15 Celebrities Whose Names You've Probably Been Mispronouncing

Hollywood stars including Chrissy Teigen and Joe Manganiello have recently disclosed that their names have been frequently mispronounced throughout their careers.

In September 2018, the author of the Cravings cookbook, Chrissy Teigen, took to Twitter to clarify that her last name is pronounced as "tie-gen" and not "tee-gan." When questioned about why she had never corrected anyone earlier, she responded with a clever comeback.

"I never correct people," she replied. "They can address me as Janet, and I won't mind. Got my order wrong? I'll still eat it. Taxi taking me to the wrong airport? I'll rearrange my flight."

Teigen is not the only celebrity who has shared the correct pronunciation of their name. The former True Blood star previously demonstrated how to correctly say his challenging last name in a video for Just Jared back in 2014.

“Hello, I am Joe Manganiello,” he stated, rehearsing the phrase multiple times to help viewers pronounce his name correctly. The actor, known for his role in How I Met Your Mother, was joined by his brother, Nick Manganiello, in the video. When asked about the most incorrect versions of their last name, the One Tree Hill alumnus replied, "There are too many to mention. I suppose 'Manga-Relo' with an inserted 'R' is one of the common mispronunciations."

Joe's brother pointed out that some people pronounce the name with a J sound instead of a G. He mentioned hearing others say "Manga-jello" and "Man-jello."

The Magic Mike XXL actor playfully remarked, "Bro, you missed, like, ten letters."

Keep scrolling to see which stars’ names are frequently mispronounced — and to learn how to correctly say them:

Credit: David Fisher/Shutterstock for SAG Awards

Chrissy Teigen, Joe Manganiello and More Celebs Whose Names We've Been Saying Wrong

Hollywood stars such as Chrissy Teigen and Joe Manganiello have recently opened up about the mispronunciation of their names throughout their careers.

Taking to Twitter in September 2018, the author of the Cravings cookbook, Chrissy Teigen, clarified that her last name is actually pronounced as "tie-gen" and not "tee-gan." When questioned about why she had never corrected this mistake before, Teigen responded with a clever comeback.

"I never correct people," she replied. "They can use Janet as my name and I won't mind. Got my order wrong? I'll still eat it. Taking a taxi to the wrong airport? I'll just change my flight."

Teigen is not the only celebrity who has shared the proper way to address them. The True Blood actor had previously described how to pronounce his challenging last name in a 2014 Just Jared video.

"Hello, I'm Joe Mang-I-Nello," he repeated the line multiple times in an effort to help viewers pronounce his name correctly. The actor, known for his role in How I Met Your Mother, was joined by his brother, Nick Manganiello, in the video. When asked about the most mispronounced versions of their last name, the One Tree Hill alum responded, "There are too many to mention. Probably the ones who add Rs, like 'Manga-Relo'."

Joe's brother observed that some people pronounce the name with a "J" sound instead of a "G". He responded by mentioning that he had heard others say "Manga-jello" and "Man-jello."

The Magic Mike XXL actor jokingly remarked, "Bro, you missed like ten letters."

Keep scrolling to see which stars' names are frequently mispronounced — and to learn how to correctly say them:

Credit: Broadimage/Shutterstock

Taylor Lautner

During a July 2023 episode of the Unplanned Podcast With Matt & Abby, the Twilight star disclosed that his last name, Lautner, is actually pronounced as Lout-ner. He acknowledged that it was his own mistake for not correcting the pronunciation for decades. Lautner admitted that the mispronunciation first occurred when he was promoting Sharkboy and Lavagirl at the age of 11, but he chose not to correct people at that time.

Credit: David Fisher/Shutterstock for SAG Awards

Paul Mescal

The actor, known for his role in Normal People, revealed to The Hollywood Reporter in February 2023 that the pronunciation of his last name contains soft "s" and "a" sounds, distinguishing it from the pronunciation of the alcoholic beverage.

"People often find it challenging to pronounce my name due to the drink mezcal," he stated. "It's a common occurrence, and I personally pronounce it as 'Mescal.' Sometimes, I contemplate whether, if I were to create a tequila brand, I would name it 'Mescal's Mezcal.' I'm uncertain and torn on the matter."

Credit: Shutterstock

Emily Ratajkowski

The correct pronunciation of her last name was disclosed by the model in a TikTok video in February 2023. Backstage at the Tory Burch fashion show, she exclaimed, "Rat-ah-COF-sky." She emphasized that she is of Polish origin and that this is the accurate way to pronounce her last name.

Credit: Kathy Hutchins/Shutterstock

Raven-Symone

Raven-Symoné, the star of That's So Raven and Raven's House, recently set the record straight about the mispronunciation of her name by fans. Via TikTok, she revealed in January 2023 that many have been saying "Raven Sim-moan," when in fact it should be pronounced "See-mon-ye." In a playful response, she confirmed this information in a short video clip, with a voice in the background expressing disbelief.

