Pronunciation

How to pronounce “baby

“baby” is pronounced /ˈbeɪbi/ (BAY-bee) in American English and /beɪbi/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “bab”.
The sound

Say “baby” in 2 beats

Say it like this

baby

/ˈbeɪbi/

The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /beɪbi/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.

2 beats
  1. babbeɪstress
  2. ybi
IPA (American)
/ˈbeɪbi/
IPA (British)
/beɪbi/
Respelling
BAY-bee
Syllables
2 — BAB-y
Stress
Stress the first syllable: BAB-y. “bab” 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
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˈbeɪbi/

British

/beɪbi/

No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.

Meaning

What “baby” means

  1. noun

    a very young child (birth to 1 year) who has not yet begun to walk or talk

    the baby began to cry again

  2. noun

    the youngest member of a group (not necessarily young)

    the baby of the family

  3. noun

    an immature childish person

    he remained a child in practical matters as long as he lived

Say it in a sentence

The baby slept soundly through the entire car ride.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

3 sounds, in the order you say them

Each sound has its own page: where the tongue goes, what it is usually confused with, and words to drill it on.

Questions

baby”, answered

How do you pronounce “baby”?

“baby” is pronounced /ˈbeɪbi/ (BAY-bee) in American English and /beɪbi/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “bab”. Build it as BAB-y, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “baby” have?

2: bab · y. The beat lands on the first, “bab”.

Is “baby” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈbeɪbi/ (BAY-bee); British English says /beɪbi/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “baby” mean?

As a noun: a very young child (birth to 1 year) who has not yet begun to walk or talk For example: “the baby began to cry again” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “baby”?

Stress the first syllable: BAB-y. “bab” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “baby” 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.