Here Is the CORRECT Way to Pronounce Dr. Seuss (and 17 Other Popular Author Names)

Dr. Seuss

We all accept a few universal truths about Dr. Seuss and his universe—Horton definitely heard that Who; the Grinch was more of a Lent type of guy; ham should NEVER be green—but there remains one Seussian sticking point that continues to baffle readers of all generations and shows no sign of peaceful resolution. And that is the pronunciation of the Doctor’s name.

If you are in the majority, you pronounce “Seuss” to rhyme with “Zeus.” (Maybe you even say “Zeus,” and consider that acceptable.) But according to humorist Alexander Liang, one of the Doctor’s college pals, the correct pronunciation was always “Soice,” rhyming with “voice.” Liang even wrote up a little rhyme to drive the point home: “You’re wrong as the deuce/ And you shouldn’t rejoice/ If you’re calling him Seuss./ He pronounces it Soice (or Zoice).”

Seuss himself eventually relented and adopted the rhymes-with-moose pronunciation, unable to control his own legend. But he was far from the first or last author to be chronically mis-addressed by the reading public. To set the record straight, here are 17 other popular authors whose names almost everyone says wrong without realizing.

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