Pronunciation

How to pronounce “ideas

“ideas” is pronounced /aɪˈdiəz/ (y-DEE-uhz) in American English and /aɪdiəz/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “di”.
The sound

Say “ideas” in 3 beats

Say it like this

ideas

/aɪˈdiəz/

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

3 beats
  1. didistress
  2. əzəz
IPA (American)
/aɪˈdiəz/
IPA (British)
/aɪdiəz/
Respelling
y-DEE-uhz
Syllables
3 — aɪ-DI-əz
Stress
Stress the second syllable: aɪ-DI-əz. “di” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall 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

/aɪˈdiəz/

British

/aɪdiəz/

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

Meaning

What “ideas” means

  1. noun

    the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about

    it was not a good idea

  2. noun

    your intention; what you intend to do

    he had in mind to see his old teacher

  3. noun

    a personal view

    he has an idea that we don't like him

Say it in a sentence

She jotted down a few ideas before the meeting started.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

4 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

ideas”, answered

How do you pronounce “ideas”?

“ideas” is pronounced /aɪˈdiəz/ (y-DEE-uhz) in American English and /aɪdiəz/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “di”. Build it as aɪ-DI-əz, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “ideas” have?

3: aɪ · di · əz. The beat lands on the second, “di”.

Is “ideas” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /aɪˈdiəz/ (y-DEE-uhz); British English says /aɪdiəz/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “ideas” mean?

As a noun: the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about For example: “it was not a good idea” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “ideas”?

Stress the second syllable: aɪ-DI-əz. “di” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “ideas” 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.