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 “might be”
- absentee nounA person who is absent from his or her employment, school, post, duty, etc.
- appeal noun, verbAn application to a superior court or judge for a decision or order by an inferior court or judge to be reviewed and overturned.
- big bang noun, proper noun(astrophysics) a physical theory that describes how the universe expanded from an infinitely small, hot, and dense point.
- blue wall of silence noun(idiomatic) Strict secretiveness maintained by the members of a police force with respect to information which might be contrary to their i…
- chopping block nounA thick wooden slab used as a cutting surface for preparing food, splitting firewood or kindling, etc.
- clinician nounAny healthcare practitioner working at the point of care, in clinical practice (e.g., physicians in clinical medicine, nurses in nursing pr…
- concurring opinion noun(law) An opinion which follows the outcome of the majority of the court, but might be reached in a differing manner.
- convenient adjectiveServing to reduce a difficulty, or accessible with minimum difficulty; expedient.
- crescent noun, adjective, verb, proper nounThe figure of the moon as it appears between its first or last quarter and the new moon, with concave and convex edges terminating in point…
- dementia noun(pathology) A progressive decline in cognitive function due to damage or disease in the brain beyond what might be expected from normal agi…
- denial nounAn assertion of untruth.
- die verb, noun, adverb(intransitive) To stop living; to become dead; to undergo death.
- ding-dong adjective, noun, verb(informal) Closely fought.
- drover nounA person who drives animals (which are on foot or on the hoof, walking to some destination), especially cattle or sheep, and especially ove…
- dwell noun, verb(engineering) A period of time in which a system or component remains in a given state.
- emendation noun(uncountable) The act of altering for the better, or correcting what is erroneous or faulty; correction; improvement.
- explicit adjective, noun, phraseVery specific, clear, or detailed.
- fiddle with verbTo manipulate or toy with (an object), especially in a nervous, restless or aimless manner.
- head start noun, proper noun(idiomatic) An advantage consisting in starting a competition or task earlier than might be expected; given (or taken), for example, prior …
- heterological adjective(grammar) Of a word, not describing itself.
- heterology noun(biology) A lack of correspondence between biomolecules or body parts (e.g., proteins, tissues, bones, limbs) that reflects a difference in…
- homeless adjective, nounLacking a permanent place of residence.
- idea noun(philosophy) An abstract archetype of a given thing, compared to which real-life examples are seen as imperfect approximations; pure essenc…
- in any event prepositional phrase(idiomatic) At any rate: anyhow, regardless (emphasizing that a point doesn't matter or hardly matters).
- irony noun, adjective(rhetoric) The quality of a statement that, when taken in context, may actually mean something different from, or the opposite of, what is …
- kachina nounA vaguely ancestral anthropomorphic spirit being, associated with clouds and rain or personifying the power in the sun, the earth, or corn …
- listen in verbTo listen without participating.
- medicine noun, verb(uncountable, countable) A substance which specifically promotes healing when ingested or consumed in some way; a pharmaceutical drug.
- mere adjective, noun, verb, proper nounJust, only; no more than, pure and simple, neither more nor better than might be expected.
- might noun, adjective, verb(countable, uncountable) Power, strength, force, or influence held by a person or group.
- old-timer nounAn elder.
- plain clothes nounCivilian clothes worn by someone in an occupation or organization for which a uniform might be expected, as the police or clergy.
- proverbial adjective, nounOf, resembling, or expressed as a proverb, cliché, fable, or fairy tale.
- qintar noun(plural: qindarka or qintars) An Albanian coin equal to one hundredth of a lek.
- romantic adjective, noun(chiefly historical) Of a work of literature, a writer etc.: being like or having the characteristics of a romance, or poetic tale of a myt…
- santa noun, proper nounAn instance of someone dressed up as Santa.
- stickiness nounThe property of sticking or adhering; adhesion.
- story noun, verb, interjection, proper nounAn account of real or fictional events.
- stovepipe noun, verbSheet-metal tubing used as a chimney for a stove or furnace.
- surface area noun(geometry) The total area on the surface of an object.