Pronunciation

How to pronounce “genuine

“genuine” is pronounced /ˈdʒɛnjuɪn/ (JEN-yoo-in) in American English and /ˈdʒɛnjʊɪn/ in British English, and /ˈdʒɛˈnjuˌwaɪn/ is also accepted — 3 syllables, stressed on “gen”.
The sound

Say “genuine” in 3 beats

Say it like this

genuine

/ˈdʒɛnjuɪn/

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

3 beats
  1. gendʒɛnstress
  2. uinju
  3. eɪn
IPA (American)
/ˈdʒɛnjuɪn/
IPA (British)
/ˈdʒɛnjʊɪn/
Also accepted
/ˈdʒɛˈnjuˌwaɪn/
Respelling
JEN-yoo-in
Syllables
3 — GEN-uin-e
Stress
Stress the first syllable: GEN-uin-e. “gen” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
adjective
Difficulty
Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˈdʒɛnjuɪn/

British

/ˈdʒɛnjʊɪn/

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

Watch out

Where “genuine” goes wrong

  • Often heard

    jen-yoo-WINE/ˈdʒɛnjuwaɪn/

    the ending is an unstressed -in, not the word wine

Meaning

What “genuine” means

  1. adjective

    not fake or counterfeit

    a genuine Picasso

  2. adjective

    not pretended; sincerely felt or expressed

    genuine emotion

  3. adjective

    being or reflecting the essential or genuine character of something; ; - G.K.Chesterton

    her actual motive

Say it in a sentence

There was genuine surprise on every face in the room.
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

genuine”, answered

How do you pronounce “genuine”?

“genuine” is pronounced /ˈdʒɛnjuɪn/ (JEN-yoo-in) in American English and /ˈdʒɛnjʊɪn/ in British English, and /ˈdʒɛˈnjuˌwaɪn/ is also accepted — 3 syllables, stressed on “gen”. Build it as GEN-uin-e, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “genuine” have?

3: gen · uin · e. The beat lands on the first, “gen”.

Is “genuine” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈdʒɛnjuɪn/ (JEN-yoo-in); British English says /ˈdʒɛnjʊɪn/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “genuine” mean?

As an adjective: not fake or counterfeit For example: “a genuine Picasso” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “genuine”?

Stress the first syllable: GEN-uin-e. “gen” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “genuine” 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.