How to Pronounce “knight”

American (US)

/ˈnaɪ̯t/

British (UK)

/ˈnaɪ̯t/

Australian (AU)

/ˈnɑɪ̯t/

noun — A young servant or follower; a trained military attendant in service of a lord.

The k is silent. Every English word beginning kn- lost the /k/ centuries ago but kept it in the spelling. “knight” starts on a plain /n/ sound, exactly as if the k were not written.

The gh is silent. The gh in “knight” is not pronounced. It records a rasping back-of-the-throat consonant that Middle English had and modern English lost, leaving the spelling behind.

What does "knight" mean?

knight (noun): A young servant or follower; a trained military attendant in service of a lord.

How do you pronounce "knight" in American vs British English?

Both accents use the same sequence of phonemes for "knight", /ˈnaɪ̯t/, so the difference you hear is in how the vowels are coloured rather than in which sounds are used. Play both on this page to compare.

What is the IPA transcription of "knight"?

/ˈnaɪ̯t/ in American English, /ˈnaɪ̯t/ in British English, /ˈnɑɪ̯t/ in Australian English.

• Silent K words
• Homophones List