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 “in action”
- accolade noun, verbAn expression of approval; praise.
- active adjective, nounHaving the power or quality of acting; causing change; communicating action or motion; acting;—opposed to passive, that receives.
- actual adjective, noun(chiefly theology) relating to a person's acts or deeds; active, practical
- afoot adverb, adjectiveOn foot. (means of locomotion, walking)
- at work prepositional phraseUsed other than figuratively or idiomatically: see at, work. At one's workplace.
- aztreonam nounA synthetic monobactam originally isolated from Chromobacterium violaceum, similar in action to penicillin
- blocked adjectiveObstructed, so that through movement or flow is prevented or impeded.
- bog spavin nounA lesion of the hock joint of the horse, consisting in distension of the capsule enclosing the joint, usually arising suddenly from a sprai…
- burlesque adjective, noun, verb(dated) Parodical; parodic
- byplay noun(theater) Any action, carried out onstage during a performance, apart from the main action.
- commit verb, noun(transitive) To give in trust; to put into charge or keeping; to entrust; to consign; used with to or formerly unto.
- concur verbTo agree (in action or opinion); to have a common opinion; to coincide; to correspond.
- constancy noun(uncountable) The quality of being constant; steadiness or faithfulness in action, affections, purpose, etc.
- curb noun, verbA concrete margin along the edge of a road; a kerb (UK, Australia, New Zealand).
- deft adjectiveQuick and neat in action; skillful.
- deftly adverbIn a deft manner; quickly and neatly in action.
- deftness nounSkilfulness, being quick in action.
- drumhead court-martial noun(military) A court-martial held in the field to hear urgent charges of offences committed in action.
- enabling act noun, proper noun(politics) Legislation piece enacted by a legislative body that authorizes a dependent entity to exercise specific powers or undertake cert…
- energize verb(transitive) To invigorate; to make energetic.
- exclusive right noun(law) The power, granted by the government to persons, to allow or disallow others from taking certain actions (through legal force)
- exercise noun, verb(countable) Any activity designed to develop or hone a skill or ability.
- experience noun, verbThe effect upon the judgment or feelings produced by any event, whether witnessed or participated in; personal and direct impressions as co…
- feeble adjective, verbDeficient in physical strength.
- function noun, verbWhat something does or is used for.
- fury noun, proper nounExtreme anger.
- handsome adjective, verbHaving a pleasing appearance, good-looking, attractive, particularly:
- jiggle noun, verbA relatively weak shaking movement; the condition or state of weakly shaking.
- kick back verb(informal, intransitive, idiomatic) To relax; to laze.
- magnificent adjectiveGrand, elegant or splendid in appearance.
- noun noun, verb, proper noun(grammar, strictly) A word that functions as the name of a specific object or set of objects, such as person, animal, place, word, thing, p…
- progestational adjective(biology, medicine) Describing the phase of the menstrual cycle before gestation and after ovulation, during which progesterone is secreted.
- prudent adjectiveSagacious in adapting means to ends; circumspect in action, or in determining any line of conduct.
- ready adjective, verb, noun, proper nounPrepared for immediate action or use.
- relay noun, verb(hunting, rare) A new set of hounds.
- resolve verb, noun(transitive) To find a solution to (a problem).
- reticular formation nounPart of the brain that is involved in actions such as awaking/sleeping cycle, and filtering incoming stimuli to discriminate irrelevant bac…
- saccharine adjective, noun(dated) Of or relating to sugar; sugary.
- soft adjective, interjection, noun, adverbEasily giving way under pressure.
- treat verb, noun, proper noun(intransitive) To negotiate, discuss terms, bargain (for or with).