Pronunciation

How to pronounce “playing

“playing” is pronounced /ˈpleɪɪŋ/ (PLAY-ing) in American English and /pleɪɪŋ/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “pleɪ”.
The sound

Say “playing” in 2 beats

Say it like this

playing

/ˈpleɪɪŋ/

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

2 beats
  1. pleɪpleɪstress
  2. ɪŋɪŋ
IPA (American)
/ˈpleɪɪŋ/
IPA (British)
/pleɪɪŋ/
Respelling
PLAY-ing
Syllables
2 — PLEꞮ-ɪŋ
Stress
Stress the first syllable: PLEꞮ-ɪŋ. “pleɪ” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
Part of speech
noun, verb
Difficulty
Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˈpleɪɪŋ/

British

/pleɪɪŋ/

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

Meaning

What “playing” means

  1. noun

    the act of playing a musical instrument

  2. noun

    the action of taking part in a game or sport or other recreation

  3. noun

    the performance of a part or role in a drama

Say it in a sentence

The kids spent the afternoon playing in the backyard.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

5 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

playing”, answered

How do you pronounce “playing”?

“playing” is pronounced /ˈpleɪɪŋ/ (PLAY-ing) in American English and /pleɪɪŋ/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “pleɪ”. Build it as PLEꞮ-ɪŋ, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “playing” have?

2: pleɪ · ɪŋ. The beat lands on the first, “pleɪ”.

Is “playing” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈpleɪɪŋ/ (PLAY-ing); British English says /pleɪɪŋ/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “playing” mean?

As a noun: the act of playing a musical instrument For example: “The kids spent the afternoon playing in the backyard.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “playing”?

Stress the first syllable: PLEꞮ-ɪŋ. “pleɪ” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “playing” 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.