How To Pronounce Sober

sober

Phonemic

/ˈsəʊ.bə/

Phonetic

[ˈsəʊ.bəʴ]

Phonemic

/ˈsoʊ.bɚ/

In British English, sober is pronounced /ˈsəʊ.bə/. The narrow phonetic transcription is [ˈsəʊ.bəʴ]. In American English, it is pronounced /ˈsoʊ.bɚ/.

Sober has two syllables, and the main stress falls on the first 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

səʊbə

Sober has two syllables in British English, and the main stress is on the first syllable, shown in colour above. Its stress pattern is Oo, where O is the stressed syllable.

sober + -er

-er (comparative) is /ə/ in UK English and /ɚ/ in US English. In UK English a linking /r/ is added because the spelling ends in -r.

/ˈsəʊ.bə.rə/

/ˈsoʊ.bɚ.ɚ/

sober + -est

-est (superlative) is always /ɪst/. In UK English a linking /r/ is added because the spelling ends in -r.

/ˈsəʊ.bə.rɪst/

/ˈsoʊ.bɚ.ɪst/

Words That Rhyme With Sober

october

Questions About Sober

How do you pronounce sober in British English?

In British English, sober is pronounced /ˈsəʊ.bə/. The narrow phonetic transcription is [ˈsəʊ.bəʴ].

How do you pronounce sober in American English?

In American English, sober is pronounced /ˈsoʊ.bɚ/.

How many syllables are in sober?

Sober has two syllables, /səʊ/ + /bə/.

Where is the stress in sober?

The main stress is on the first syllable, /səʊ/.

Do British and American English pronounce sober the same way?

No. British English has /ˈsəʊ.bə/ and American English has /ˈsoʊ.bɚ/.

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Other Words With The Stress Pattern Oo

Nearby Words

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