Pronunciation

How to pronounce “plays

“plays” is pronounced /pleɪz/ (PLAYZ) — one syllable.
The sound

Say “plays” in one beat

Say it like this

plays

/pleɪz/

The voice you hear here is American; a British voice is available in the app's settings.

1 beat
  1. playspleɪz
IPA (American)
/pleɪz/
IPA (British)
/pleɪz/
Respelling
PLAYZ
Syllables
1 — plays
Stress
One syllable, so the whole word carries the beat — say /pleɪz/ in one unbroken piece rather than clipping the vowel.
Part of speech
noun, verb
Difficulty
Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
Meaning

What “plays” means

  1. noun

    a dramatic work intended for performance by actors on a stage

    he wrote several plays but only one was produced on Broadway

  2. noun

    a theatrical performance of a drama

    the play lasted two hours

  3. noun

    a preset plan of action in team sports

    the coach drew up the plays for her team

Say it in a sentence

The theater plays a different show every weekend.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

4 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

plays”, answered

How do you pronounce “plays”?

“plays” is pronounced /pleɪz/ (PLAYZ) — one syllable. It is one unbroken piece — /pleɪz/ — with no pause anywhere inside it.

How many syllables does “plays” have?

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

What does “plays” mean?

As a noun: a dramatic work intended for performance by actors on a stage For example: “he wrote several plays but only one was produced on Broadway” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “plays”?

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

Practise this word

Now say “plays” 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.