Here is an extensive guide to the symbols of the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) as they are commonly used for English pronunciation. This guide is organized into vowels and consonants and includes the symbol, its common name, and example words.
This guide primarily uses symbols common in General American (GA) and also notes key differences with British Received Pronunciation (RP).
The International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) is a system where each symbol consistently represents one sound. Mastering it is invaluable for both English language learners and teachers to understand and teach pronunciation accurately.
Vowels are produced with an open vocal tract. They are divided into monophthongs (single vowels) and diphthongs (gliding vowels).
| IPA Symbol | Symbol Name / Keyword | Sound Description | Example Words |
|---|---|---|---|
| iː | FLEECE | A high, front, tense vowel. Like the "ee" in "see". | eat, see, feel, machine |
| ɪ | KIT | A high, front, lax vowel. A shorter, more relaxed version of iː. | it, sit, big, gym |
| ɛ | DRESS | A mid, front, lax vowel. | end, bed, head, said |
| æ | TRAP | A low, front, lax vowel. Often called "ash". The mouth is open wide. | cat, hand, apple, bad |
| ɑː | PALM / FATHER | A low, back vowel. The mouth is open and the tongue is low and back. | father, start, palm, car |
| ɒ | LOT | (Chiefly British RP) A low, back, rounded vowel. Most American speakers use ɑː. | hot, not, clock, stop |
| ɔː | THOUGHT | A mid-high, back, rounded vowel. | law, caught, bought, four |
| ʊ | FOOT | A high, back, lax, rounded vowel. | put, foot, could, wood |
| uː | GOOSE | A high, back, tense, rounded vowel. | too, blue, group, shoe |
| ʌ | STRUT | A mid, central vowel. Used in stressed syllables. | up, cut, love, money |
| ə | Schwa | A mid, central, unstressed vowel. The most common vowel sound in English. | about, sofa, taken, pencil |
| ɜːr or ɝ | NURSE | (Rhotic, e.g., American English) A mid, central, r-colored vowel in a stressed syllable. | bird, heard, fur, work |
| ər or ɚ | LETTER | (Rhotic, e.g., American English) An unstressed, r-colored schwa. | letter, doctor, butter |
Diphthongs are sounds that begin as one vowel and glide into another within the same syllable.
| IPA Symbol | Keyword | Sound Description | Example Words |
|---|---|---|---|
| eɪ | FACE | Starts as ɛ or e and glides towards ɪ. | day, pain, make, eight |
| aɪ | PRICE | Starts low as a or ɑ and glides towards ɪ. | my, eye, buy, time |
| ɔɪ | CHOICE | Starts as ɔ and glides towards ɪ. | boy, noise, join, toy |
| oʊ | GOAT | (GA) Starts as o or ə and glides towards ʊ. (In RP, often written as əʊ). | go, no, show, boat |
| aʊ | MOUTH | Starts low as a or ɑ and glides towards ʊ. | now, house, mouth, cow |
Consonants involve some obstruction of the vocal tract. They are described by their voicing (voiced or voiceless), place of articulation (where the sound is made), and manner of articulation (how the sound is made).
| IPA Symbol | Manner of Articulation | Sound Description | Example Words |
|---|---|---|---|
| p | Plosive (Stop) | Voiceless bilabial stop. (lips together, no vocal cord vibration) | pen, spin, top, happy |
| b | Plosive (Stop) | Voiced bilabial stop. (lips together, vocal cords vibrate) | bat, lab, about |
| t | Plosive (Stop) | Voiceless alveolar stop. (tongue tip on the ridge behind teeth) | top, stop, cat |
| d | Plosive (Stop) | Voiced alveolar stop. (tongue tip on the ridge behind teeth) | day, ladder, bad |
| k | Plosive (Stop) | Voiceless velar stop. (back of tongue against soft palate) | cat, key, sick, school |
| g | Plosive (Stop) | Voiced velar stop. (back of tongue against soft palate) | go, leg, bigger |
| f | Fricative | Voiceless labiodental fricative. (bottom lip against top teeth) | fan, off, phone, rough |
| v | Fricative | Voiced labiodental fricative. (bottom lip against top teeth) | van, have, of |
| θ | Fricative | Voiceless dental fricative ("theta"). (tongue tip between teeth) | think, both, thin |
| ð | Fricative | Voiced dental fricative ("eth"). (tongue tip between teeth) | this, mother, that |
| s | Fricative | Voiceless alveolar fricative. (air forced over tongue tip near tooth ridge) | see, city, pass |
| z | Fricative | Voiced alveolar fricative. (air forced over tongue tip near tooth ridge) | zoo, rose, is |
| ʃ | Fricative | Voiceless postalveolar fricative ("esh"). (tongue blade behind tooth ridge) | she, sure, emotion, machine |
| ʒ | Fricative | Voiced postalveolar fricative ("ezh"). (tongue blade behind tooth ridge) | measure, television, beige |
| h | Fricative | Voiceless glottal fricative. (air passes through open vocal cords) | hat, ahead, who |
| tʃ | Affricate | Voiceless postalveolar affricate. (a stop t followed by a fricative ʃ) | chair, teach, nature |
| dʒ | Affricate | Voiced postalveolar affricate. (a stop d followed by a fricative ʒ) | jump, giant, edge, soldier |
| m | Nasal | Voiced bilabial nasal. (air escapes through the nose, lips together) | man, lamb, swim |
| n | Nasal | Voiced alveolar nasal. (air escapes through the nose, tongue on tooth ridge) | no, sun, know |
| ŋ | Nasal | Voiced velar nasal ("engma"). (air through nose, back of tongue on soft palate) | sing, finger, think, ankle |
| l | Approximant | Voiced lateral alveolar approximant. (air flows over sides of the tongue) | leg, bell, light |
| r | Approximant | Voiced postalveolar approximant. (tongue tip curls back in the mouth) | red, try, write |
| w | Approximant | Voiced labio-velar approximant. (lips rounded, back of tongue is high) | wet, one, queen |
| j | Approximant | Voiced palatal approximant ("yod"). (tongue body high and front, like iː) | yes, use, beauty |
Diacritics are small marks added to a symbol to modify its sound.
| Symbol | Name | Function | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| ′ | Primary Stress | Placed before the syllable with the strongest stress. | pho-to-graph /ˈfoʊ.tə.græf/ |
| ˌ | Secondary Stress | Placed before a syllable with stress that is weaker than primary stress. | pho-to-gra-phic /ˌfoʊ.tə.ˈgræf.ɪk/ |
| $t̬$ | Alveolar Tap/Flap | In American English, t or d between vowels often sounds like a quick d. | water /ˈwɑː.t̬ɚ/, ladder /ˈlæ.t̬ɚ/ |
| ʔ | Glottal Stop | A stop made by closing the vocal cords. Often replaces t in some dialects. | button /ˈbʌʔ.ən/, uh-oh /ˈʌʔ.oʊ/ |