How to pronounce “what”
Say “what” in one beat
what
/wʌt/
The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /wɒt/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.
- whatwʌt
- IPA (American)
- /wʌt/
- IPA (British)
- /wɒt/
- Also accepted
- /hwʌt/
- Respelling
- WUT (UK WOT)
- Syllables
- 1 — what
- Stress
- One syllable, so the whole word carries the beat — say /wʌt/ in one unbroken piece rather than clipping the vowel.
- Part of speech
- pronoun
- Difficulty
- Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
American and British are not the same here
/wʌt/
/wɒt/
No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.
Where “what” goes wrong
- Often heard
“HWAT”
most speakers say a plain w; the h of wh- is silent
What “what” means
- pronoun
asking for information about something, or standing for the thing that
Say it in a sentence
“Tell me what you need and I will bring it.”“what”, answered
How do you pronounce “what”?
“what” is pronounced /wʌt/ (WUT (UK WOT)) in American English and /wɒt/ in British English, and /hwʌt/ is also accepted — one syllable. It is one unbroken piece — /wʌt/ — with no pause anywhere inside it.
How many syllables does “what” have?
One, despite the 1 vowel letters in the spelling. The whole word is /wʌt/ — a single beat.
Is “what” said differently in British English?
Yes. American English says /wʌt/ (WUT (UK WOT)); British English says /wɒt/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.
What does “what” mean?
As a pronoun: asking for information about something, or standing for the thing that For example: “Tell me what you need and I will bring it.”
Where is the stress in “what”?
One syllable, so the whole word carries the beat — say /wʌt/ in one unbroken piece rather than clipping the vowel.
Now say “what” 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.