How do you pronounce 'mefi'?

December 28, 2001 12:54 PM

How do you pronounce the shortened "MeFi"? "meh fee," "me-figh" or something else?
posted by insomnyuk to MetaFilter-Related at 12:54 PM (36 comments total)

Personally I say "mee-figh" but I'm just curious how people pronounce it, or maybe I'm the only one who silently pronounces nonsense words in his head. If so, apologies for my newbieish question.
posted by insomnyuk at 12:55 PM on December 28, 2001

~I've always pronounced it rod-aye.~

I pronounce it in my head, as well, and I pronouce it Mee-fee. I have never said it out loud.
posted by j.edwards at 12:59 PM on December 28, 2001

Rhymes with fee fi fo fum.
posted by anapestic at 1:03 PM on December 28, 2001

"Me-fie" or "me-figh" is how I pronounce it in my head...somehow, "me-fee" sounds so...squishy...
posted by metrocake at 1:05 PM on December 28, 2001

How do you pronounce Jason Kent's MeFi nickname? How about "juvenile"?
posted by Carol Anne at 1:06 PM on December 28, 2001

How do you pronounce Jason Kent's MeFi nickname? How about "juvenile"?

Carol Anne, that's already the topic in the next MeTa thread down.
posted by anapestic at 1:09 PM on December 28, 2001

I do "me-figh", and had a double-take on the phone with another mefite who pronounced it "me-fee".

You say me-fee,
I say me-figh,
Let's call the whole thing off!
posted by frykitty at 1:12 PM on December 28, 2001

"Throat-warbler mangrove."

And young jedi, ~your levity has no place here.~
posted by rodii at 1:14 PM on December 28, 2001

~I pronounce it "meh-fih" so as to remain true to the pronunciation of the complete word.~
posted by Avogadro at 1:20 PM on December 28, 2001

"Meh Phi" previously discussed here
posted by riffola at 1:25 PM on December 28, 2001

Oops that should be "Meh Fee"
posted by riffola at 1:27 PM on December 28, 2001

I have never pronounced it. I do waffle on a lot about MeFi but, being Portuguese, I always say "Metafilter", with a little accent on the second "e" - Metafiltér.

When I eventually meet, as I soon hope to do, someone who knows what "MeFi" means I'd pronounce it "Mee-Fye". I suppose because "Me" is "Mee" and "Fi", from "hi-fi", is "Fye".

"Meh-fih" sounds like "Meffy". A synonym for "snarky, cynical, too intelligent for one's own good"?
posted by MiguelCardoso at 1:35 PM on December 28, 2001

"Meffy". A synonym for "snarky, cynical, too intelligent for one's own good"
Then meffy is almost perfect :)
posted by riffola at 1:38 PM on December 28, 2001

According to Bell Labs... it should be Meffy
posted by geoff. at 2:05 PM on December 28, 2001

I pronounce it ( . )( . ).



Boy, that period looks wrong.
posted by rodii at 2:12 PM on December 28, 2001

It's just witches' punctuation.
posted by Kafkaesque at 2:13 PM on December 28, 2001

I pronounce it ( . )( . ).

Mallrats comes to mind.
posted by insomnyuk at 2:53 PM on December 28, 2001

*checks rodi for lumps*


Hmmmm.

*wonders how he will tell him*
posted by Hima Otsubusu at 3:55 PM on December 28, 2001

That's not a lump, it's just my other i.
posted by rodii at 4:28 PM on December 28, 2001

I'm waiting for someone to photoshop a pancake ontop of some ascii breasts. The inside joke to end all inside jokes.
posted by geoff. at 5:00 PM on December 28, 2001

I'd always said it as meh-fee, since it's an abbreviation of MEtaFIlter. (That's assuming you pronounce 'meta' to rhyme with 'feta' and not like 'meter'.)
posted by eoz at 6:44 PM on December 28, 2001

I think the real question is whether anyone is too lazy to say "Metafilter". It's only 2 more syllables! Well depending on your version of how you say "MeFi".
posted by geoff. at 7:18 PM on December 28, 2001

Good question, Geoffrey.
posted by rodii at 7:19 PM on December 28, 2001

geoff:

Ask and ye shall receive.
posted by mr_crash_davis at 8:54 PM on December 28, 2001

Let's call the whole thing off.
posted by ColdChef at 10:28 PM on December 28, 2001

*brain explodes. Again.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 3:06 AM on December 29, 2001

I use "MéFi"... in french =)
posted by XiBe at 11:21 AM on December 30, 2001

I think the real question is whether anyone is too lazy to say "Metafilter".

Or even better: MetaFilter. It's odd that when we abbreviate we write MeFi and MeTa, but when writing out MetaFilter we tend to use the lower-case "f".

Which, for some strange reason, rarely happens with MetaTalk - I don't recall seeing "Metatalk" that often.

I know, I know. What's put me off is that period rodii put at the end of (. )( .). Is it an extra nipple?

As MicMac iconography say:

(, ) (, ) When Forest gets a bit older.

(- ) (- ) When Forest was young and pert.
posted by MiguelCardoso at 3:27 PM on December 30, 2001

Is it an extra nipple?
...
It's just witches' punctuation.

I am the CNet of MetaTalk.
posted by rodii at 4:07 PM on December 30, 2001

I say Mee-Fye, rhymes with a Neil-and-Tim-Finn song called "Niwhai." And if I happen to say it out loud, for the rest of the day, I obsessively sing this:

MeFi, she's so fly
making it happen
MeFi be my witness
five satellites in just one night!

Damn you, Neil and Tim Finn, for your snappy and catchy tunes!
posted by kittyb at 5:22 PM on December 30, 2001

Or indeed this, from Judy and David Gershon's Fe Fi Fo Fum:

"Give me a ‘Fee’ (Fee!)
Don’t you mess around with me
Give me a ‘Fi’ (Fi!)
Dare you to look me in the eye"

posted by MiguelCardoso at 5:36 PM on December 30, 2001

I think the real question is whether anyone is too lazy to say "Metafilter". It's only 2 more syllables! Well depending on your version of how you say "MeFi".

Take it to the logical conclusion and simply call these places, "Meef" and "Meet."
posted by Dagobert at 6:05 AM on December 31, 2001

in my head i hear it as "my-fi," rhyming with "hi-fi" ... but now that someone has brought i up, thats just wrong isn't it?
posted by danOstuporStar at 7:05 AM on December 31, 2001

I'd just like to point out that Muffaletta is a disarmingly good Olive Spread, so maybe we can all do Muffaletta a favor and give it a little free publicity by endorsing the use of MuFa while reading MeFi and getting ready to complain about something in MeTa.

*It's what's for dinner when it's the only thing left in the fridge at 4am and you're really drunk and the beef jerky is gone*
posted by Kafkaesque at 12:31 PM on December 31, 2001

Huh, I say "mee-fi" but "meh-ta", like Zubin. Life is so mysterious.
posted by rodii at 12:36 PM on December 31, 2001

No votes for 'mo-fo' then?
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 7:12 PM on December 31, 2001