People are stunned by the bizarre way you can pronounce ‘ghoti’ — even smart people struggle with it

Word games and puzzles are not only fun, but they also make people feel accomplished when they figure out a difficult one. They serve both as a distraction and a mental exercise by turning problem-solving into a fun activity. Whether they are classic crosswords or mind-bending riddles, these puzzles can boost one's vocabulary and confidence. But when an optical illusion and a word puzzle come together, things get tough. Right now, TikTok users are confused and have trouble pronouncing the word "ghoti" correctly.

This seemingly straightforward term demonstrates how interesting and complex the English language is. An alternative spelling of a commonly used word is what appears to be a random string of letters. As reported by the New York Post, "fish" is a word that may be spelled correctly using this strange linguistic creation. In this instance, the reasoning is in the phonetics. The "gh" adopts the "f" sound from "enough," the "o" mimics the "i" in "women," and the "ti" imitates the "sh" in "nation." The comments section became a battlefield as confused users traded guesses. Some were able to figure out the answer, but it left the majority puzzled.

The person who posted the video on TikTok, @blsenglish, clarified, “Just to be super clear, you won't find "ghoti" in a dictionary. It's just a fun puzzle about how irregular English pronunciation is.” One TikTok user, @moon_splain, jokingly commented, “A friend's dad was a languages professor and you couldn't deduct marks for spelling fish like this in a second language.” Another person, @bee_ess0, wrote, “A friend's dad was a languages professor and you couldn't deduct marks for spelling fish like this in a second language.” @matthewrfox also chimed in and commented, “I had this in a book of puzzles circa Christmas 1987 and it’s stuck with me ever since!”

To be clear, people won’t find “ghoti” in any dictionary. It’s not a real word but rather a playful jibe at the chaos of English pronunciation. This clever linguistic trick isn’t new, either. According to the Language Log blog, it dates back to December 1855. The earliest known use of “ghoti” appears in old correspondence between British publisher and author Charles Ollier and poet and culture critic Leigh Hunt. As reported by Medium, Ollier had a deep fascination with English etymology, and given the 19th-century buzz around spelling reform, this quirky creation likely made perfect sense to him. The word proves that the English language is very unpredictable.

There was a strong drive to make English spelling simpler back in the day. Everyone can agree that English doesn't always follow the rules, regardless of whether you're an expert speaker or just learning the language. It's a chaotic mix of the insane, the inconsistent, and the confusing. Centuries of cultural blending have shaped the English language, leaving people with spellings and pronunciations that sometimes make no sense. Many words look one way and sound completely different. The study of how these sounds evolve and interact falls under phonology, the branch of linguistics that tries to make sense of this language.