How to pronounce “nervous”
Say “nervous” in 2 beats
nervous
/ˈnɝvəs/
The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /nɜːvəs/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.
- nernɝstress
- vousvəs
- IPA (American)
- /ˈnɝvəs/
- IPA (British)
- /nɜːvəs/
- Respelling
- NUR-vuhs
- Syllables
- 2 — NER-vous
- Stress
- Stress the first syllable: NER-vous. “ner” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
- Part of speech
- adjective
- Difficulty
- Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
American and British are not the same here
/ˈnɝvəs/
/nɜːvəs/
No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.
What “nervous” means
- adjective
easily agitated
“a nervous addict”
- adjective
causing or fraught with or showing anxiety
“spent an anxious night waiting for the test results”
- adjective
of or relating to the nervous system
“nervous disease”
Say it in a sentence
“She was nervous before the talk and fine once it started.”“nervous”, answered
How do you pronounce “nervous”?
“nervous” is pronounced /ˈnɝvəs/ (NUR-vuhs) in American English and /nɜːvəs/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “ner”. Build it as NER-vous, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.
How many syllables does “nervous” have?
2: ner · vous. The beat lands on the first, “ner”.
Is “nervous” said differently in British English?
Yes. American English says /ˈnɝvəs/ (NUR-vuhs); British English says /nɜːvəs/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.
What does “nervous” mean?
As an adjective: easily agitated For example: “a nervous addict” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.
Where is the stress in “nervous”?
Stress the first syllable: NER-vous. “ner” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
Now say “nervous” 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.