Macon’s perplexing mystery: How do you say Centreplex?

It is one of the great local mysteries.

Or at least one of those area curiosities that persists.

It has to do with the way we talk, or read.

Or, rather, how we say a certain word.

That word? Centreplex.

It is the name of Macon’s trio of arena venues — the City Auditorium, the Coliseum and its adjoining Wilson Convention Centre.

Do you say “center-plex” or “cent-ruh-plex”?

In the two decades since the name was created, “cent-ruh-plex” seems to have even become the go-to pronunciation.

But that doesn’t necessarily make it correct.

About 10 years ago, I wrote a piece for The Telegraph on the origin of the name.

A language expert told me the proper pronunciation is “center-plex,” without the “ruh” in the middle.

Those who bestowed the Centreplex name on the three venues wanted something that looked fancy, and a British-looking spelling somehow fit the bill.

Trouble was, no one took the local tongue into account.

Which pronunciation is correct?

That’s up for interpretation.

Twenty years on, we’re still sort of stuck in the “cent-ruh.”

This story was originally published August 23, 2016 at 1:37 PM with the headline "Macon’s perplexing mystery: How do you say Centreplex?."