabetes and weight-loss drug Mounjaro.
  • Several items also appeared on a U.K. list compiled with the British Institute of Verbatim Reporters, as captioners and linguists tracked recurring trouble spots throughout the year.