Pronunciation

How to pronounce “quality

“quality” is pronounced /ˈkwɑləti/ (KWAH-luh-tee) in American English and /kwɒlɪti/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “qual”.
The sound

Say “quality” in 3 beats

Say it like this

quality

/ˈkwɑləti/

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

3 beats
  1. qualkwɑstress
  2. it
  3. yti
IPA (American)
/ˈkwɑləti/
IPA (British)
/kwɒlɪti/
Respelling
KWAH-luh-tee
Syllables
3 — QUAL-it-y
Stress
Stress the first syllable: QUAL-it-y. “qual” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
noun, adjective
Difficulty
Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˈkwɑləti/

British

/kwɒlɪti/

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

Meaning

What “quality” means

  1. noun

    an essential and distinguishing attribute of something or someone; --Shakespeare

    the quality of mercy is not strained

  2. noun

    a degree or grade of excellence or worth

    the quality of students has risen

  3. noun

    a characteristic property that defines the apparent individual nature of something

    each town has a quality all its own

Say it in a sentence

The furniture is known for its quality and durability.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

7 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

quality”, answered

How do you pronounce “quality”?

“quality” is pronounced /ˈkwɑləti/ (KWAH-luh-tee) in American English and /kwɒlɪti/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “qual”. Build it as QUAL-it-y, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “quality” have?

3: qual · it · y. The beat lands on the first, “qual”.

Is “quality” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈkwɑləti/ (KWAH-luh-tee); British English says /kwɒlɪti/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “quality” mean?

As a noun: an essential and distinguishing attribute of something or someone; --Shakespeare For example: “the quality of mercy is not strained” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “quality”?

Stress the first syllable: QUAL-it-y. “qual” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “quality” 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.