How to pronounce “address”
“address” is said two ways
/ˈædɹɛs/
AD-ress
Where you live, or an email. American English front-stresses it; British English says uh-DRESS for this too.
/əˈdɹɛs/
uh-DRESS
To speak to a group, or to deal with a problem. Beat on DRESS on both sides of the Atlantic.
Listen for the beat, not the letters
One syllable gets longer, louder and a step higher, and the other one collapses towards a schwa. Say the whole sentence rather than the word on its own and let the grammar pull the beat where it belongs.Both forms live in one sentence here: “She will address the meeting as soon as we have the address.”Each button plays a short phrase rather than the bare word: the model voice takes its stress from the words around it, so asking it for “address” on its own would play one reading twice instead of the noun and the verb. Read the transcription as you listen.
Say “address” in 2 beats
address
/ˈædɹɛs/
Everything in this card describes the noun form. As a verb it is /əˈdɹɛs/.
The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /əˈdɹɛs/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.
- addæstress
- ressdɹɛs
- IPA (American)
- /ˈædɹɛs/
- IPA (British)
- /əˈdɹɛs/
- Respelling
- AD-ress (noun) · uh-DRESS (verb)
- Syllables
- 2 — ADD-ress
- Stress
- Stress the first syllable: ADD-ress. “add” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
- Part of speech
- noun, verb
- Difficulty
- Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
American and British are not the same here
This is the noun form in two accents — a separate question from the two pronunciations above, which are the same accent saying two different words.
/ˈædɹɛs/
/əˈdɹɛs/
No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.
Where “address” goes wrong
- Often heard
“uh-DRESS on the envelope, in American English”
Americans front-stress the noun — AD-ress — and keep uh-DRESS for the verb
What “address” means
- noun
(computer science) the code that identifies where a piece of information is stored
- noun
the place where a person or organization can be found or communicated with
- noun
the act of delivering a formal spoken communication to an audience
“he listened to an address on minor Roman poets”
Say it in a sentence
“She will address the meeting as soon as we have the address.”“address”, answered
How do you pronounce “address”?
“address” has two pronunciations: /ˈædɹɛs/ as a noun and /əˈdɹɛs/ as a verb — the part of speech decides which. The spelling never changes; the beat does, and the vowels reshape around wherever it lands. The transcription and syllable breakdown below describe the noun form. Build it as ADD-ress, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.
How many syllables does “address” have?
2: add · ress. The beat lands on the first, “add”.
Which pronunciation of “address” is correct?
Both are. /ˈædɹɛs/ (AD-ress) as a noun; /əˈdɹɛs/ (uh-DRESS) as a verb. Nothing about the spelling tells you which — the sentence does. Move the beat and the word changes its job mid-sentence, which is why both are worth drilling. Both appear here: “She will address the meeting as soon as we have the address.”
Is “address” said differently in British English?
Yes. American English says /ˈædɹɛs/ (AD-ress); British English says /əˈdɹɛs/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.
What does “address” mean?
As a noun: (computer science) the code that identifies where a piece of information is stored For example: “She will address the meeting as soon as we have the address.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.
Where is the stress in “address”?
Stress the first syllable: ADD-ress. “add” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
Now say “address” and see every sound
Record it once and sayit lines your audio up against the target sound by sound — what landed, what slipped, and what it sounded like instead.