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 “on the surface”
- abrasion nounThe act of abrading, wearing, or rubbing off; the wearing away by friction.
- absorptivity nounThe quality of being absorptive; absorptiveness.
- accretion noun(uncountable, also figurative) Increase by natural growth, especially the gradual increase of organic bodies by the internal addition of ma…
- adsorption nounThe adhesion of a liquid or gas on the surface of a solid material, forming a thin film on the surface.
- belt noun, verb, proper noun(clothing) A band worn around the waist to hold clothing to one's body (usually pants), hold weapons (such as a gun or sword), or serve as …
- belt down verb(weather) To beat down on the surface.
- bobble noun, verbA furry ball attached on top of a hat.
- boot out verb(transitive, colloquial) Emphatic synonym of kick out: to remove, to eject, to expel; to dismiss (from a position, job, etc.).
- calm adjective, noun, verb(of a person) Peaceful, quiet, especially free from anger and anxiety.
- CD4 noun(countable, uncountable, immunology) A glycoprotein found on the surface of helper T cells and several other types of immune cells.
- CD8 noun(countable, uncountable, immunology) A glycoprotein found on the surface of cytotoxic T cells and several other types of immune cells.
- chapeau noun, interjectionA hat.
- chatter mark noun(engineering) One of the fine undulations or ripples formed on the surface of work by a cutting tool which chatters.
- chemisorb verb(transitive, physical chemistry) To adsorb a substance on the surface of another by chemical bonding.
- chemisorption noun(physical chemistry) the process in which a substance is adsorbed on the surface of another by means of chemical rather than physical bondi…
- chevron noun, verb(heraldry) A wide inverted V placed on a shield.
- coldwork noun, verbThe elimination of flaws and rough or sharp areas on the surface of blown or cast glass objects; usually achieved by some combination of gr…
- condylion noun(anatomy) The most lateral point on the surface of the condyle of the mandible
- continent noun, adjective, proper noun(geography, geology) One of the main contiguous landmasses, separated by water or geological features, on the surface of a planet, sometime…
- convolution nounA twist or fold.
- cosmetic adjective, nounImparting or improving beauty, particularly the beauty of the complexion.
- cradle noun, verbA bed or cot for a baby, oscillating on rockers or swinging on pivots.
- crispy adjective, nounHaving a crisp texture; brittle yet tender.
- cross-dress verbTo wear clothes typically associated with the opposite sex.
- cuticle nounThe strip of hardened skin at the base and sides of a fingernail or toenail.
- dorsum nounThe back of the tongue, used for articulating dorsal consonants.
- dross noun, verbResidue that forms as a scum on the surface of molten metal from oxidation.
- dry fly noun(fishing) A fly used in fly fishing, designed to float in or on the surface of the water
- ectoparasite nounA parasite that lives on the surface of a host organism; such as the Demodex mite, which lives in human hair and eyelashes.
- efflorescence noun(botany) The production of flowers.
- efflorescent adjectiveBursting into flower.
- electrocardiograph nounA device used in the diagnosis and detection of heart abnormalities that measures electric potentials on the surface of the body and create…
- electroplater nounSomeone who uses electroplating techniques to apply a thin layer of metal on the surface of another metal.
- embossed adjectiveWith raised letters or images on the surface.
- enation noun(botany) A small outgrowth on the surface of a plant organ.
- epicentre noun, verb(seismology) The point on the land or water surface directly above the focus, or hypocentre, of an earthquake.
- exostosis nounA benign, bony growth, often covered with cartilage, on the surface of a bone or tooth.
- externally adverbon the surface or the outside
- flambé adjective, noun, verb(cooking) Being, or having been, flambéed.
- floating adjective, nounThat floats or float.