How to Pronounce “salmon”

American (US)

/ˈsæmən/

British (UK)

/ˈsæmən/

Australian (AU)

/ˈsæmən/

noun — A large silver fish that swims upriver to spawn, valued as food.

Example: The salmon was served with dill and lemon.

The spelling is misleading. “salmon” is one of a short list of English words whose spelling and pronunciation drifted apart and never came back together. Do not try to sound it out letter by letter — listen to it and learn it whole.

Where the stress falls. “salmon” has 2 syllables, and the transcription /ˈsæmən/ 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. /ˈsæmən/ 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 "salmon" mean?

salmon (noun): A large silver fish that swims upriver to spawn, valued as food. For example — The salmon was served with dill and lemon.

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

Both accents use the same sequence of phonemes for "salmon", /ˈsæmən/, 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 "salmon"?

/ˈsæmən/ in American English, /ˈsæmən/ in British English, /ˈsæmən/ in Australian English.

Which syllable is stressed in "salmon"?

“salmon” has 2 syllables, and the transcription /ˈsæmən/ 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.

• Silent L words
• Animal names