Pronunciation

How to pronounce “restaurant

“restaurant” is pronounced /ˈɹɛstəɹɑnt/ (RESS-tuh-rahnt) in American English and /ˈɹɛstɹɒnt/ in British English, and /ˈɹɛstɹɑnt/ and /ˈɹɛˌstɹɑnt/ are also accepted — 3 syllables, stressed on “res”.
The sound

Say “restaurant” in 3 beats

Say it like this

restaurant

/ˈɹɛstəɹɑnt/

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

3 beats
  1. resɹɛstress
  2. taurstə
  3. antɹɑnt
IPA (American)
/ˈɹɛstəɹɑnt/
IPA (British)
/ˈɹɛstɹɒnt/
Also accepted
/ˈɹɛstɹɑnt/
Also accepted
/ˈɹɛˌstɹɑnt/
Respelling
RESS-tuh-rahnt
Syllables
3 — RES-taur-ant
Stress
Stress the first syllable: RES-taur-ant. “res” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall 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

/ˈɹɛstəɹɑnt/

British

/ˈɹɛstɹɒnt/

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

Also accepted

/ˈɹɛstɹɑnt/ — Two syllables, RESS-trahnt, is normal in fast speech.
Watch out

Where “restaurant” goes wrong

  • Often heard

    REST-a-rant with a full a

    the last syllable is a nasal -rahnt, not the word rant

Meaning

What “restaurant” means

  1. noun

    a building where people go to eat

Say it in a sentence

The restaurant on the corner has three tables and no menu.
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

restaurant”, answered

How do you pronounce “restaurant”?

“restaurant” is pronounced /ˈɹɛstəɹɑnt/ (RESS-tuh-rahnt) in American English and /ˈɹɛstɹɒnt/ in British English, and /ˈɹɛstɹɑnt/ and /ˈɹɛˌstɹɑnt/ are also accepted — 3 syllables, stressed on “res”. Build it as RES-taur-ant, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “restaurant” have?

3: res · taur · ant. The beat lands on the first, “res”.

Is “restaurant” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈɹɛstəɹɑnt/ (RESS-tuh-rahnt); British English says /ˈɹɛstɹɒnt/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “restaurant” mean?

As a noun: a building where people go to eat For example: “The restaurant on the corner has three tables and no menu.”

Where is the stress in “restaurant”?

Stress the first syllable: RES-taur-ant. “res” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “restaurant” 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.