Pronunciation

How to pronounce “urbane

“urbane” is pronounced /ɚˈbeɪn/ (uh-BAYN) in American English and /ɜːbeɪn/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “beɪn”.
The sound

Say “urbane” in 2 beats

Say it like this

urbane

/ɚˈbeɪn/

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

2 beats
  1. ɚɚ
  2. beɪnbeɪnstress
IPA (American)
/ɚˈbeɪn/
IPA (British)
/ɜːbeɪn/
Respelling
uh-BAYN
Syllables
2 — ɚ-BEꞮN
Stress
Stress the second syllable: ɚ-BEꞮN. “beɪn” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
Part of speech
adjective
Difficulty
Legend — spelling and sound part company here
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ɚˈbeɪn/

British

/ɜːbeɪn/

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

Meaning

What “urbane” means

  1. adjective

    showing a high degree of refinement and the assurance that comes from wide social experience

    his polished manner

Say it in a sentence

Their urbane host poured wine and told excellent stories.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

4 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

urbane”, answered

How do you pronounce “urbane”?

“urbane” is pronounced /ɚˈbeɪn/ (uh-BAYN) in American English and /ɜːbeɪn/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “beɪn”. Build it as ɚ-BEꞮN, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “urbane” have?

2: ɚ · beɪn. The beat lands on the second, “beɪn”.

Is “urbane” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ɚˈbeɪn/ (uh-BAYN); British English says /ɜːbeɪn/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “urbane” mean?

As an adjective: showing a high degree of refinement and the assurance that comes from wide social experience For example: “his polished manner”

Where is the stress in “urbane”?

Stress the second syllable: ɚ-BEꞮN. “beɪn” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “urbane” 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.