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How to pronounce niche

Niche is pronounced NICH in American English, like itch, and NEESH in British English, like leash. It has one syllable. In the US NEESH is also correct.

Say it yourself
  • 1 syllable
  • Stress on NICH
  • US and UK IPA
  • Checked in Cambridge and Oxford

niche

One syllable

noun · a small area of business or interest, or a small space in a wall

  1. NICHnɪtʃ (stressed)
  • US /nɪtʃ/NICH Recorded voice
  • UK /niːʃ/NEESH Your device’s voice

Also said: US /niːʃ/.

IPA checked in the Cambridge Dictionary and Oxford Learner’s Dictionaries. Both NICH and NEESH are used in American English. Cambridge lists NICH first and Oxford lists NEESH. The recording is American English.

Niche, sound by sound

Each sound in the IPA, with a word you already know that has it.

US American English/nɪtʃ/

  1. NICHstressed

    • /n/as in now
    • /ɪ/as in sit
    • /tʃ/as in chair

UK British English/niːʃ/

  1. NEESHstressed

    • /n/as in now
    • /iː/as in see
    • /ʃ/as in shoe

Say niche yourself

Press the microphone and say it once. Your browser writes down what it hears: if it writes niche, you were understood. If it writes another word, you see which sound changed.

Tip. US: NICH, like itch. UK: NEESH, like leash. Both are used in American English.

Record yourself and play it next to our recording: the quickest way to hear a difference.

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niche

    Common niche pronunciation mistakes

    What people often say instead, and how to fix it. Say NICH.

    • NotNICH-ee

      Adding a vowel at the end. The word has one syllable.

    • NotNYSH

      Reading i as in my. Both forms have a long ee or a short i.

    • Notnee-SHAY

      Treating it as a two-syllable French word. Say one syllable.

    Niche in a sentence

    Hear each one, slow it down, then say it. Words change a little when they join others, so practise them in sentences too.

    • The shop has found a niche selling old maps.

    • She carved a niche for herself as a writer.

    • The statue stands in a niche in the wall.

    Is niche NICH or NEESH?

    Both forms exist. NEESH is the French-style form and is the British one. In the US, Cambridge lists NICH first, and Oxford lists NEESH, and both are heard every day. Neither is wrong.

    The word came from French niche, which meant a hollow in a wall for a statue. It goes back to Old French nicher, to make a nest, and the word is related to nest. A niche in business is a small space that suits one kind of customer.

    Pick one form and use it every time. In British English, say NEESH. In American English, either NICH or NEESH is fine.

    Words that sound like niche

    Rhymes and words that share its tricky sound. Open any of them in the checker and say it.

    More words from other languages

    All 170 difficult words

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