Pronunciation

How to pronounce “children

“children” is pronounced /ˈtʃɪldɹən/ (CHIL-druhn) in American English and /tʃɪldɹən/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “child”.
The sound

Say “children” in 2 beats

Say it like this

children

/ˈtʃɪldɹən/

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

2 beats
  1. childtʃɪlstress
  2. rendɹən
IPA (American)
/ˈtʃɪldɹən/
IPA (British)
/tʃɪldɹən/
Respelling
CHIL-druhn
Syllables
2 — CHILD-ren
Stress
Stress the first syllable: CHILD-ren. “child” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
Part of speech
noun
Difficulty
Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˈtʃɪldɹən/

British

/tʃɪldɹən/

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

Meaning

What “children” means

  1. noun

    a young person of either sex

    she writes books for children

  2. noun

    a human offspring (son or daughter) of any age

    they had three children

  3. noun

    an immature childish person

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

Say it in a sentence

The children played in the park until it got dark.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

7 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

children”, answered

How do you pronounce “children”?

“children” is pronounced /ˈtʃɪldɹən/ (CHIL-druhn) in American English and /tʃɪldɹən/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “child”. Build it as CHILD-ren, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “children” have?

2: child · ren. The beat lands on the first, “child”.

Is “children” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈtʃɪldɹən/ (CHIL-druhn); British English says /tʃɪldɹən/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “children” mean?

As a noun: a young person of either sex For example: “she writes books for children” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “children”?

Stress the first syllable: CHILD-ren. “child” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “children” 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.