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Some English words are spelled identically but said completely differently depending on their meaning. Others just shift which syllable gets the stress. Both are famous pronunciation traps — hear every one below, and use Practice Mode to test yourself.
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Same spelling, different pronunciation, different meaning.
LEED
to guide or go in front of
“She will lead the team.”
LED
a soft, heavy grey metal
“The pipe was made of lead.”
TEER
a drop of water from the eye
“A tear rolled down her cheek.”
TAIR
to rip
“Don't tear the paper.”
WIND
moving air
“The wind is strong today.”
WYND
to turn or coil
“Wind the clock before bed.”
BOH
a weapon, or a ribbon knot
“She tied a bow in her hair.”
BOW (rhymes with cow)
to bend forward at the waist
“The actors took a bow.”
BASE
low musical tone or instrument
“He plays bass guitar.”
BASS (rhymes with class)
a type of fish
“We caught a bass this morning.”
KLOHS
nearby
“The store is close to my house.”
KLOHZ
to shut
“Please close the door.”
LIV
to be alive, to reside
“They live in Boston.”
LYVE
happening now, not recorded
“It was a live broadcast.”
MIN-it
60 seconds
“Wait one minute.”
my-NOOT
extremely small
“The details were minute.”
OB-jekt
a thing
“What is that object?”
ub-JEKT
to protest or disagree
“I object to this plan.”
KON-tent
what's inside something
“Check the content of the box.”
kun-TENT
satisfied
“She felt content with her work.”
DEZ-ert
a dry, sandy area
“Camels live in the desert.”
dih-ZERT
to abandon
“Soldiers must not desert their post.”
IN-vuh-lid
a person who is ill or disabled
“He cared for the invalid.”
in-VAL-id
not valid or correct
“That ticket is invalid.”
MOD-er-it
not extreme, average
“The weather was moderate.”
MOD-er-ayt
to preside over a debate
“She will moderate the panel.”
SEP-rit
apart, not joined
“Keep the two piles separate.”
SEP-uh-rayt
to divide or split up
“Please separate the colors.”
PREZ-ent
a gift, or now
“She opened her present.”
prih-ZENT
to give or show formally
“He will present the award.”
PROH-doos
fruits and vegetables
“The produce looked fresh.”
pruh-DOOS
to make or create
“The factory will produce more.”
PROJ-ekt
a planned piece of work
“We finished the project.”
pruh-JEKT
to forecast, or throw forward
“Sales project to rise.”
PER-mit
an official license
“You need a parking permit.”
per-MIT
to allow
“They permit photos here.”
KON-trakt
a formal agreement
“Sign the contract here.”
kun-TRAKT
to shrink, or catch an illness
“Metal will contract in the cold.”
KON-dukt
behavior
“His conduct was excellent.”
kun-DUKT
to lead or carry out
“She will conduct the orchestra.”
SUB-jekt
a topic
“Math is my favorite subject.”
sub-JEKT
to expose someone to something
“Don't subject him to that.”
SUS-pekt
a person thought to have done wrong
“Police questioned the suspect.”
suh-SPEKT
to believe something without proof
“I suspect she is right.”
REB-el
a person who resists authority
“The rebel fought for change.”
rih-BEL
to resist or fight authority
“Teenagers often rebel.”
REF-yoos
trash or waste
“Put the refuse in the bin.”
rih-FYOOZ
to decline or say no
“I refuse to give up.”
EN-trans
a doorway or way in
“Meet me at the entrance.”
en-TRANS
to fill with delight, to enchant
“The music will entrance you.”
AT-truh-byoot
a quality or feature
“Kindness is a great attribute.”
uh-TRIB-yoot
to credit something to a cause
“They attribute it to luck.”
IN-sens
fragrant smoke from burning material
“The incense smelled sweet.”
in-SENS
to make very angry
“The delay will incense them.”
KON-sohl
a control panel or gaming device
“He bought a new console.”
kun-SOHL
to comfort someone
“She tried to console her friend.”
KOM-pownd
a mixture, or an enclosed area
“The chemical is a compound.”
kum-POWND
to make worse, or combine
“Stress will compound the issue.”
ES-tuh-mit
a rough calculation or guess
“Give me an estimate.”
ES-tuh-mayt
to calculate roughly
“Please estimate the cost.”
GRAJ-oo-it
someone who has completed a course of study
“She is a college graduate.”
GRAJ-oo-ayt
to complete a course of study
“He will graduate in May.”
WOOND
an injury
“The wound healed slowly.”
WOWND
past tense of "wind" (to coil)
“She wound the string tightly.”
SOH
to plant seeds
“Farmers sow seeds in spring.”
SOW (rhymes with cow)
a female pig
“The sow had six piglets.”
DUV
a bird, symbol of peace
“A white dove flew by.”
DOHV
past tense of "dive"
“She dove into the pool.”
ROH
a line of things, or to paddle a boat
“We sat in the front row.”
ROW (rhymes with cow)
a noisy argument
“They had a big row.”
DUZ
present tense of "do"
“She does her homework.”
DOHZ
plural of "doe" (female deer)
“The does grazed nearby.”
REED
present tense — to look at and understand text
“I read every day.”
RED
past tense of "read"
“I read that book last year.”
buh-FAY
a meal set out for self-service
“We ate at the buffet.”
