‘Wheel of Fortune’ Is Branded ‘Elitist’ After Harsh Ruling Against Contestant With Regional Accent
Wheel of Fortune fans are claiming that the show “ripped off” one contestant on Tuesday’s (February 11) episode after not accepting her answer over a harsh “mispronunciation” ruling. And they branded the show “elitist” as the contestant they ruled against had a regional accent.
The player in question was Denise Zinzi from Oakton, Virginia, who was facing off against Chris Wiley from Meridianville, Alabama, and Yumemi Turk from Torrance, California.
Zinzi’s controversy came during the Mystery Round, where the contestants were trying to solve a four-word “Before and After” puzzle. When it came time for Zinzi to spin the wheel, she selected two Ns and a G.
This gave her a puzzle board that read: L O V E / L E T T E R / O _ / R E S I G N _ T I O N.”
Zinzi then attempted to solve, seemingly answering, “Love Letter Of Resination,” not clearly pronouncing the “G.”
There was a brief pause before host Ryan Seacrest said, “No, that’s not it.”
This allowed Turk to swoop in with the correct answer, saying, “Love Letter Of Resignation,” making sure to emphasize the “G.”
“That’s it, resiGnation,” Seacrest responded, highlighting where Zinzi went wrong in the judges’ eyes.
However, some viewers felt the show’s ruling was harsh and that they’d unfairly penalized Zinzi for her regional accent.
“@WheelofFortune You’ve done it again. The woman got the frikken G and you penalize her for mispronunciation. #elitists You should be ashamed of yourselves,” wrote one X user.
@WheelofFortune You’ve done it again. The woman got the frikken G and you penalize her for mispronunciation. #elitists You should be ashamed of yourselves pic.twitter.com/7GXooCYZmZ
— John V. Szeluga (@szeluga) February 12, 2025
Over on Reddit, one fan said, “I think they ripped Denise off, with the “Letter of Resignation” puzzle tonight. Bless her heart.”
“Another regional accent pronunciation. Filet Mignon vs Filet MiG-Non. Resignation vs ResiGnation. It’s weird but an argument can be made,” wrote another. “She asked for the G and solved the puzzle. She knew the word. The pronunciation was weird but intelligible and she knew the G was in there because she called it. They should have given it to her IMO.”
“Justice for Denise,” said another.
“Denise was ripped off,” wrote another viewer. “She literally guessed G and said resignation. SHE DESERVED THAT WIN.”
“Contestant didn’t pronounce a hard “g” in resignation and they said no?” added one fan, noting the show is “getting ridiculous.”
Another X user added, “Y’all robbed that resignation woman.”
““Wheel of Fortune” did it again. A female contestant, Denise, called all the right letters for the word “resignation” so it was obvious she knew the word, but she had a little trouble pronouncing it so they declared her answer incorrect,” said another.
“Wondering if she has an accent. Strange you couldn’t hear the “G”. “Resination” with the G on the board. Feel bad for her,” another added.
However, not everyone agreed, as others backed the show’s decision not to accept Zinzi’s response.
“Resination is not the same as resignation,” wrote one Reddit commenter.
“She didn’t solve the puzzle. How was she ripped off?” said another.
Another added, “She clearly mispronounced it.”
This is the second mispronunciation controversy in recent weeks, as last Tuesday’s (February 3) game saw a contestant denied the solve for giving a different pronunciation of the word “safari.”
Zinzi’s flubbed answer set her on the back foot, and she never recovered, ending the episode with a $1,000 goose egg. Meanwhile, Turk went on to win the episode with $37,950, though she didn’t solve the Bonus Round puzzle.
What did you think of this ruling? Was the contestant ripped off? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
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C
She needed to pronounce the G in resignation to win the puzzle. She did NOT have an accent. So she was ruled incorrect. She was not cheated out of the money.
28
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O
She said resination which is not what the word in the puzzle was. The contestants are told to read exactly what is on the board and the show can\'t just give people a pass because they didn\'t pronounce the words correctly.
22
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G
Resonation and resignation are two different words. She didn\'t solve it correctly.
16
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G
Get over it, resignation and resignation are two different words with two different meanings. They know the rules going into the show. You people need lives
13
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C
You spelled resination wrong. Should your comment be removed or ignored because you can’t spell or you didn’t reread to safeguard autocorrect? That woman’s answer can be very controversial too. Just as she made an innocent mistake like yours, you would penalize her.
