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Pronunciation

How to pronounce “keeping”

“keeping” is pronounced /ˈkipɪŋ/ (KEE-ping) in American English and /kiːpɪŋ/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “keep”.
The sound

Say “keeping” in 2 beats

Say it like this

keeping

/ˈkipɪŋ/

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

2 beats
  1. keepkistress
  2. ingpɪŋ
IPA (American)
/ˈkipɪŋ/
IPA (British)
/kiːpɪŋ/
Respelling
KEE-ping
Syllables
2 — KEEP-ing
Stress
Stress the first syllable: KEEP-ing. “keep” 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

/ˈkipɪŋ/

British

/kiːpɪŋ/

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

Meaning

What “keeping” means

  1. noun

    conformity or harmony

    “his behavior was not in keeping with the occasion”

  2. noun

    the responsibility of a guardian or keeper

    “he left his car in my keeping”

  3. noun

    the act of retaining something

Say it in a sentence

“She spends her weekends keeping the garden tidy.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

5 sounds, in the order you say them
kkilong eppɪshort iŋng

Each sound has its own page: where the tongue goes, what it is usually confused with, and words to drill it on.

Questions

“keeping”, answered

How do you pronounce “keeping”?

“keeping” is pronounced /ˈkipɪŋ/ (KEE-ping) in American English and /kiːpɪŋ/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “keep”. Build it as KEEP-ing, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “keeping” have?

2: keep · ing. The beat lands on the first, “keep”.

Is “keeping” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈkipɪŋ/ (KEE-ping); British English says /kiːpɪŋ/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “keeping” mean?

As a noun: conformity or harmony For example: “his behavior was not in keeping with the occasion” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “keeping”?

Stress the first syllable: KEEP-ing. “keep” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “keeping” and see every sound

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