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Pronunciation

How to pronounce “older”

“older” is pronounced /ˈoʊldɚ/ (OHL-duh) in American English and /əʊldə/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “ol”.
The sound

Say “older” in 2 beats

Say it like this

older

/ˈoʊldɚ/

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

2 beats
  1. oloʊlstress
  2. derdɚ
IPA (American)
/ˈoʊldɚ/
IPA (British)
/əʊldə/
Respelling
OHL-duh
Syllables
2 — OL-der
Stress
Stress the first syllable: OL-der. “ol” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
Part of speech
adjective
Difficulty
Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˈoʊldɚ/

British

/əʊldə/

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

Meaning

What “older” means

  1. adjective

    advanced in years; (`aged' is pronounced as two syllables)

    “aged members of the society”

  2. adjective

    used of the older of two persons of the same name especially used to distinguish a father from his son

    “Bill Adams, Sr.”

  3. adjective

    skilled through long experience

    “an old offender”

Say it in a sentence

“Her older brother taught her how to ride a bike.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

4 sounds, in the order you say them
oʊlong ollddɚschwa

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

Questions

“older”, answered

How do you pronounce “older”?

“older” is pronounced /ˈoʊldɚ/ (OHL-duh) in American English and /əʊldə/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “ol”. Build it as OL-der, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “older” have?

2: ol · der. The beat lands on the first, “ol”.

Is “older” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈoʊldɚ/ (OHL-duh); British English says /əʊldə/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “older” mean?

As an adjective: advanced in years; (`aged' is pronounced as two syllables) For example: “aged members of the society” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “older”?

Stress the first syllable: OL-der. “ol” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “older” and see every sound

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