How to Pronounce “rhythm”

American (US)

/ˈrɪðəm/

British (UK)

/ˈrɪðəm/

Australian (AU)

/ˈɹɪð.əm/

noun — A regular repeated pattern of sound or movement.

Example: The whole piece depends on holding the rhythm steady.

Synonyms: beat, cadence

The h is silent. The h in the Greek spelling rh- is not pronounced in English, so “rhythm” begins on a plain /r/.

Where the stress falls. “rhythm” has 2 syllables, and the transcription /ˈrɪðəm/ puts the primary stress mark (ˈ) before the first one — so the first syllable is the longest and loudest. The others are said quickly and lightly.

An unstressed vowel reduces to schwa. /ˈrɪðəm/ contains a schwa /ə/ — the short, neutral “uh” that English unstressed syllables collapse into. Saying /ə/ there, instead of the vowel the spelling suggests, is most of what makes the word sound native.

What does "rhythm" mean?

rhythm (noun): A regular repeated pattern of sound or movement. For example — The whole piece depends on holding the rhythm steady.

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

Both accents use the same sequence of phonemes for "rhythm", /ˈrɪðəm/, 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 "rhythm"?

/ˈrɪðəm/ in American English, /ˈrɪðəm/ in British English, /ˈɹɪð.əm/ in Australian English.

Which syllable is stressed in "rhythm"?

“rhythm” has 2 syllables, and the transcription /ˈrɪðəm/ puts the primary stress mark (ˈ) before the first one — so the first syllable is the longest and loudest. The others are said quickly and lightly.

English Sentence Stress — Stress Guide

Why some words in a sentence are loud and others vanish, and how mastering this pattern fixes more intelligibility problems than any individual sound.

English Pronunciation for Hindi Speakers — V vs W & Retroflex Stops

Master V vs W distinctions, clear alveolar T/D vs retroflex stops, and stress-timed rhythm.

Rhythm and Stress Timing — Why English Sounds Uneven

English is stress-timed: stressed syllables arrive at even intervals and unstressed ones are squeezed between them. How to hear and copy the beat.

• Silent H words