You know, I don't know about the rest of you. But I find it hard pronouncing latin phrases I've just learned. (They say there are several systems for doing that anyways. Pronouncing Latin, I mean. Classical Latin, modern Latin and the English pronunciation.) But what I do is, I use a simple mnemonic device for each new phrase I learn. Or sometimes some other word I'm familiar with. Let me explain. Like with the phrase deus ex machina ("a god from a machine"). For machina, I think of Mackinac Island, Michigan. Mackinac Island is a city in Michigan. And for some reason it is pronounced "mack-i-naw". (Notice the "naw" on the end.) So I just insert a Mackinac on the end. Of course, it's "mack-i-nah" in Latin, not "mack-i-naw". So I just quickly remind myself to say "ah" instead of "aw" as I say it. Simple and easy to remember, I think. I was also trying to figure out how to say Nervii. It's from Shakespeare's play "Julius Caesar". During Mark Anthony's eulogy for Caesar he says "You all do know this mantle. I remember The first time ever Caesar put it on. ’Twas on a summer’s evening in his tent, That day he overcame the Nervii." For that word I just remember the old nursery rhyme Old MacDonald Had a Farm. "Old MacDonald had a farm, Ee i ee i o." The "ee" comes before the "i", just like in the song. Again, simple to do and easy to remember.
