How to pronounce “heir”
Say “heir” in one beat
heir
/ɛɹ/
The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /eə/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.
- heirɛɹ
- IPA (American)
- /ɛɹ/
- IPA (British)
- /eə/
- Respelling
- AIR
- Syllables
- 1 — heir
- Stress
- One syllable, so the whole word carries the beat — say /ɛɹ/ in one unbroken piece rather than clipping the vowel.
- Part of speech
- noun
- Difficulty
- Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
American and British are not the same here
/ɛɹ/
/eə/
No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.
Where “heir” goes wrong
- Often heard
“HEER”
the h is silent: it sounds exactly like air
What “heir” means
- noun
a person who is entitled by law or by the terms of a will to inherit the estate of another
- noun
a person who inherits some title or office
Say it in a sentence
“He was the only heir to a farm he had never seen.”“heir”, answered
How do you pronounce “heir”?
“heir” is pronounced /ɛɹ/ (AIR) in American English and /eə/ in British English — one syllable. It is one unbroken piece — /ɛɹ/ — with no pause anywhere inside it.
How many syllables does “heir” have?
One, despite the 2 vowel letters in the spelling. The whole word is /ɛɹ/ — a single beat.
Is “heir” said differently in British English?
Yes. American English says /ɛɹ/ (AIR); British English says /eə/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.
What does “heir” mean?
As a noun: a person who is entitled by law or by the terms of a will to inherit the estate of another For example: “He was the only heir to a farm he had never seen.” It carries 1 other sense as well — all of them said the same way.
Where is the stress in “heir”?
One syllable, so the whole word carries the beat — say /ɛɹ/ in one unbroken piece rather than clipping the vowel.
Now say “heir” 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.