Pronunciation

How to pronounce “sample

“sample” is pronounced /ˈsæmpəl/ (SAM-puhl) in American English and /sampəl/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “samp”.
The sound

Say “sample” in 2 beats

Say it like this

sample

/ˈsæmpəl/

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

2 beats
  1. sampsæmstress
  2. lepəl
IPA (American)
/ˈsæmpəl/
IPA (British)
/sampəl/
Respelling
SAM-puhl
Syllables
2 — SAMP-le
Stress
Stress the first syllable: SAMP-le. “samp” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
Part of speech
noun, verb
Difficulty
Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˈsæmpəl/

British

/sampəl/

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

Meaning

What “sample” means

  1. noun

    a small part of something intended as representative of the whole

  2. noun

    items selected at random from a population and used to test hypotheses about the population

  3. noun

    all or part of a natural object that is collected and preserved as an example of its class

Say it in a sentence

A small sample was sent away for testing.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

6 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

sample”, answered

How do you pronounce “sample”?

“sample” is pronounced /ˈsæmpəl/ (SAM-puhl) in American English and /sampəl/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “samp”. Build it as SAMP-le, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “sample” have?

2: samp · le. The beat lands on the first, “samp”.

Is “sample” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈsæmpəl/ (SAM-puhl); British English says /sampəl/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “sample” mean?

As a noun: a small part of something intended as representative of the whole For example: “A small sample was sent away for testing.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “sample”?

Stress the first syllable: SAMP-le. “samp” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “sample” 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.