Master the Correct English Pronunciation of Common Programming Terms

Chinese programmers often struggle with English pronunciation of technical terms, leading to humorous or confusing exchanges. A community‑maintained list on GitHub (shimohq/chinese-programmer-wrong-pronunciation) documents many of these words, providing the correct IPA transcription and typical wrong versions.

Examples include:

access – correct: ['æksɛs']; wrong: [ək'sɛs]

adobe – correct: [ə'dəubi]; wrong: ['ædaʊb]

AJAX – correct: ['eidʒæks]; wrong: [ə'dʒʌks]

angular – correct: ['æŋgjʊlə]; wrong: ['æŋɡələ; 'æŋdʒʌlə]

apache – correct: [əˈpætʃiː]; wrong: [ʌpʌtʃ]

app – correct: [æp]; wrong: app

archive – correct: ['ɑrkaɪv]; wrong: ['ətʃɪv]

array – correct: [ə'rei]; wrong: [æ'rei]

avatar – correct: ['ævətɑr]; wrong: [ə'vʌtɑ]

azure – correct: ['æʒə]; wrong: [ˈæzʊʒə]

cache – correct: [kæʃ]; wrong: [kætʃ]

chrome – correct: [krəum]; wrong: ['tʃəum]

deque – correct: ['dek]; wrong: [di'kju]

digest – correct: [daɪ'dʒɛst]; wrong: ['digɛst]

Java – correct: ['dʒɑːvə]; wrong: ['dʒɑːvɑː]

jpg – correct: [ˈdʒeɪpɛɡ]; wrong: jpg

Linux – correct: ['lɪnəks]; wrong: [ˈlɪnʌks; ˈlɪnjuːks]

main – correct: [meɪn]; wrong: [mɪn]

margin – correct: ['mɑrdʒən]; wrong: ['mʌgin]

maven – correct: ['meɪvən]; wrong: ['ma:vən]

module – correct: ['mɑdʒul]; wrong: ['modl]

nginx – correct: Engine X; wrong: ngx

null – correct: [nʌl]; wrong: [naʊ]

OS X – correct: OS ten; wrong: OS X

parameter – correct: [pə'ræmɪtə]; wrong: ['pærəmɪtə]

putty – correct: [ˈpʌti]; wrong: [ˈpuːti]

query – correct: ['kwɪəri]; wrong: ['kwaɪri]

Qt – correct: [kjuːt]; wrong: (none listed)

resolved – correct: [rɪ'zɒlvd]; wrong: [rɪ'səʊvd]

Retina – correct: ['retɪnə; ˈretənə; 'retnə]; wrong: [ritina]

safari – correct: [səˈfɑːrɪ]; wrong: [sæfərɪ]

san jose – correct: [sænhəu'zei]; wrong: [sæn'ju:s]

scheme – correct: [skiːm]; wrong: [s'kæmə]

skype – correct: [skaɪp]; wrong: (none listed)

sudo – correct: ['su:du:]; wrong: (none listed)

suite – correct: [sut; swit]; wrong: [sjuːt]

typical – correct: ['tɪpɪkl]; wrong: ['taɪpɪkəl]

Ubuntu – correct: [ʊ'bʊntʊ]; wrong: [juː'bʊntʊ]

variable – correct: ['veəriəbl]; wrong: [və'raiəbl]

vue – correct: [v'ju:]; wrong: [v'ju:i]

width – correct: [wɪdθ]; wrong: [waɪdθ]

YouTube – correct: ['juː'tjuːb]; wrong: ['juː'tʊbɪ]

These entries illustrate the gap between native and non‑native pronunciation and provide a reference for developers to improve their spoken English.