chees and chaws

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English

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Etymology

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Onomatopoeic, from the Italianate pronunciation of c as /t͡ʃ/ (“ch”) before i and e.

Pronunciation

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  • (UK) IPA(key): /t͡ʃiːz ənd t͡ʃɔːz/ (see and for variants)

Noun

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chees and chaws pl (plural only)

  1. (dated, derogatory) The sounds made in Italianate pronunciation of Latin.
    • 1943 June, The Gramophone[1], volume 21, page 18:
      [] a quite recent notice in The Times of a Bach performance at the Albert Hall by a famous society regretted that, at this time of day, the “chees and chaws” of Italian pronunciation should be offered to an audience.
    • 1966, Owen Chadwick, The Victorian Church, volume 1, page 283:
      The Italian pronunciation of Latin with ch instead of c, benedichere for benedicere, became fashionable and was mocked by conservative Catholics as chees and chaws.
    • 2001, Jamie O’Neill, At Swim, Two Boys, →ISBN, page 60:
      [] Wouldn’t you think they’d get the Latin right first. The inflexion one sometimes hears is deplorable. All chees and chaws like an ice-cream vendor out of Napoli.”