Though I consider myself a pretty good speller and perceptive picker-upper of words, the connection between spelling and pronunciation of “segue” — meaning to make a transition from one topic to another — has completely escaped me up until now. I don’t know about you, but I always read segue as something like “seeg.” The last syllable seemed to be silent, like similar-looking words like vague or tongue or league. But as it turns out (pointed out very tactfully by a colleague), segue is pronounced “segway.” And segway is not actually a word at all, though I could have sworn it was, meaning the transition from one news segment to another, and not just a brand name for Gob Bluth’s preferred mode of transport.

The unusual pronunciation is due to the word’s Italian origin, which won’t help you spell or pronounce it at all in English, world’s trickiest language.