BUF-it
to strike repeatedly
“Winds buffet the coast.”
rih-ZOOM
to continue after a pause
“We will resume after lunch.”
REZ-oo-may
a summary of work history
“Send me your resume.”
HOWSS
a building where people live
“They bought a new house.”
HOWZ
to provide shelter for
“The shelter can house 50 people.”
Same spelling — stress the FIRST syllable for the noun, the SECOND for the verb: “a REC-ord” vs “to re-CORD”.
REK-ord
information kept in writing
“Keep a record of expenses.”
rih-CORD
to store sound or data
“Please record the meeting.”
IM-port
a good brought in from abroad
“The car is an import.”
im-PORT
to bring in from abroad
“They import coffee beans.”
EK-sport
a good sent abroad
“Oil is a major export.”
ek-SPORT
to send goods abroad
“They export wheat.”
IN-kreess
a rise in amount
“There was a price increase.”
in-KREESS
to become or make greater
“Prices will increase.”
DEE-kreess
a reduction in amount
“There was a slight decrease.”
dee-KREESS
to become or make smaller
“Sales will decrease.”
IN-sult
a rude remark
“That was a real insult.”
in-SULT
to speak rudely to
“Don't insult your teacher.”
IN-sert
a page placed inside something
“There was an insert in the magazine.”
in-SERT
to put something inside
“Insert the key here.”
EK-strakt
a passage taken from a text
“Read this extract.”
ek-STRAKT
to remove or take out
“The dentist will extract the tooth.”
KON-trast
a clear difference
“There is a contrast between them.”
kun-TRAST
to show a clear difference
“Contrast the two paintings.”
KON-vert
a person who changed beliefs
“She is a recent convert.”
kun-VERT
to change into another form
“Convert miles to kilometers.”
KON-vikt
a person found guilty of a crime
“The convict was released.”
kun-VIKT
to find guilty in court
“The jury will convict him.”
DY-jest
a short summary
“Read the news digest.”
dy-JEST
to break down food in the body
“It takes time to digest a meal.”
DIS-kownt
a price reduction
“We got a discount.”
dis-KOWNT
to disregard as unlikely
“Don't discount that idea.”
DIS-charj
an official release
“He got an honorable discharge.”
dis-CHARJ
to release or let go
“The hospital will discharge her today.”
PROG-ress
forward movement or improvement
“We're making progress.”
pruh-GRESS
to move forward or improve
“The project will progress quickly.”
PROH-test
a public objection
“They held a protest.”
pruh-TEST
to object publicly
“They protest the new law.”
TRANS-port
a means of moving people/goods
“Public transport is cheap.”
trans-PORT
to move from one place to another
“Trucks transport the goods.”
TRANS-fer
a move from one place to another
“The transfer took an hour.”
trans-FER
to move something/someone
“Please transfer the funds.”
SER-vay
a set of questions to gather data
“Please fill out the survey.”
ser-VAY
to examine or ask a group of people
“They survey customers monthly.”
AD-ikt
a person dependent on something
“He is a coffee addict.”
uh-DIKT
to make dependent on something
“Games can addict young players.”
KOM-byn
a large farm machine
“The combine harvested the wheat.”
kum-BYN
to join together
“Combine the flour and sugar.”
KOM-pakt
a small car, or an agreement
“She drives a compact.”
kum-PAKT
to press tightly together
“The machine will compact the soil.”
KON-flikt
a serious disagreement
“The conflict lasted years.”
kun-FLIKT
to be at odds with
“Their views conflict sharply.”
KON-test
a competition
“She won the contest.”
kun-TEST
to formally challenge
“They will contest the results.”
DEE-fekt
a flaw or fault
“The car has a defect.”
dih-FEKT
to abandon one side for another
“The spy chose to defect.”
OB-jekt
a thing
“What is that object?”
ub-JEKT
to protest or disagree
“I object to this plan.”
PREZ-ent
a gift, or now
“She opened her present.”
prih-ZENT
to give or show formally
“He will present the award.”
PROH-doos
fruits and vegetables
“The produce looked fresh.”
pruh-DOOS
to make or create
“The factory will produce more.”
PROJ-ekt
a planned piece of work
“We finished the project.”
pruh-JEKT
to forecast, or throw forward
“Sales project to rise.”
PER-mit
an official license
“You need a parking permit.”
per-MIT
to allow
“They permit photos here.”
KON-trakt
a formal agreement
“Sign the contract here.”
kun-TRAKT
to shrink, or catch an illness
“Metal will contract in the cold.”
KON-dukt
behavior
“His conduct was excellent.”
kun-DUKT
to lead or carry out
“She will conduct the orchestra.”
SUB-jekt
a topic
“Math is my favorite subject.”
sub-JEKT
to expose someone to something
“Don't subject him to that.”
SUS-pekt
a person thought to have done wrong
“Police questioned the suspect.”
suh-SPEKT
to believe something without proof
“I suspect she is right.”
REB-el
a person who resists authority
“The rebel fought for change.”
rih-BEL
to resist or fight authority
“Teenagers often rebel.”
REF-yoos
trash or waste
“Put the refuse in the bin.”
rih-FYOOZ
to decline or say no
“I refuse to give up.”