Pronunciation

How to pronounce “peer

“peer” is pronounced /pɪɹ/ (PIR) in American English and /piə/ in British English — one syllable.
The sound

Say “peer” in one beat

Say it like this

peer

/pɪɹ/

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

1 beat
  1. peerpɪɹ
IPA (American)
/pɪɹ/
IPA (British)
/piə/
Respelling
PIR
Syllables
1 — peer
Stress
One syllable, so the whole word carries the beat — say /pɪɹ/ in one unbroken piece rather than clipping the vowel.
Part of speech
noun, verb
Difficulty
Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/pɪɹ/

British

/piə/

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

Meaning

What “peer” means

  1. noun

    a person who is of equal standing with another in a group

  2. noun

    a nobleman (duke or marquis or earl or viscount or baron) who is a member of the British peerage

  3. verb

    look searchingly

    We peered into the back of the shop to see whether a salesman was around

Say it in a sentence

Every paper goes through peer review before publication.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

3 sounds, in the order you say them

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

Questions

peer”, answered

How do you pronounce “peer”?

“peer” is pronounced /pɪɹ/ (PIR) in American English and /piə/ in British English — one syllable. It is one unbroken piece — /pɪɹ/ — with no pause anywhere inside it.

How many syllables does “peer” have?

One, despite the 2 vowel letters in the spelling. The whole word is /pɪɹ/ — a single beat.

Is “peer” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /pɪɹ/ (PIR); British English says /piə/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “peer” mean?

As a noun: a person who is of equal standing with another in a group For example: “Every paper goes through peer review before publication.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “peer”?

One syllable, so the whole word carries the beat — say /pɪɹ/ in one unbroken piece rather than clipping the vowel.

Practise this word

Now say “peer” 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.