How to pronounce “no”
Say “no” in one beat
no
/noʊ/
The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /nəʊ/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.
- nonoʊ
- IPA (American)
- /noʊ/
- IPA (British)
- /nəʊ/
- Respelling
- NOH
- Syllables
- 1 — no
- Stress
- One syllable, so the whole word carries the beat — say /noʊ/ in one unbroken piece rather than clipping the vowel.
- Part of speech
- noun, adjective, adverb
- Difficulty
- Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
American and British are not the same here
/noʊ/
/nəʊ/
No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.
What “no” means
- noun
a negative
“his no was loud and clear”
- noun
a radioactive transuranic element synthesized by bombarding curium with carbon ions; 7 isotopes are known
- adjective
quantifier; used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns for indicating a complete or almost complete lack or zero quantity of
“we have no bananas”
Say it in a sentence
“There was no answer when she knocked on the door.”“no”, answered
How do you pronounce “no”?
“no” is pronounced /noʊ/ (NOH) in American English and /nəʊ/ in British English — one syllable. It is one unbroken piece — /noʊ/ — with no pause anywhere inside it.
How many syllables does “no” have?
One, despite the 1 vowel letters in the spelling. The whole word is /noʊ/ — a single beat.
Is “no” said differently in British English?
Yes. American English says /noʊ/ (NOH); British English says /nəʊ/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.
What does “no” mean?
As a noun: a negative For example: “his no was loud and clear” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.
Where is the stress in “no”?
One syllable, so the whole word carries the beat — say /noʊ/ in one unbroken piece rather than clipping the vowel.
Now say “no” 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.