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 “gaw”
- gawk noun, verbA cuckoo; (sometimes by extension) any gawky bird.
- gawp verb, noun(chiefly UK) To stare stupidly or rudely; to gawk.
- gawky adjective, nounAwkward, ungainly; lacking grace or dexterity in movement.
- Gawain proper nounOne of the greatest knights in Arthurian legend; he is King Arthur's nephew and a Knight of the Round Table.
- gawker nounSomeone who gawks; someone who stares stupidly.
- gawkiness nounThe quality of being gawky.
- gewgaw noun, adjectiveA showy trifle, a toy; a showy trinket, ornament or decoration.
- megawatt noun, adjectiveOne million (1 000 000) watts, an amount of power large enough to power such things as an entire commercial building or a small passenger a…
- Sacagawea proper noun, noun(historical) The Native American girl who led explorers Lewis and Clark across the United States.
- aba noun, proper nounA coarse, often striped, felted fabric from the Middle East, woven from goat or camel hair.
- bauble nounA cheap showy ornament or piece of jewellery; a gewgaw.
- Brunei proper nounA country in Southeast Asia. Capital: Bandar Seri Begawan.
- electricity nounOriginally, a property of amber and certain other nonconducting substances to attract lightweight material when rubbed, or the cause of thi…
- fizgig noun, verb(archaic) A flirtatious, coquettish girl, inclined to gad or gallivant about; a gig, a giglot, a jillflirt.
- folderol noun(uncountable) Nonsense or foolishness.
- goop noun, verb(informal, usually uncountable) A thick, slimy substance; goo.
- kickshaw nounA dainty or delicacy.
- Sacajawea proper noun, nounAlternative form of Sacagawea.
- tinny adjectiveOf or pertaining to or resembling tin.
- unto conjunction, preposition(obsolete, poetic) Up to the time or degree that; until.
- washington noun, proper nounSynonym of agawan base (a team game)
- Yokohama proper nounThe capital city of Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, near Tokyo.