How To Pronounce Air
air
UK
Phonemic
/eə/
Phonetic
[eəʴ]
US
Phonemic
/er/
In British English, air is pronounced /eə/. The narrow phonetic transcription is [eəʴ]. In American English, it is pronounced /er/.
Air has one syllable. The British and American pronunciations are different, so listen to both.
Slashes / / show the phonemic transcription, the sounds that change meaning. Square brackets [ ] show the phonetic transcription, with the finer detail of how the sounds are actually made.
Syllables, Stress And Endings
Syllables And Stress
eə
Air has one syllable in British English.
air + -s
-s (plural, possessive or singular verb) is /z/ after a voiced consonant or a vowel sound.
UK
/eəz/
US
/erz/
air + -ed
-ed (past tense or past participle) is /d/ after a voiced consonant or a vowel sound.
UK
/eəd/
US
/erd/
air + -ing
-ing is always /ɪŋ/. In UK English a linking /r/ is added because the spelling ends in -r.
UK
/ˈeə.rɪŋ/
US
/ˈer.ɪŋ/
Words That Rhyme With Air
Questions About Air
How do you pronounce air in British English?
In British English, air is pronounced /eə/. The narrow phonetic transcription is [eəʴ].
How do you pronounce air in American English?
In American English, air is pronounced /er/.
Do British and American English pronounce air the same way?
No. British English has /eə/ and American English has /er/.
Nearby Words
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