How to pronounce “personnel”
Say “personnel” in 3 beats
personnel
/ˌpɝsəˈnɛl/
The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /ˌpɜːsəˈnɛl/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.
- perpɝ
- sonsə
- nelnɛlstress
- IPA (American)
- /ˌpɝsəˈnɛl/
- IPA (British)
- /ˌpɜːsəˈnɛl/
- Respelling
- pur-suh-NEL
- Syllables
- 3 — per-son-NEL
- Stress
- Stress the third syllable: per-son-NEL. “nel” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
- Part of speech
- noun
- Difficulty
- Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
American and British are not the same here
/ˌpɝsəˈnɛl/
/ˌpɜːsəˈnɛl/
No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.
Where “personnel” goes wrong
- Often heard
“PUR-suh-nuhl”
the stress is on the last syllable; personal stresses the first
What “personnel” means
- noun
group of people willing to obey orders
“a public force is necessary to give security to the rights of citizens”
- noun
the department responsible for hiring and training and placing employees and for setting policies for personnel management
Say it in a sentence
“All personnel must complete the safety course before July.”“personnel”, answered
How do you pronounce “personnel”?
“personnel” is pronounced /ˌpɝsəˈnɛl/ (pur-suh-NEL) in American English and /ˌpɜːsəˈnɛl/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “nel”. Build it as per-son-NEL, then run the third syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.
How many syllables does “personnel” have?
3: per · son · nel. The beat lands on the third, “nel”.
Is “personnel” said differently in British English?
Yes. American English says /ˌpɝsəˈnɛl/ (pur-suh-NEL); British English says /ˌpɜːsəˈnɛl/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.
What does “personnel” mean?
As a noun: group of people willing to obey orders For example: “a public force is necessary to give security to the rights of citizens” It carries 1 other sense as well — all of them said the same way.
Where is the stress in “personnel”?
Stress the third syllable: per-son-NEL. “nel” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Now say “personnel” 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.