Pronunciation

How to pronounce “salary

“salary” is pronounced /ˈsælɚi/ (SA-luh-ee) in American English and /saləɹi/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “sal”.
The sound

Say “salary” in 3 beats

Say it like this

salary

/ˈsælɚi/

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

3 beats
  1. salstress
  2. ar
  3. yi
IPA (American)
/ˈsælɚi/
IPA (British)
/saləɹi/
Respelling
SA-luh-ee
Syllables
3 — SAL-ar-y
Stress
Stress the first syllable: SAL-ar-y. “sal” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
noun
Difficulty
Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˈsælɚi/

British

/saləɹi/

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

Meaning

What “salary” means

  1. noun

    something that remunerates

    wages were paid by check

Say it in a sentence

The salary is modest, but the work itself is rewarding.
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

salary”, answered

How do you pronounce “salary”?

“salary” is pronounced /ˈsælɚi/ (SA-luh-ee) in American English and /saləɹi/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “sal”. Build it as SAL-ar-y, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “salary” have?

3: sal · ar · y. The beat lands on the first, “sal”.

Is “salary” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈsælɚi/ (SA-luh-ee); British English says /saləɹi/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “salary” mean?

As a noun: something that remunerates For example: “wages were paid by check”

Where is the stress in “salary”?

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

Practise this word

Now say “salary” 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.