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Pronunciation

How to pronounce “volunteer”

“volunteer” is pronounced /ˌvɑlənˈtɪɹ/ (vah-luhn-TIR) in American English and /vɒləntiə/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “teer”.
The sound

Say “volunteer” in 3 beats

Say it like this

volunteer

/ˌvɑlənˈtɪɹ/

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

3 beats
  1. volvɑ
  2. unlən
  3. teertɪɹstress
IPA (American)
/ˌvɑlənˈtɪɹ/
IPA (British)
/vɒləntiə/
Respelling
vah-luhn-TIR
Syllables
3 — vol-un-TEER
Stress
Stress the third syllable: vol-un-TEER. “teer” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
noun, verb, adjective
Difficulty
Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˌvɑlənˈtɪɹ/

British

/vɒləntiə/

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

Meaning

What “volunteer” means

  1. noun

    (military) a person who freely enlists for service

  2. noun

    a person who performs voluntary work

  3. noun

    a native or resident of Tennessee

Say it in a sentence

“A volunteer runs the reading group every Saturday morning.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

8 sounds, in the order you say them
vvɑahlləschwannttɪshort iɹr

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

Questions

“volunteer”, answered

How do you pronounce “volunteer”?

“volunteer” is pronounced /ˌvɑlənˈtɪɹ/ (vah-luhn-TIR) in American English and /vɒləntiə/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “teer”. Build it as vol-un-TEER, then run the third syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “volunteer” have?

3: vol · un · teer. The beat lands on the third, “teer”.

Is “volunteer” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˌvɑlənˈtɪɹ/ (vah-luhn-TIR); British English says /vɒləntiə/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “volunteer” mean?

As a noun: (military) a person who freely enlists for service For example: “A volunteer runs the reading group every Saturday morning.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “volunteer”?

Stress the third syllable: vol-un-TEER. “teer” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

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