How To Pronounce Swear

swear

Phonemic

/sweə/

Phonetic

[sʷweəʴ]

Phonemic

/swer/

In British English, swear is pronounced /sweə/. The narrow phonetic transcription is [sʷweəʴ]. In American English, it is pronounced /swer/.

Swear 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

sweə

Swear has one syllable in British English.

swear + -s

-s (plural, possessive or singular verb) is /z/ after a voiced consonant or a vowel sound.

/sweəz/

/swerz/

swear + -ing

-ing is always /ɪŋ/. In UK English a linking /r/ is added because the spelling ends in -r.

/ˈsweə.rɪŋ/

/ˈswer.ɪŋ/

Words That Rhyme With Swear

Questions About Swear

How do you pronounce swear in British English?

In British English, swear is pronounced /sweə/. The narrow phonetic transcription is [sʷweəʴ].

How do you pronounce swear in American English?

In American English, swear is pronounced /swer/.

Do British and American English pronounce swear the same way?

No. British English has /sweə/ and American English has /swer/.

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