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How to pronounce would

Would is pronounced WOOD, with one syllable, exactly like the word wood. The l is silent. In fast speech people often say it weakly, as wud or just d.

Say it yourself
  • 1 syllable
  • Stress on WOOD
  • Sounds like wood
  • Checked in Cambridge and Oxford

would

One syllable

modal verb · the past form of will, used for polite requests and imagined situations

  1. WOODwʊd (stressed)
  • US /wʊd/WOOD Recorded voice
  • UK /wʊd/WOOD Your device’s voice

IPA checked in the Cambridge Dictionary and Oxford Learner’s Dictionaries. The recording is American English.

Would, sound by sound

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

USUK American and British English/wʊd/

  1. WOODstressed

    • /w/as in wet
    • /ʊ/as in put
    • /d/as in did

Say would yourself

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

Tip. The l is silent. Say WOOD, exactly like wood. In fast speech it is a weak wud.

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

Say it

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would

    Common would pronunciation mistakes

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

    • NotWOHLD

      Saying the l and using the oh of old. Would has the short vowel of book and no l.

    • NotWOWD

      Reading ou as in loud. In would it is the short oo of book.

    • NotWUD

      Using the u of cup. In the full form the vowel is the oo of book.

    Would 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 would like a glass of water, please.

    • Would you open the window for me?

    • She said she would call me tonight.

    Why is the l in would silent?

    Would is a homophone of wood. It comes from Old English wolde, the past tense of willan, the older form of will. The l was once sounded, then dropped out.

    The loss probably began because would is a weak, unstressed word that is said fast. The same happened to should. Could never had an l at first, and it was added to the spelling to match would and should, even though it was never said.

    In real speech the word is often weak: I would like a coffee becomes I wud like, or even I'd like. Practise the full form WOOD first, then listen for the weak form.

    Words that sound like would

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

    More words with silent letters

    All 170 difficult words

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