How To Pronounce Fail
fail
UK
Phonemic
/feɪl/
Phonetic
[feɪɫ]
US
Phonemic
/feɪl/
In British English, fail is pronounced /feɪl/. The narrow phonetic transcription is [feɪɫ]. In American English, it is pronounced /feɪl/.
Fail has one syllable. British and American speakers say it the same way.
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
feɪl
Fail has one syllable in British English.
fail + -s
-s (plural, possessive or singular verb) is /z/ after a voiced consonant or a vowel sound.
UK
/feɪlz/
US
/feɪlz/
fail + -ed
-ed (past tense or past participle) is /d/ after a voiced consonant or a vowel sound.
UK
/feɪld/
US
/feɪld/
fail + -ing
-ing is always /ɪŋ/.
UK
/ˈfeɪ.lɪŋ/
US
/ˈfeɪ.lɪŋ/
Words That Rhyme With Fail
Questions About Fail
How do you pronounce fail in British English?
In British English, fail is pronounced /feɪl/. The narrow phonetic transcription is [feɪɫ].
How do you pronounce fail in American English?
In American English, fail is pronounced /feɪl/.
Do British and American English pronounce fail the same way?
Yes. Both are /feɪl/.
Nearby Words
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