‘Jeopardy’ Fans Upset After All 3 Contestants Fumble Answer’s Pronunciation

After all three contestants mispronounced the correct answer to a clue on an episode of Jeopardy! hosted by Mayim Bialik, viewers shared their upset online.

Fans weren't disappointed that all three players–Juveria Zaheer, a psychiatrist from Ontario, and Sami Casanova, an actuary from New York City, and this week's returning champ, Hannah Wilson, a data scientist from Chicago–failed to pronounce the answer correctly, but rather the way in which the show posed the question and enforced one of its rules.

The May 8 clue read: "The author and former prisoner that said 'socialism of any type and shade leads to a total destruction of the human spirit.'"

Bialik asked Zaheer to answer first, and though she guessed the right author, [Aleksandr] Solzhenitsyn, she didn't say the name correctly.

Both Casanova and Wilson, whose three-day winning streak before Monday's game totaled $90,601, also correctly guessed Solzhenitsyn but didn't pronounce the Russian novelist's name correctly.

The instance quickly became the talk of the episode's recap shared in the subreddit dedicated to all things Jeopardy!, with fans torn over how the game played out.

Related: Fans Call Out 'Misleading' Final 'Jeopardy' Clue That Left 3 Contestants Confused

"Something rubbed me the wrong way about that Solzhenitsyn clue; the show usually gives some strong leeway for if you can pronounce a response in a reasonable way given a spelling, and all 3 definitely knew who the clue was referring to," one user by the name of @GutsyMan wrote in part. "I don't think it mattered in the long run of the game, but it sets an awkward precedent for the future."

@Jaysjep2, the user who originally posted the cap, agreed, replying, "IMO, Hannah's pronunciation fit within the guideline of being reasonably supported by the spelling, so should have been accepted," as did a third Redditor (@grandmamimma) who added: "Yes, the judges have show [sic] wide tolerance on foreign names and titles this season, like "ILE-wize" for Edelweiss. Juveria and Sami clearly botched the second syllable, but Hannah's pronunciation of "sole-za-NIT-chen" was the one I remembered hearing when he won the 1970 Nobel Prize.

A fourth viewer, @Richard_Babley, noted that this was "A good reason for them to abandon these types of clues."

"It’s one thing with clues that ask about translation of common French or Spanish words or idioms, but Russian has several letters that are difficult for Americans (And I say that as someone who studied Russian)," they added. "If they want to reference this author, for example, his name should be part of the clue with the correct response having to do with his life."

Some fans also pointed out previous episodes where the judges were more lenient, only aiding further frustration.

Twitter users also roasted the show over Monday's episode for similar reasons.

Despite the tough clue (and even stricter rule enforcement), Wilson still walked away as a champ, adding $34,200 and another day to her winning streak that, so far, totals $124,801 across four days.

Fans can tune in to Tuesday night's episode to see the returning champ go head-to-head against Raquel Matta, a copy editor from California, and Joe Forti, a project manager from New Hampshire.

Next: ‘Jeopardy’ Contestant’s Wreck of a Final Answer Has Fans in an Uproar