How to pronounce “mean”
Say “mean” in one beat
mean
/min/
The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /miːn/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.
- meanmin
- IPA (American)
- /min/
- IPA (British)
- /miːn/
- Respelling
- MEEN
- Syllables
- 1 — mean
- Stress
- One syllable, so the whole word carries the beat — say /min/ in one unbroken piece rather than clipping the vowel.
- Part of speech
- noun, verb, adjective
- Difficulty
- Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
American and British are not the same here
/min/
/miːn/
No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.
What “mean” means
- noun
an average of n numbers computed by adding some function of the numbers and dividing by some function of n
- verb
mean or intend to express or convey
“You never understand what I mean!”
- verb
have as a logical consequence
“The water shortage means that we have to stop taking long showers”
Say it in a sentence
“She didn't mean to interrupt the meeting like that.”“mean”, answered
How do you pronounce “mean”?
“mean” is pronounced /min/ (MEEN) in American English and /miːn/ in British English — one syllable. It is one unbroken piece — /min/ — with no pause anywhere inside it.
How many syllables does “mean” have?
One, despite the 2 vowel letters in the spelling. The whole word is /min/ — a single beat.
Is “mean” said differently in British English?
Yes. American English says /min/ (MEEN); British English says /miːn/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.
What does “mean” mean?
As a noun: an average of n numbers computed by adding some function of the numbers and dividing by some function of n For example: “She didn't mean to interrupt the meeting like that.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.
Where is the stress in “mean”?
One syllable, so the whole word carries the beat — say /min/ in one unbroken piece rather than clipping the vowel.
Now say “mean” 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.