Pronunciation

How to pronounce “photo

“photo” is pronounced /ˈfoʊˌtoʊ/ (FOH-toh) in American English and /fəʊtəʊ/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “phot”.
The sound

Say “photo” in 2 beats

Say it like this

photo

/ˈfoʊˌtoʊ/

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

2 beats
  1. photfoʊstress
  2. otoʊ
IPA (American)
/ˈfoʊˌtoʊ/
IPA (British)
/fəʊtəʊ/
Respelling
FOH-toh
Syllables
2 — PHOT-o
Stress
Stress the first syllable: PHOT-o. “phot” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
Part of speech
noun
Difficulty
Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˈfoʊˌtoʊ/

British

/fəʊtəʊ/

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

Meaning

What “photo” means

  1. noun

    a representation of a person or scene in the form of a print or transparent slide; recorded by a camera on light-sensitive material

Say it in a sentence

He took a photo of the sunset from the balcony.
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

photo”, answered

How do you pronounce “photo”?

“photo” is pronounced /ˈfoʊˌtoʊ/ (FOH-toh) in American English and /fəʊtəʊ/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “phot”. Build it as PHOT-o, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “photo” have?

2: phot · o. The beat lands on the first, “phot”.

Is “photo” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈfoʊˌtoʊ/ (FOH-toh); British English says /fəʊtəʊ/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “photo” mean?

As a noun: a representation of a person or scene in the form of a print or transparent slide; recorded by a camera on light-sensitive material For example: “He took a photo of the sunset from the balcony.”

Where is the stress in “photo”?

Stress the first syllable: PHOT-o. “phot” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “photo” 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.