The marOOn mOAn

How would you normally pronounce the word 'maroon', meaning a dark-red colour?

1/ with the last syllable rhyming with 'moan'.
2/ with the last syllable rhyming with 'moon'.

If the local hoans aren't making too much noise outside, try to listen to the commentary of a Man Utd game (whilst eating some Coan cheese). The game kicks off at noan. Soan enough, those that go with 'moan' might expect to hear the commentator say "Wayne Roany bursts through, the goal is at his mercy. Oh nooo he's balloaned the ball that high that its not only sailed over the bar, its got within touching distance of the Moan".

or perhaps not...

Now in Wayne Rooneys case, a "Moan" is probably quite appropriate, but do any other words with double 'O' get pronounced as 'OA'?

A quick check of dictionary.com


shows pronunciation is muh-roon

Kel Richards on ABC's word watch makes an intriguing yet pathetic attempt to beg for leniency. Claiming that the word may have originated from the French word 'marron' - and I'd be quite happy to blame the French for Australians mis-pronouncing the word. However, being French, marron should obviously be pronounced moron

http://www.abc.net.au/newsradio/txt/s1935054.htm

"Presented by Kel Richards

It’s State of Origin time once again – and once again a NewsRadio listener has asked me about the pronunciation of the word “maroon.” Many Australians pronounce it marOAN – others it’s marOON they say...

...so perhaps some leniency should be allowed...

... And almost all dictionaries say it’s marOON to rhyme with “moon”. Perhaps some leniency should be allowed. Australian English does have regional accents, so perhaps we can allow both marOON and marOAN. Because it seems that how you say it might depend on where you were born. And here’s a thought based on the origin of the word. It appears to come from the French marron – which, it appears, is a particular type of southern European chestnut, and which is, supposedly, a brownish-crimson or claret colour, hence the English word. At a guess I’d say that the marOAN pronunciation is a little closer to the original French word – while in Britain (and elsewhere) the pronunciation has been anglicised, along with the spelling. "