How to pronounce “hosiery”
Hosiery is pronounced /ˈhoʊʒəriː/. It has 3 syllables, and the beat falls on the first one — hoʊ. 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 3 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 hoʊ in the right place matters more to a listener than getting every vowel perfect.
Stress pattern Ooo — capital letters mark the stressed beats.
“hosiery” sound by sound
“hosiery” is built out of 5 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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hSimply breathe out through an open, relaxed mouth already shaped for the following vowel — there is no tongue or lip contact at all.
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oʊStart with mid-back, lightly rounded lips and glide toward /ʊ/, tightening the rounding as you finish.
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ʒSame as /ʃ/ — tongue blade behind the ridge, lips slightly rounded — but with the voice turned on.
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ərThe same r-coloured tongue shape as /ɜːr/ but weak, short and unstressed — the ending of "teacher", "doctor", "sugar".
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iːSpread the lips into a smile, push the front of the tongue high and forward, and hold the sound tense and long.
Questions people ask about “hosiery”
- How do you pronounce “hosiery”?
- “hosiery” is pronounced /ˈhoʊʒəriː/, with the stress on the first syllable (hoʊ). Press the US or UK button above to hear it spoken.
- How many syllables are in “hosiery”?
- “hosiery” has 3 syllables: hoʊ · ʒər · iː. The stress pattern is Ooo.
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