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P
Oakton is a Northern Virginia DC suburb. Unless she\'s from somewhere else, we don\'t have accents here. And I bet there\'s a clause in the player\'s agreement that says answers must be given in STANDARD American English.
12
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C
I was baking pizzells at the time and was listening and heard her say the word after she asked for the G and when she pronounced it and they didn’t accept it, I walked away from my pizzell to see what I couldn’t believe happened and burned my cookies in awe that she got totally screwed. I brought it up tonight and wanted my husband to see it and we can’t find it on you tube anywhere. Because they were WRONG!
9
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C
We saw both episodes and believe both people were ripped off. Especially the last one.
9
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O
It didn\'t even sound like she knew the word was resignation even though she mispronounced it. When she got to the word, there was a long pause and I don\'t think it clicked with her what the word actually was. There was no accent issue. The people that get on the show are long time fans of the game and they know the rules.
8
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O
All the words are already there. It doesn\'t matter about the pronunciation. Everyone knows what it is. Ryan made a big mistake to call her wrong
8
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O
You mean the JUDGES called her wrong? It\'s not Ryan\'s call.
4
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G
Pronunciation is everything.
1
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O
She was not cheated. The g is not silent in resignation like it is in resign.
6
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P
I was surprised that they didn\'t give it to her. However, I learned proper English by copying pages of an encyclopedia and reading what I wrote to my mother. If I mispronounced a word, I would have to start reading at the top of the page. It was an error that I wouldn\'t have gotten away with.
6
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G
She clearly paused before she tried to say the word. Seems like she clearly didn’t know the correct pronunciation
2
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C
I think Wheel of Fortune is getting cheap trying to find any excuse not to give prizes away. Shame on you.
5
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O
it\'s literally the whole point of the show
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R
But they gave the prize away to the next contestant who pronounced \"resignation\" correctly.🤔
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G
I hope to someday see them have REALTOR in the answer and then have the answer be incorrect when the person says REALITER.
4
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C
I think the judges need to resign.....or be terminated. They are ruining Ryan\'s rapport as a host and the ruling is getting more disgusting. Pat needs to have a long talk with these judges or revamp the judges of the contestants plays. Bob Goen should also be improving in taking in contestants if he had seen this
4
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G
I don\'t resonate with the suggestion of resignation
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C
Growing up in Indiana, a very soft or silent \"g\" was common among Hoosiers\' pronounciation of this word.
3
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G
The next time they use this puzzle in Indiana, maybe they will accept the wrong word she said
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C
You probably also say warsh instead of wash. Pronunciation is very important to win the prize.
8
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C
For someone supposedly with an accent, I\'m not sure if I want to be Denise\'s shoes. To me she solved the puzzle and should have been given the point.
2
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C
The new show sucks. Host spends to much time with dumb interviews to cut down on puzzle time and needs language lessons
Your ripping off contestants
2
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G
That was wrong maybe that’s the way she learn to pronounce the word bring her back on show
1
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G
I believe she was robbed, just like the woman that mispronounced SAFARI sayng safairy. I have heard the pronunciation that way as I have heard resignation pronounced both ways. My wife says I pronounce Carribean wrong. I am from Texas & she is from Florida. So, we pronounce some words differently, but that does not mean they are wrong. Just saying.
1
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R
Spell it, speak it. Ruling stands!
1
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P
Two different words so she is wrong!
1
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G
It happened one other time when the puzzle was Seven swans a swimming and the lady didn\'t emphasize the G in swimming. Stupid.
1
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C
No doubt about it! She got ripped off! She called the letters she knew the word! But at least the show is consistent on ripping people off!
1
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B
Jeopardy would have accepted both of those answers on Safari and resignation because they realize that almost every area in the United States pronounces words a little bit different. If they said tomato instead of tomato would that be wrong too? I\'m pronouncing the second tomato as t o m a h t o. Tired of these creeps doing this!
