Native Phrase Lab
WillowbrookWord 37 of 100 · The stress trap
How to pronounce Japan
/dʒəˈpæn/ British English
jə·PAN
2 beats (syllables). The strong beat is the second one.
✗ Many people say
JA·pan
✓ Say
jə·PAN
My tip
But Japanese is ja-pə-NEEZ. The stress moves!
In a sentence
I’d love to visit Japan.
Now you say it
- Listen to me two or three times.
- Say it slowly, one beat at a time: jə-PAN.
- Say the sentence at normal speed.
Questions
How do you pronounce Japan?
In British English, Japan is pronounced /dʒəˈpæn/. Say it like this: jə-PAN. But Japanese is ja-pə-NEEZ. The stress moves!
How many syllables are in Japan?
When you say it, Japan has 2 syllables: jə-PAN. The strong beat is the second one, PAN.
More words like this: the stress trap
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: /æ/ as in “cat”Meet this sound and hear it in my Sound Atlas. Free.
- The Sound MapAll 44 sounds of British English, in my voice. Free.
- Pitch Perfect: the Word stress setHear me say it, record yourself, and see your sound under mine. A premium game.
- More gamesFive of my English games are free to play.