Pronunciation

How to pronounce “used

“used” is pronounced /juzd/ (YOOZD) in American English and /juːzd/ in British English — one syllable.
The sound

Say “used” in one beat

Say it like this

used

/juzd/

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

1 beat
  1. usedjuzd
IPA (American)
/juzd/
IPA (British)
/juːzd/
Respelling
YOOZD
Syllables
1 — used
Stress
One syllable, so the whole word carries the beat — say /juzd/ in one unbroken piece rather than clipping the vowel.
Part of speech
verb, adjective
Difficulty
Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/juzd/

British

/juːzd/

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

Meaning

What “used” means

  1. verb

    put into service; make work or employ for a particular purpose or for its inherent or natural purpose

    use your head!

  2. verb

    take or consume (regularly or habitually)

    She uses drugs rarely

  3. verb

    use up, consume fully

    The legislature expended its time on school questions

Say it in a sentence

She used an old recipe her mother had written down.
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

used”, answered

How do you pronounce “used”?

“used” is pronounced /juzd/ (YOOZD) in American English and /juːzd/ in British English — one syllable. It is one unbroken piece — /juzd/ — with no pause anywhere inside it.

How many syllables does “used” have?

One, despite the 2 vowel letters in the spelling. The whole word is /juzd/ — a single beat.

Is “used” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /juzd/ (YOOZD); British English says /juːzd/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “used” mean?

As a verb: put into service; make work or employ for a particular purpose or for its inherent or natural purpose For example: “use your head!” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “used”?

One syllable, so the whole word carries the beat — say /juzd/ in one unbroken piece rather than clipping the vowel.

Practise this word

Now say “used” 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.