How To Pronounce Mean
mean
UK
Phonemic
/miːn/
Phonetic
[mĩːn]
US
Phonemic
/miːn/
In British English, mean is pronounced /miːn/. The narrow phonetic transcription is [mĩːn]. In American English, it is pronounced /miːn/.
Mean 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
miːn
Mean has one syllable in British English.
mean + -s
-s (plural, possessive or singular verb) is /z/ after a voiced consonant or a vowel sound.
UK
/miːnz/
US
/miːnz/
mean + -ing
-ing is always /ɪŋ/.
UK
/ˈmiː.nɪŋ/
US
/ˈmiː.nɪŋ/
mean + -er
-er (comparative) is /ə/ in UK English and /ɚ/ in US English.
UK
/ˈmiː.nə/
US
/ˈmiː.nɚ/
mean + -est
-est (superlative) is always /ɪst/.
UK
/ˈmiː.nɪst/
US
/ˈmiː.nɪst/
Words That Rhyme With Mean
Questions About Mean
How do you pronounce mean in British English?
In British English, mean is pronounced /miːn/. The narrow phonetic transcription is [mĩːn].
How do you pronounce mean in American English?
In American English, mean is pronounced /miːn/.
Do British and American English pronounce mean the same way?
Yes. Both are /miːn/.
Nearby Words
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