How To Pronounce Tower

tower

Phonemic

/ˈtaʊ.ə/or/ˈtaʊə/

Phonetic

[ˈtʰaʊ.əʴ]

Phonemic

/ˈtaʊ.ɚ/

In British English, tower is pronounced /ˈtaʊ.ə/ or /ˈtaʊə/. The narrow phonetic transcription is [ˈtʰaʊ.əʴ]. In American English, it is pronounced /ˈtaʊ.ɚ/.

Tower 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

taʊə

Tower 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.

tower + -s

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

/ˈtaʊ.əz/or/ˈtaʊəz/

/ˈtaʊ.ɚz/

tower + -ed

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

/ˈtaʊ.əd/or/ˈtaʊəd/

/ˈtaʊ.ɚd/

tower + -ing

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

/ˈtaʊ.ər.ɪŋ/or/ˈtaʊə.rɪŋ/

/ˈtaʊ.ɚ.ɪŋ/

Words That Rhyme With Tower

Questions About Tower

How do you pronounce tower in British English?

In British English, tower is pronounced /ˈtaʊ.ə/ or /ˈtaʊə/. The narrow phonetic transcription is [ˈtʰaʊ.əʴ].

How do you pronounce tower in American English?

In American English, tower is pronounced /ˈtaʊ.ɚ/.

How many syllables are in tower?

Tower has two syllables, /taʊ/ + /ə/.

Where is the stress in tower?

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

Do British and American English pronounce tower the same way?

No. British English has /ˈtaʊ.ə/ and American English has /ˈtaʊ.ɚ/.

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Other Words With The Stress Pattern Oo

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