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 “circa”
- circaea nounenchanter's nightshade
- circadian adjective(biology) Of, relating to, or showing rhythmic behaviour with a period of approximately 24 hours; especially of a biological process.
- circaetus nounharrier eagles
- Circassian adjective, noun, proper nounOf or pertaining to Circassia or Circassians.
- circadian rhythm noun(biology, sleep medicine) The internal body clock that regulates the roughly 24-hour cycle of biological processes in animals and plants.
- annual adjective, noun, proper nounHappening once every year.
- Aristophanes proper nounAn Ancient Greek male name, most famously borne by a playwright who lived from circa 446 BC to circa 386 BC.
- Arius proper nounA transliteration of the Ancient Greek male given name Ἄρειος (Áreios), Arius, notably borne by Arius, circa 250–336, a priest in Alexandri…
- biological clock noun(biology) Any of several mechanisms that regulate the periodicity of biological functions, such as the circadian rhythm.
- ca preposition, proper noun, nounAlternative spelling of ca., circa.
- Chinese paddlefish nounAn extinct freshwater paddlefish (†Psephurus gladius) (extinct since circa 2004).
- court card noun(card games) A king, queen, jack, or sometimes ace in a standard deck of playing cards.
- cynewulf nounAnglo-Saxon poet (circa 9th century)
- cynwulf nounAnglo-Saxon poet (circa 9th century)
- dervish noun(historical) A citizen or inhabitant of Darawiish (circa 1895–1920 C.E.), an anti-colonial polity in modern Somalia headed by Sufis.
- diurnal adjective, nounHappening or occurring during daylight, or primarily active during that time.
- Easter Day proper nounEaster Sunday, the Christian holiday commemorating the Resurrection.
- Edwardian adjective, nounOf the period in British history from circa 1901 to 1910, when Edward VII ruled the British Empire.
- enchanter's nightshade nounAny of the genus Circaea of perennial plants, having opposite and petiolate leaves
- Hippocrates proper nounA transliteration of the Ancient Greek male given name Ἱπποκράτης (Hippokrátēs), notably borne by Hippocrates of Cos, an Ancient Greek phys…
- jet lag noun(aviation, medicine) A physical condition caused by crossing time zones during flight; often the result of disruption to the circadian rhyt…
- kongfuze nounChinese philosopher whose ideas and sayings were collected after his death and became the basis of a philosophical doctrine known a Confuci…
- lithic adjective, nounRelating to stone.
- lysimachus nounMacedonian general under Alexander the Great; with Seleucus he defeated Antigonus and Demetrius at the battle of Ipsus (circa 355-281 BC)
- martial adjective, noun, proper noun(comparable) Of, relating to, or suggestive of war; warlike.
- neolithic adjective, proper noun, noun(informal) hopelessly outdated
- Old Italian proper nounThe continuum of languages derived from Vulgar Latin spoken in the Italian peninsula between circa 960 and the establishment of the Accadem…
- Oviedo proper nounThe capital city of Asturias, in northwestern Spain, near the Cantabrian Mountains, founded circa 760.
- Paleo-Indian adjective, noun(archaeology) Pertaining to Native American culture before circa 8,500 BCE.
- pheidias nounancient Greek sculptor (circa 500-432 BC)
- phidias nounancient Greek sculptor (circa 500-432 BC)
- pre-Socratic adjective, noun(historical) Existing in Ancient Greece before the flourishing of the philosopher Socrates (circa 469–399 BCE).
- Smyrna proper noun(chiefly historical) An ancient port city on the Aegean coast of western Asia Minor founded in circa the 11ᵗʰ century BC on the site of the…
- timeless adjective, nounEternal.
- uppish adjective(since circa 1678) Having plenty of money.
- verrazano nounFlorentine navigator who explored the eastern coast of North America (circa 1485-1528)
- verrazzano nounFlorentine navigator who explored the eastern coast of North America (circa 1485-1528)