Native Phrase Lab
WillowbrookWord 46 of 100 · Crazy spellings
How to pronounce colonel
/ˈkɜːnəl/ British English
KUR·nəl
2 beats (syllables). The strong beat is the first one.
a Coloured letters don’t sound the way they look.
✗ Many people say
co·lo·NEL
✓ Say
KUR·nəl
My tip
It sounds exactly like kernel. No l sound in the middle!
In a sentence
The colonel gave an order.
Now you say it
- Listen to me two or three times.
- Say it slowly, one beat at a time: KUR-nəl.
- Say the sentence at normal speed.
Questions
How do you pronounce colonel?
In British English, colonel is pronounced /ˈkɜːnəl/. Say it like this: KUR-nəl. It sounds exactly like kernel. No l sound in the middle!
How many syllables are in colonel?
When you say it, colonel has 2 syllables: KUR-nəl. The strong beat is the first one, KUR.
More words like this: crazy spellings
Practise these sounds
- The schwa, /ə/The small, weak sound in this word. It’s one of the 4 sounds you can practise completely free in my Sound Atlas.
- The strong beat: /ɜː/ as in “bird”Meet this sound and hear it in my Sound Atlas. Free.
- The Sound MapAll 44 sounds of British English, in my voice. Free.
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