How to pronounce “entrepreneur”
Entrepreneur is pronounced /ˌɑːntrəprəˈnɜːr/. It has 4 syllables, and the beat falls on the fourth one — nɜːr. 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 nɜːr in the right place matters more to a listener than getting every vowel perfect.
Stress pattern ōooO — capital letters mark the stressed beats.
The common mispronunciation of “entrepreneur”
✗ Often said: /ˈentrepreneɜːr/ — the spelling, read straight off the page.
✓ Actually: /ˌɑːntrəprəˈnɜːr/
Why the two come apart: the stress lands on the fourth syllable (“nɜːr”), not on the first one — putting the beat at the front is the mistake almost everyone makes; also, 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.
This is why reading English aloud from spelling alone goes wrong so often: the letters of “entrepreneur” are not a reliable map of its sounds. The IPA is — each symbol stands for exactly one sound, every time.
“entrepreneur” sound by sound
“entrepreneur” is built out of 10 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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ɑːOpen the mouth wide, drop the tongue low and back, keep the lips unrounded, and hold it long — the doctor-says-"ahh" 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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tTouch the tongue tip to the bumpy ridge just behind the upper teeth, block the air, then release it with a puff.
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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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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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pPress both lips together, build up air behind them, then release with a puff of air (aspiration) when the sound starts a stressed syllable.
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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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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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ɜːrHold the tongue central and bunched or curled back for the whole vowel, with the R quality present from beginning to end — it is one continuous r-coloured vowel, not a vowel plus an /r/.
Words that rhyme with “entrepreneur”
Same ending sound from the stressed vowel on — a good way to hear whether you have the vowel right:
Questions people ask about “entrepreneur”
- How do you pronounce “entrepreneur”?
- “entrepreneur” is pronounced /ˌɑːntrəprəˈnɜːr/, with the stress on the fourth syllable (nɜːr). Press the US or UK button above to hear it spoken.
- How many syllables are in “entrepreneur”?
- “entrepreneur” has 4 syllables: ɑːn · trə · prə · nɜːr. The stress pattern is ōooO.
- What is the common mispronunciation of “entrepreneur”?
- People read it off the spelling as /ˈentrepreneɜːr/, but it is actually /ˌɑːntrəprəˈnɜːr/, because the stress lands on the fourth syllable (“nɜːr”), not on the first one — putting the beat at the front is the mistake almost everyone makes.
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