How to pronounce “war”
Say “war” in one beat
war
/wɔɹ/
The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /wɔː/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.
- warwɔɹ
- IPA (American)
- /wɔɹ/
- IPA (British)
- /wɔː/
- Respelling
- WAWR
- Syllables
- 1 — war
- Stress
- One syllable, so the whole word carries the beat — say /wɔɹ/ in one unbroken piece rather than clipping the vowel.
- Part of speech
- noun, verb
- Difficulty
- Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
American and British are not the same here
/wɔɹ/
/wɔː/
No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.
What “war” means
- noun
the waging of armed conflict against an enemy
“thousands of people were killed in the war”
- noun
a legal state created by a declaration of war and ended by official declaration during which the international rules of war apply
“war was declared in November but actual fighting did not begin until the following spring”
- noun
an active struggle between competing entities
“a price war”
Say it in a sentence
“Her grandfather rarely spoke about the war he fought in.”“war”, answered
How do you pronounce “war”?
“war” is pronounced /wɔɹ/ (WAWR) in American English and /wɔː/ in British English — one syllable. It is one unbroken piece — /wɔɹ/ — with no pause anywhere inside it.
How many syllables does “war” have?
One, despite the 1 vowel letters in the spelling. The whole word is /wɔɹ/ — a single beat.
Is “war” said differently in British English?
Yes. American English says /wɔɹ/ (WAWR); British English says /wɔː/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.
What does “war” mean?
As a noun: the waging of armed conflict against an enemy For example: “thousands of people were killed in the war” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.
Where is the stress in “war”?
One syllable, so the whole word carries the beat — say /wɔɹ/ in one unbroken piece rather than clipping the vowel.
Now say “war” 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.