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Pronunciation

How to pronounce “telling”

“telling” is pronounced /ˈtɛlɪŋ/ (TE-ling) in American English and /tɛlɪŋ/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “tel”.
The sound

Say “telling” in 2 beats

Say it like this

telling

/ˈtɛlɪŋ/

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

2 beats
  1. teltɛstress
  2. linglɪŋ
IPA (American)
/ˈtɛlɪŋ/
IPA (British)
/tɛlɪŋ/
Respelling
TE-ling
Syllables
2 — TEL-ling
Stress
Stress the first syllable: TEL-ling. “tel” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
Part of speech
noun, verb, adjective
Difficulty
Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˈtɛlɪŋ/

British

/tɛlɪŋ/

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

Meaning

What “telling” means

  1. noun

    an act of narration

    “he was the hero according to his own relation”

  2. noun

    informing by words

  3. noun

    disclosing information or giving evidence about another

Say it in a sentence

“He kept telling the same joke at every family dinner.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

5 sounds, in the order you say them
ttɛshort ellɪshort iŋng

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

Questions

“telling”, answered

How do you pronounce “telling”?

“telling” is pronounced /ˈtɛlɪŋ/ (TE-ling) in American English and /tɛlɪŋ/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “tel”. Build it as TEL-ling, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “telling” have?

2: tel · ling. The beat lands on the first, “tel”.

Is “telling” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈtɛlɪŋ/ (TE-ling); British English says /tɛlɪŋ/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “telling” mean?

As a noun: an act of narration For example: “he was the hero according to his own relation” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “telling”?

Stress the first syllable: TEL-ling. “tel” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “telling” 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.

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