1
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G
I have always felt that if they got all the letters they should automatically win. It\'s one thing if you don\'t have all the letters but I don\'t see the need to Read a complete puzzle and sometimes other contestants mispronounced words but were not penalized. I know that sometimes people don\'t always understand me when I am speaking to them I would hate to be a contestant on WOF and lose because of a so called mispronunciation. I saw that episode and did not understand why she was declared wrong allowing another contestant to Win a completely solved puzzle just because of the pronunciation. I have heard resignation pronounced resination I am an avid reader and consider myself fairly intelligent sometimes question pronunciation of certain words and wonder if I was mistaken about the pronunciation of a word and if the other person was wrong and I do think regional differences make a difference. Like the pronunciation of the name of a certain region or every the name of a city especially with Northerners and Southerners. Once again I don\'t understood why a Completely solved puzzle has to be read out loud to win. All the letters are there the puzzle is solved why is it so Important to read it aloud? I have noticed similar instances with mispronunciations (or so-called mispronunciations) on Jeopardy as well or sometimes insisting on a full name as an answer and other times allow just a last name as correct. If the judges were consistent would be one thing but they are not.
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G
I think she solved the puzzle & should have been given credit for it. I haven\'t cared for WOF much since Ryan became host...he is just too arrogant for this type of show
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P
That was an illiteracy on the contestant\'s part, as bad as pronouncing \"mischievous\" as four syllables as Mayim Bialik once did on \"Jeopardy!\" (Alex Trebek must be rolling over in his grave about that one!)
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O
Ryan is an ass! For all his money he is the worst dresser. Pants too short, coats too tight to begin with.
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R
I\'ve watched wheel of fortune for as long as I can remember, have always liked the show. I was iffy if I\'d enjoy it with Ryan, but after a few shows he caught on and is doing a fantastic job. He involves Vanna a lot more than Pat ever did and he has fun with the contestants. I think the show is much better now
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P
Zinzi had hard time with speaking clearly.dont blame judges,
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G
Let\'s reward mediocrity. She mispronounced the word...plain and simple. But let\'s reward her because she was close.
The contestants are advised prior to competing of pronouncing words correctly. But, we feel bad for her. Let\'s give it to her.
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O
Sigh of Resignation. What to do.
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B
Can you imagine if they had to take into account regional or ethnic pronunciations? It would ruin the game. Everyone could claim that their mispronunciation was due to an accent. You know that players have to agree to the terms that pronunciations have to be in standard English. Besides, I heard her speak and didn\'t catch a strong accent at all. She only has an accent with one word?
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O
I agree with Wheel of Fortune.
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G
Really getting nit picking
She called an n and they knew she knew it
What a stupid call Ryacheck with a judge
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G
You don\'t have to just know what the word is or the meaning of it; you have to pronounce it correctly. You can hear her hesitate as though she\'s trying to figure out how to pronounce the word, and then she pronounces it incorrectly.
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G
She did not pronounce the word properly. You can actually hear her trying to sound the word out and then leaving out the G. This was not a matter of dialect or accent.
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C
Load of dog poop. Ryan Seacrete Oops I spelled it wrong, Seacrest. Pat Sajak he isn\'t. I\'ve never seen so many flubs from one host as I\'ve seen from him. The contestant guessed the letter, so knew what the word was. With her accent she pronounced it correctly. Judges need to make correct rullings, to many mess ups lately.
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G
Reminds me of Stewie from Family Guy and the way he pronounces Cool Whip with the wh sound very pronounced.
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O
The show has lost its appeal for me, and I was a loyal watcher for decades. It\'s not a happy place to spend a half hour any longer.
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C
She was 100% ripped off. I was distracted the rest of the game because I could t believe they didn’t give it to her-she clearly knew the puzzle having guessed the G.
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B
What if someone said ax instead of ask?
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G
You certainly owe Arzice and Zinzi a return trip at the very least ....come on Wheel, you\'re better people than that!
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P
If you don’t know how to speak English, don’t go on the show, very simple. I still believe they made a huge mistake having Ryan Seacrest as the host. Just wish I could still watch it. Please let me know if they retire him.
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O
I believe she was cheated. It was her dialect and was clearly understood by me. I said to the TV, “You cheated her.” Last week, it happened to another lady that had a Wisconsin, Minnesota, or North Dakota dialect. Yes, the show has gotten worse by not understanding everyone doesn’t speak exactly the same.
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R
I agree, she was ripped off. At the very least, she should be given another spot on a future show.
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