Pronunciation

How to pronounce “chairman

“chairman” is pronounced /ˈtʃɛɹmən/ (CHER-muhn) in American English and /tʃeəmən/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “chair”.
The sound

Say “chairman” in 2 beats

Say it like this

chairman

/ˈtʃɛɹmən/

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

2 beats
  1. chairtʃɛɹstress
  2. manmən
IPA (American)
/ˈtʃɛɹmən/
IPA (British)
/tʃeəmən/
Respelling
CHER-muhn
Syllables
2 — CHAIR-man
Stress
Stress the first syllable: CHAIR-man. “chair” 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

/ˈtʃɛɹmən/

British

/tʃeəmən/

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

Meaning

What “chairman” means

  1. noun

    the officer who presides at the meetings of an organization

    address your remarks to the chairperson

  2. verb

    act or preside as chair, as of an academic department in a university

    She chaired the department for many years

Say it in a sentence

The chairman opened the meeting with a short welcome.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

6 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

chairman”, answered

How do you pronounce “chairman”?

“chairman” is pronounced /ˈtʃɛɹmən/ (CHER-muhn) in American English and /tʃeəmən/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “chair”. Build it as CHAIR-man, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “chairman” have?

2: chair · man. The beat lands on the first, “chair”.

Is “chairman” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈtʃɛɹmən/ (CHER-muhn); British English says /tʃeəmən/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “chairman” mean?

As a noun: the officer who presides at the meetings of an organization For example: “address your remarks to the chairperson” It carries 1 other sense as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “chairman”?

Stress the first syllable: CHAIR-man. “chair” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “chairman” 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.