souvenir
noun · something you keep to remember a place or a time
- soosuː
- vuhvə
- NEERnɪr (stressed)
- soosuː
- vuhvə
- NEERnɪə (stressed)
- US /ˌsuː.vəˈnɪr/soo-vuh-NEER Recorded voice
- UK /ˌsuː.vəˈnɪə/soo-vuh-NEER Your device’s voice
How to pronounce souvenir
Souvenir is pronounced soo-vuh-NEER, with three syllables and the main stress on the last, NEER. It rhymes with near. American and British English say it the same way.
- 3 syllables
- Stress on NEER
- US and UK IPA
- Checked in Cambridge and Oxford
IPA checked in the Cambridge Dictionary and Oxford Learner’s Dictionaries. The recording is American English.
Souvenir, sound by sound
Each sound in the IPA, with a word you already know that has it.
US American English/ˌsuː.vəˈnɪr/
soo
- /s/as in see
- /uː/as in too
vuh
- /v/as in van
- /ə/as in about
NEERstressed
- /n/as in now
- /ɪ/as in sit
- /r/as in red
UK British English/ˌsuː.vəˈnɪə/
soo
- /s/as in see
- /uː/as in too
vuh
- /v/as in van
- /ə/as in about
NEERstressed
- /n/as in now
- /ɪə/as in near (UK)
Say souvenir yourself
Press the microphone and say it once. Your browser writes down what it hears: if it writes souvenir, you were understood. If it writes another word, you see which sound changed.
Tip. Stress the last syllable: soo-vuh-NEER. It rhymes with near, and the first vowel is oo.
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Common souvenir pronunciation mistakes
What people often say instead, and how to fix it. Say soo-vuh-NEER.
Not
sow-vuh-NEERReading sou as in sound. In this French word it is oo.
Not
soo-VEN-irReading the second syllable like even. The vowel there is a weak uh, and the stress is on NEER.
Not
soo-vuh-NAIREnding with air. The end rhymes with near.
Souvenir 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.
I bought a small souvenir at the airport.
This shell is a souvenir from our holiday.
They sell postcards and every kind of souvenir.
How do you say souvenir?
Souvenir is a French word, and English keeps the stress on the last syllable, NEER. The first syllable, sou, is oo, as in you, not ow as in out.
The word means memory in French. It comes from a verb meaning to come to mind. A souvenir is the thing that brings the memory back.
The middle syllable is very light: vuh. Cambridge and Oxford both give the stress on the end. Some American speakers put a weaker stress on the first syllable, but the main one is still NEER.
Words that sound like souvenir
Rhymes and words that share its tricky sound. Open any of them in the checker and say it.
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