Credit: Stephen Lovekin/Shutterstock

Brendan Fraser

The actor who played the Whale recently announced that his last name has been mispronounced for many years. During an interview with Variety, he clarified that his last name is pronounced "Fraser," rhyming with "razor."

Credit: David Fisher/Shutterstock

Adele

During a fan Q&A in October 2022 to promote her "I Drink Wine" music video, the Grammy winner disclosed that she favors pronouncing her first name as "uh-DALE" rather than the more commonly used pronunciation, "uh-dell".

Credit: Andy Kropa/Invision/AP/Shutterstock

Lindsay Lohan

Upon joining TikTok in February 2022, the actress known for her role in Mean Girls made her debut with a playful twist on her last name, highlighting the "o" instead of the "a." This unconventional pronunciation prompted one user to humorously question if they had been mispronouncing her name as "LoHAAAN" all their life.

Credit: Broadimage/Shutterstock

Alicia Silverstone

Participating in a recent TikTok trend, the talented Clueless actress playfully called out people who persistently mispronounce her name. When prompted to share her name and its commonly mispronounced version, Silverstone amusingly clarified, "My name is Ali-SEE-yuh ... not Alee-Sha," with a shrug.

Credit: Carlos Piaggio/Shutterstock

Kesha

"My name is Kesha. Keh-sha," the "Praying" singer emphasized in an April 2021 TikTok video. "Not Kee-Sha. Not Ketchup. Kesha."

Her mother, Pebe Sebert, also provided clarification on the pronunciation for fans in her own upload. "The name Kesha's actually a Hungarian family name that [my son] Lagan would have been given if he had been a girl," the songwriter revealed. "However, since he wasn't, the name is actually pronounced Ket-ta-cha in Hungarian. To simplify matters, I decided to use the name Kesha instead. And that's the origin of Kesha."

Credit: Stewart Cook/Shutterstock

Justin Theroux

The content fragment focuses on The Mosquito Coast, a television show based on a novel by Paul Theroux, the uncle of a former actor from The Leftovers. Within an April 2021 clip, the author playfully mentioned the discrepancy in their surname pronunciation. He jested that his nephew sometimes refers to himself as Justin Tha-row, whereas the correct pronunciation of their French name is Tha-roo.

Credit: Matt Baron/Shutterstock

Khloe Kardashian

In March 2021, Andy Cohen dropped a bombshell on fans of Keeping Up With the Kardashians by revealing that they have mispronounced the name of the Good American cofounder ever since the reality series first aired. "It’s Khlo-ay,” explained Cohen during his appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. "Khlo-ay is the correct pronunciation. There’s a little accent over the name."

Credit: Matt Baron/Shutterstock

Thandiwe Newton

In a 2021 interview with British Vogue, Newton finally corrected the misspelled version of her name that had been used in a 1991 film. She revealed the true spelling of her full name and the accurate pronunciation as Tan-DEE-way.

Credit: Getty Images

Chrissy Teigen

After an extended period of being in the public eye, the fashion icon astounded her followers by taking to social media to disclose that her true name was not what had been assumed. "I have grown weary of perpetuating this falsehood. It is pronounced Tie-Gan, isn't it, mother?" she exclaimed in a Twitter video during September of 2018, rectifying the mispronunciation that had persisted throughout the years - even by herself.

Credit: Getty Images

Ariana Grande

The pop star doesn't have a last name that resembles a size of a Starbucks drink. In an interview in August 2018, the "God Is a Women" singer clarified that her last name is actually pronounced as Gran-DEE. However, when she was younger, her brother, Frankie Grande, convinced her that Gran-DAY sounded more exciting, and so they have stuck with it ever since.

Credit: Getty Images

Amanda Seyfried

Despite the spelling, the Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again star’s name is not to be pronounced Say-Fried — it’s actually Sigh-Fred.

Credit: Getty Images

Isla Fisher

Just because the TAG actress’ name looks easy to say, many people are thrown off by the S in Isla. The correct way is simple Eye-La.

Credit: Getty Images

Saoirse Ronan

What? The name of the Irish actress seems quite daunting, leading numerous talk show hosts to request her to demonstrate the correct pronunciation, to which she explains that it should be pronounced as Ser-Sha.

Credit: Getty Images

Joe Manganiello

Wow, what an interesting surname! In a delightful video interview with JustJared back in June 2014, the actor known for his role in Magic Mike playfully debunked the numerous mispronunciations of his last name. He cheerfully introduced himself, saying, "Hello there, I'm Joe Mang-I-Nello," taking the opportunity to educate his fans on the correct pronunciation.

Credit: Getty Images

Eva Mendes

Another easy-looking name that’s often mispronounced. The E in the actress’ name should be said like an A, making it sound like Ava.

Credit: Getty Images

Ralph Lauren

The fashion designer's surname is frequently mistaken to have a more exotic pronunciation, such as Lor-En, yet it is actually pronounced similar to a common female first name, precisely as it is spelled.