Klryz
Pronunciation guide: IPA symbols, stress and word endings

Vowels

iːseeɪsite / ɛbedæcat
ɑːfatherɒhot (UK)ɔːlawʊput
uːtooʌcupɜːbirdəabout
eɪdayaɪmyɔɪboyaʊnow
əʊ / oʊgo (UK / US)ɪəneareəhairʊətour

Consonants that look unusual

θthinðthisʃsheʒmeasure
tʃchurchdʒjudgeŋsingjyes

p b t d k g f v s z h m n l r w sound as in ordinary English spelling.

Marks

  • ˈ main stress, before the stressed syllable: /ˈwɔːtə/ water · ˌ lighter (secondary) stress: /ˌʌndəˈstænd/ understand
  • ː a long vowel · (r) an r said only in accents that pronounce it (most American, Scottish, Irish)

Common word endings

  • -s / -es (plurals; he/she form of verbs): /s/ after voiceless sounds (cats), /z/ after voiced (dogs), /ɪz/ after s, z, sh, ch, j sounds (buses, watches). Spelling: -es after s, x, z, ch, sh; consonant + y → -ies (city → cities).
  • -ed (past): /t/ after voiceless sounds (walked), /d/ after voiced (played), /ɪd/ after t or d (wanted). Spelling: love → loved, stop → stopped, carry → carried.
  • -ing: make → making, run → running, see → seeing.
  • Irregular: go, went, gone · be, was, been · see, saw, seen · man → men · child → children · mouse → mice.
  • Older (King James) forms: -eth = -s (he loveth = he loves) · -est with “thou” (thou lovest) · spake = spoke.

English Dictionary · 107,383 entries · Sources & licences

low-key

UK /ˌləʊˈkiː/ · US /ˌloʊˈki/ adjective, adverb

Forms lowkey low key lowk LWK

  1. adjective (art, photography) Dark; characterized by dark tones and muted colors.
  2. adjective (figuratively, by extension) Restrained, subtle, not trying to attract attention. “She deserves an Oscar for her low-key performance in that movie.”
  3. adverb (colloquial) In a low-key or surreptitious manner; secretively; understatedly; on the down-low.
  4. adverb (colloquial, chiefly Canada, US, originally African-American Vernacular) Used as a downtoner; kind of.
  5. adverb (colloquial, African-American Vernacular, meiosis) Actually; seriously.

Synonyms

furtively low-keyed subdued

Antonyms

high-key bedizened blatant blingish brash campy catchpenny chichi chintzy corny crass crude

Etymology

From low + key.

Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 — from the Wiktionary entry “low-key”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details