Guide to IPA Pronunciation Symbols

Vowels

ask, bat, glad cot, bomb, caught, paw bet, fed about, banana, collide i very, any, thirty i: eat, bead, bee id, bid, pit foot, should, put u: boot, two, coo under, putt, bud merge, bird, further e eight, wade, bay a ice, bite, tie a out, gown, plow o oyster, coil, boy o oat, own, zone, blow car, heart, bizarre e bare, fair, wear i near, deer, mere, pier o boar, port, door, shore u boor, tour, insure British cot, bomb British caught, paw, port : British merge, bird British oat, own, zone, blow British near, deer British bare, fair British boor, tour
Consonants

b d f g h j

baby, labor, cab day, kid just, badger, fudge then, either, bathe foe, tough, buff go, dagger, bag hot, ahead yes, vineyard

k k l l m n n p p r s t t t t v w z

lacquer, flock, skin cat, keep, account law, hollow pedal, battle, final pool, boil mat, hemp, hammer, rim new, tent, tenor, run button, satin, kitten rung, hang, swinger lapse, top, lip, speed pay, pet, appear rope, arrive sad, mist, kiss shoe, mission, slush mat, stick, late toe, attack later, catty, riddle batch, nature choose, chin, achieve thin, ether, bath vat, never, cave wet, software zoo, easy, buzz vision, azure, beige button, kitten, satin

Other Symbols high stress: penmanship low stress: penmanship

indicates British pronunciation variant

Consonants

Vowels

IPA

Examples

IPA

Full vowels

... followed by R[7][8]

buy, cab

PALM,

father, bra

r star (also /r./) r moral, forage

START,

bard, barn, snarl,

dye, cad, do

LOT,

pod, John[9]

thy, breathe, father

TRAP,

pad, shall, ban [10]

r barrow, marry[11]

giant, badge, jam

PRICE,

ride, file, fine, pie[12]

ar Ireland, sapphire (/ar./)[8]

phi, caff, fan

a how ()[1] guy, bag h

high, ahead

MOUTH,

loud, foul, down,

ar hour (/ar./)[8]

DRESS,

bed, fell, men[13]

r error, merry[13]

e j[2]
yes, yacht

FACE,

made, fail, vein, pay

r Mary (/er./)[14][8] r mirror, Sirius

SQUARE,

scared, scarce, cairn,

k
sky, crack

KIT,

lid, fill, bin

lie, sly, gal

i sea

FLEECE,

seed, feel, mean,

r (/ir./)[15]

NEAR,

beard, fierce, serious

my, smile, cam

fall, straw[16]

THOUGHT,

Maud, dawn,

NORTH,

born, war, Laura (/r./)

nigh, snide, can

CHOICE,

void, foil, coin, boy

r loir, coir (/r./)[8]

sang, sink, singer

o go[17]

GOAT,

code, foal, bone,

r (/or./)[18] r courier

FORCE,

boar, more, oral

finger, anger

FOOT,

good, full, woman

thigh, math

u chew, do p
pie, spy, cap

GOOSE,

food, fool, soon,

r boor, moor, tourist (/ur./)[19]

ju queue,you[20] r
rye, try, very[3]

cued, cute, mule, tune,

jr cure

r borough, hurry s
sigh, mass

STRUT,

mud, dull, gun[21]

shy, cash, emotion

r (//)[22]

NURSE,

word, girl, fern, furry

tie, sty, cat, atom

Reduced vowels

China, catch

Rosas, a mission, comma

LETTER,

perceive (also //)[22]

vie, have

roses, emission[23] (either or ) n button

wye, swine

omission[24] (either o or )

m rhythm

hw

why[4]

([j])[25](either or )

beautiful, curriculum

l bottle

zoo, has

i serious[26] (either or i())

HAPPY,

, nasturtium)

(vowel is frequently dropped:

equation, pleasure, vision, beige[5]

Marginal consonants

Stress

Syllabification

ugh, loch, Chanukah[6]

IPA

Examples

IPA

Examples

uh-oh /o/

intonation /ntnen/, battleship /btlp/[28]

[27]

hire /har/, higher /ha.r/ moai /mo.a/, Windhoek /vnt.hk/ Vancouveria /vn.kuvri/ Mikey /maki/, Myki /ma.ki/[29]

Consonants

Vowels

IPA

Examples

IPA

Full vowels

... followed by R[7][8]

buy, cab

PALM,

father, bra

r star (also /r./) r moral, forage

START,

bard, barn, snarl,

dye, cad, do

LOT,

pod, John[9]

thy, breathe, father

TRAP,

pad, shall, ban [10]

r barrow, marry[11]

giant, badge, jam

PRICE,

ride, file, fine, pie[12]

ar Ireland, sapphire (/ar./)[8]

phi, caff, fan

a how ()[1] guy, bag h

high, ahead

MOUTH,

loud, foul, down,

ar hour (/ar./)[8]

DRESS,

bed, fell, men[13]

r error, merry[13]

e j[2]
yes, yacht

FACE,

made, fail, vein, pay

r Mary (/er./)[14][8] r mirror, Sirius

SQUARE,

scared, scarce, cairn,

k
sky, crack

KIT,

lid, fill, bin

i sea

FLEECE,

seed, feel, mean,

r (/ir./)[15]

NEAR,

beard, fierce, serious

lie, sly, gal

fall, straw[16]

THOUGHT,

Maud, dawn,

NORTH,

born, war, Laura (/r./)

my, smile, cam

CHOICE,

void, foil, coin, boy

r loir, coir (/r./)[8]

nigh, snide, can

o go[17]
sang, sink, singer

GOAT,

code, foal, bone,

r (/or./)[18] r courier

FORCE,

boar, more, oral

finger, anger

FOOT,

good, full, woman

u chew, do
thigh, math

GOOSE,

food, fool, soon,

r boor, moor, tourist (/ur./)[19]

pie, spy, cap

ju queue,you[20]

cued, cute, mule, tune,

jr cure

rye, try, very[3]

r borough, hurry
STRUT,

mud, dull, gun[21]

sigh, mass

r (//)[22]

NURSE,

word, girl, fern, furry

shy, cash, emotion

Reduced vowels

tie, sty, cat, atom

Rosas, a mission, comma

LETTER,

perceive (also //)[22]

China, catch

roses, emission[23] (either or ) n button

vie, have

omission[24] (either o or )

m rhythm

wye, swine

([j])[25](either or )

beautiful, curriculum

l bottle

hw

why[4]

i serious[26] (either or i())

HAPPY,

, nasturtium)

(vowel is frequently dropped:

zoo, has

equation, pleasure, vision, beige[5]

Stress

Syllabification

Marginal consonants

IPA

Examples

IPA

Examples

ugh, loch, Chanukah[6]

intonation /ntnen/, battleship /btlp/[28]

[27]

uh-oh /o/

hire /har/, higher /ha.r/ moai /mo.a/, Windhoek /vnt.hk/ Vancouveria /vn.kuvri/ Mikey /maki/, Myki /ma.ki/[29]