Say It Like Stewie Word Quiz

In a nod to The Family Guy’s character Stewie Griffin, the A Way with Words family’s Quiz Guy John Chaneski presents a puzzle about voiceless labial-velar approximants. Inspired by Stewie’s habit of pronouncing Cool Whip as “Cool Hwip,” John has come up with several two-word phrases containing one word that begins with W and second word beginning with WH. For example, if the clue is I was in a contest, and I made a very high -pitched sound with my lips, and that earned me first place, what’s the two-word answer? This is part of a complete episode.
Transcript of “Say It Like Stewie Word Quiz”

You’re listening to A Way with Words, the show about language and how we use it.

I’m Grant Barrett.

And I’m Martha Barnette.

And coming through the door, holding his head erect and whistling a happy tune, so no one ever knows he’s afraid, is our quiz guy, John Chaneski.

I just escaped from a musical, and I’m so happy to be with you guys.

And I have a quiz for you I think you’ll enjoy.

Now, on the TV show Family Guy, there’s a running gag that Brian Griffin is occasionally annoyed when Stewie Griffin pronounces WH words with, now follow me here, a distinct voiceless labiovelar approximant.

Yes.

That is with a breathy H sound at the start.

Right.

So, all right, the origin and classic example from Family Guy is cool whip.

What’s that?

Could you have, can I get some cool whip?

You want some cool whip?

Why do you say, why do you say that?

Why do you say whip, whip?

That’s how he says it, and he does it, I think, just to annoy Brian.

Now, I’ll give you a clue to a two-word phrase.

One word is a W word, and the other is a WH word.

Let’s annoy Brian all the more by pronouncing all of them like Stewie.

What do you say?

Oh, boy.

Okay.

Here we go.

So, I was in a contest, and I made a very high-pitched sound with my lips, and that earned me first place.

So you whistled.

But what’s a W word?

I assume it’s an adjective.

For first place?

A winning whistle?

A winning whistle, yes, exactly.

Very good.

He may be young, presumptuous, and overconfident, but he is worth millions.

Worth millions.

Young and overconfident.

So he’s a whippersnapper.

A whippersnapper, but is he…

A wealthy whippersnapper?

He is indeed a wealthy whippersnapper. Very good.

I saw him disembarking from a ship on a pier and Aberystwyth.

Disembarking from a ship.

I’m going to guess that one of them’s wharf, right?

It’s not too far from Cardiff.

A Welsh wharf.

Yes, a Welsh wharf. Very good.

At the dog show, I witnessed a small, muscular, greyhound-like beast that filled me with awe.

Oh, Wiley Whippet.

A winning whippet.

Wonderful whippet.

Yes, a wonderful whippet.

Very good.

I found a device I could not identify,

And it was very, very strange.

A weird whatchamacallit.

Exactly, a weird whatchamacallit, yes.

Oh.

I was going to say whidget.

Weird widget?

Could be a weird widget.

Finally, a triple.

Poor Ahab, totally obsessed with that untamed, savage cetacean Moby Dick.

The white whale.

Yes, the…

What’s the other W?

He’s untamed and savage.

A wild white whale.

Yes, Moby Dick, the wild white whale.

That was wonderful, you guys.

I’m going to retire my stewing impersonation.

For good.

Thank you, John.

Give our best to the family.

Thanks, you too.

And we’ll talk to you next week.

And we’ll talk to you, the listener, just now.

You can call or text us toll-free 877-929-9673.

Talk to us about language books, reading, writing, slang, new words, old words, and expressions that befuddle.

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