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Pronunciation

How to pronounce “pretty”

“pretty” is pronounced /ˈpɹɪti/ (PRI-tee) in American English and /pɹɪti/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “pret”.
The sound

Say “pretty” in 2 beats

Say it like this

pretty

/ˈpɹɪti/

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

2 beats
  1. pretpɹɪstress
  2. tyti
IPA (American)
/ˈpɹɪti/
IPA (British)
/pɹɪti/
Respelling
PRI-tee
Syllables
2 — PRET-ty
Stress
Stress the first syllable: PRET-ty. “pret” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
Part of speech
adjective, adverb
Difficulty
Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˈpɹɪti/

British

/pɹɪti/

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

Meaning

What “pretty” means

  1. adjective

    pleasing by delicacy or grace; not imposing

    “pretty girl”

  2. adjective

    (used ironically) unexpectedly bad

    “a pretty mess”

  3. adverb

    to a moderately sufficient extent or degree

    “pretty big”

Say it in a sentence

“The garden looked pretty with all the tulips in bloom.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

5 sounds, in the order you say them
ppɹrɪshort ittilong e

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

Questions

“pretty”, answered

How do you pronounce “pretty”?

“pretty” is pronounced /ˈpɹɪti/ (PRI-tee) in American English and /pɹɪti/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “pret”. Build it as PRET-ty, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “pretty” have?

2: pret · ty. The beat lands on the first, “pret”.

Is “pretty” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈpɹɪti/ (PRI-tee); British English says /pɹɪti/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “pretty” mean?

As an adjective: pleasing by delicacy or grace; not imposing For example: “pretty girl” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “pretty”?

Stress the first syllable: PRET-ty. “pret” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

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