Pronunciation guide: IPA symbols, stress and word endings
Vowels
| iː | see | ɪ | sit | e / ɛ | bed | æ | cat |
| ɑː | father | ɒ | hot (UK) | ɔː | law | ʊ | put |
| uː | too | ʌ | cup | ɜː | bird | ə | about |
| eɪ | day | aɪ | my | ɔɪ | boy | aʊ | now |
| əʊ / oʊ | go (UK / US) | ɪə | near | eə | hair | ʊə | tour |
Consonants that look unusual
| θ | thin | ð | this | ʃ | she | ʒ | measure |
| tʃ | church | dʒ | judge | ŋ | sing | j | yes |
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
Results for “4/4”
- backbeat noun(music) The sharp accent on the second and fourth beats of rock music in 4/4 time.
- crotchet noun, verb(music) A musical note one beat long in 4/4 time.
- gavotte noun, verbA French dance, in either 4/4 or 2/2 time.
- half rest noun(music) A pause or interval of silence equal in duration to two quarter rests or one half of a whole rest. In common or 4/4 time, its durat…
- quarter note noun(Canada, US, music) A musical note one beat long in 4/4 time.
- rock noun, verb, proper noun(uncountable) The naturally occurring aggregate of solid mineral matter that constitutes a significant part of the earth's crust.
- rock music noun(music) A broad genre of popular music, including especially those styles ultimately derived from rock and roll, employing electrical ampli…
- semibreve noun(music, UK, Ireland, Commonwealth) A musical note four beats long in 4/4 time; a whole note (US)
- tango noun, verb, proper noun(dance) A standard ballroom dance in 4/4 time; or a social dance, the Argentine tango.
- techno noun(music) A repetitive style of music originally produced for use in a continuous DJ set. The central rhythmic component is most often in com…
- whole note noun(Canada, US, music) A semibreve, a musical note four beats long in 4/4 time.
- whole rest noun(music) A pause or interval of silence equal in duration to two half rests or one half of a breve rest. In common or 4/4 time, its duration…