How To Pronounce Tender

tender

Phonemic

/ˈten.də/

Phonetic

[ˈtʰẽn.dəʴ]

Phonemic

/ˈten.dɚ/

In British English, tender is pronounced /ˈten.də/. The narrow phonetic transcription is [ˈtʰẽn.dəʴ]. In American English, it is pronounced /ˈten.dɚ/.

Tender 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

tendə

Tender 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.

tender + -s

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

/ˈten.dəz/

/ˈten.dɚz/

tender + -ed

-ed (past tense or past participle) is /d/ after a voiced consonant or a vowel sound.

/ˈten.dəd/

/ˈten.dɚd/

tender + -ing

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

/ˈten.də.rɪŋ/

/ˈten.dɚ.ɪŋ/

tender + -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.

/ˈten.də.rə/

/ˈten.dɚ.ɚ/

tender + -est

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

/ˈten.də.rɪst/

/ˈten.dɚ.ɪst/

Words That Rhyme With Tender

Questions About Tender

How do you pronounce tender in British English?

In British English, tender is pronounced /ˈten.də/. The narrow phonetic transcription is [ˈtʰẽn.dəʴ].

How do you pronounce tender in American English?

In American English, tender is pronounced /ˈten.dɚ/.

How many syllables are in tender?

Tender has two syllables, /ten/ + /də/.

Where is the stress in tender?

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

Do British and American English pronounce tender the same way?

No. British English has /ˈten.də/ and American English has /ˈten.dɚ/.

Search All 10,380 Words In The App

Other Words With The Stress Pattern Oo

Nearby Words

Learn English and Literature with Adroit Tutors on our website, and order course materials there too.