How to pronounce “engineering”
Engineering is pronounced /ˈendʒəˈnɪrɪŋ/. It has 4 syllables, and the beat falls on the first one — en. Below: the syllable split, native audio in both accents, the mistake people actually make with this word, and every individual sound in it explained.
Syllables and stress
Split it into 4 beats. The highlighted syllable is the strong one: say it louder, longer and a touch higher in pitch, and let the others fall away. English is a stress-timed language, so getting en in the right place matters more to a listener than getting every vowel perfect.
Stress pattern OoOo — capital letters mark the stressed beats.
The common mispronunciation of “engineering”
✗ Often said: /ˈeŋɪniːrɪŋ/ — the spelling, read straight off the page.
✓ Actually: /ˈendʒəˈnɪrɪŋ/
Why the two come apart: the unstressed vowels flatten all the way down to /ə/ — English swallows them, so they never sound the way they are written; also, at least one vowel does not say what its spelling suggests — English vowel letters are not reliable here; also, a consonant letter takes an unexpected sound value here, so reading it "as written" comes out wrong.
This is why reading English aloud from spelling alone goes wrong so often: the letters of “engineering” are not a reliable map of its sounds. The IPA is — each symbol stands for exactly one sound, every time.
“engineering” sound by sound
“engineering” is built out of 9 sounds. Say each one on its own first, slowly, then run them together at speed. Every sound links to a full guide with mouth position, the mistake learners make with it, and other words that use it.
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eHold the tongue mid-high and forward with the jaw slightly open and lips relaxed and unrounded.
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nTouch the tongue tip to the ridge behind the upper teeth, lower the soft palate, and voice the air out through the nose.
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dʒThe voiced twin of /tʃ/: stop the air with the tongue at the ridge and release it into a voiced /ʒ/ buzz.
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əDo almost nothing: leave the tongue in its neutral resting position, mouth slightly open, and make the shortest, weakest possible vowel.
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nTouch the tongue tip to the ridge behind the upper teeth, lower the soft palate, and voice the air out through the nose.
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ɪRelax the tongue slightly lower and further back than for /iː/, keep the lips neutral, and make it short and lax.
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rCurl the tongue tip back (or bunch the tongue body up) without touching anything, round the lips slightly, and voice — the tongue must never tap the roof of the mouth.
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ɪRelax the tongue slightly lower and further back than for /iː/, keep the lips neutral, and make it short and lax.
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ŋRaise the back of the tongue against the soft palate as if for /ɡ/, but let the voiced air escape through the nose instead of releasing it.
Questions people ask about “engineering”
- How do you pronounce “engineering”?
- “engineering” is pronounced /ˈendʒəˈnɪrɪŋ/, with the stress on the first syllable (en). Press the US or UK button above to hear it spoken.
- How many syllables are in “engineering”?
- “engineering” has 4 syllables: en · dʒə · nɪ · rɪŋ. The stress pattern is OoOo.
- What is the common mispronunciation of “engineering”?
- People read it off the spelling as /ˈeŋɪniːrɪŋ/, but it is actually /ˈendʒəˈnɪrɪŋ/, because the unstressed vowels flatten all the way down to /ə/ — English swallows them, so they never sound the way they are written.
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