Fuck you, answers.com. The reason it's fort-ay is because it is derived from the Latin fortis. One form of the adjective is forte and one pronounces all letters in Latin.
The fact that we originally got it from the French, who pronounce nothing correctly, notwithstanding, the word is derived from Latin which lacks silent letters.
I've got no idea if I'm right. *grins* But fortis forte is a Latin adjective all right (strong/manly/resolute), and one pronounces all one's letters in Latin. So, y'know. Seems wrong to me- it's the French that get it wrong.
That said, it could be some irritating American thing, like the way you barbarians spell 'axe'.
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timeasmymeasure
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The fact that we originally got it from the French, who pronounce nothing correctly, notwithstanding, the word is derived from Latin which lacks silent letters.
*shakes fist*
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That said, it could be some irritating American thing, like the way you barbarians spell 'axe'.
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Depressing, but very true.
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