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:''For help installing IPA-compatible fonts, see [[International Phonetic Alphabet#Free_IPA_font_downloads|IPA font downloads]].''
Below is a basic '''key''' to the symbols of the '''[[International Phonetic Alphabet]]'''. For the smaller set of symbols that is sufficient for English, see [[Help:pronunciation]]. Several rare IPA symbols are not included; these are found on the [[International Phonetic Alphabet|main IPA article]].

For each IPA symbol, an English example is given where possible; here "RP" stands for [[Received Pronunciation]]. The foreign languages that are used to illustrate additional sounds are primarily the ones most likely to be familiar to English speakers, [[French phonology|French]], [[German phonology|German]], and [[Spanish phonology|Spanish]]. For symbols not covered by those, recourse is taken to the populous languages [[Standard Mandarin#Phonology|Mandarin Chinese]], [[Hindustani phonology|Hindustani]], [[Arabic phonology|Arabic]], and [[Russian phonology|Russian]]. For sounds still not covered, other smaller but well-known languages are used, such as [[Swahili language#Sounds|Swahili]], [[Turkish phonology|Turkish]], and [[Zulu language#phonology|Zulu]].

The left-hand column displays the symbols like this: {{audio-pipe|open front unrounded vowel.ogg|open front unrounded vowel|<big>[ a ]</big>}}. Click on the speaker icon to hear the sound; click on the symbol itself for a dedicated article with a more complete description and examples from multiple languages. All the sounds are spoken more than once, and the consonant sounds are spoken once followed by a vowel and once between vowels.

{{CompactTOC8|side=yes|center=yes|nobreak=yes|custom1=other|custom2=Diacritic marks|custom3=Brackets}}

==Main symbols==
<!-- PLEASE READ BEFORE ADDING EXAMPLES OR LANGUAGES TO THE KEY
This key is intended for newbies to the IPA and should therefore be kept as short and sweet as possible. Descriptions should be brief, without technical terms like "back vowel" or "labial" or "fricative"; and examples should be from familiar languages that are ''well described phonetically.'' 
-->
The symbols are arranged by similarity to letters of the Latin alphabet. Symbols which do not resemble any letter are placed at the end. 

{| class="IPA wikitable" style="margin: 1em"
! Symbol !! Examples !! Description

|- id="A"
! colspan="3" | <div style="font-weight: normal; float: right;">[[#top|^ top]]</div> A
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Open front unrounded vowel.ogg|Open front unrounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;a&nbsp;]</big>}}
| Spanish ''c'''a'''sa,'' French ''p'''a'''tte,'' German ''M'''a'''nn'' 
| For many English speakers, the first part of the ''ow'' sound in ''cow''. Found in some dialects of English in ''c'''a'''t'' or ''f'''a'''ther''.
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Open front unrounded vowel.ogg|Open front unrounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;aː&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| German [[Aachen|'''''Aa'''chen'']], French ''g'''a'''re'' 
| Long [a].
|-
| style="padding-left: 16px" |&nbsp;&nbsp;[[Near-open central vowel|<big>[&nbsp;ɐ&nbsp;]</big>]]<!--There is no sound file for this sound-->
| RP ''c'''u'''t'', German [[Kaiserslautern|''Kais'''er'''slaut'''er'''n'']] 
| (With English, [ɐ] is normally written "[ʌ]".)
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Open back unrounded vowel.ogg|Open back unrounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;ɑ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| [[Finnish phonology|Finnish]] [[Väinö Linna|''Linn'''a''''']], Dutch ''b'''a'''d''
|
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Open back unrounded vowel.ogg|Open back unrounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;ɑː&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| RP ''f'''a'''ther,'' French ''p'''â'''te''
| Long [ɑ].
|-
| style="padding-left: 16px" |&nbsp;&nbsp;[[Nasal vowel|<big>[&nbsp;ɑ̃&nbsp;]</big>]]
| French [[Caen|''C'''aen''''']], ''s'''an'''s'', ''t'''em'''ps''
| Nasalized [ɑ].
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Open back rounded vowel.ogg|Open back rounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;ɒ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| RP ''c'''o'''t 
| Like [ɑ], but with the lips slightly rounded.
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Open-mid back unrounded vowel.ogg|Open-mid back unrounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;ʌ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| 
| Like [ɔ], but without the lips being rounded. (When "[ʌ]" is used for English, it may really be [ɐ] or [ɜ].)
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Near-open front unrounded vowel.ogg|Near-open front unrounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;æ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| RP ''c'''a'''t 
| 

|- id="B"
! colspan="3" | <div style="font-weight: normal; float: right;">[[#top|^ top]]</div> B
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced bilabial plosive.ogg|Voiced bilabial plosive|<big>[&nbsp;b&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English '''''b'''a'''bb'''le'' 
| 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced bilabial implosive.ogg|Voiced bilabial implosive|<big>[&nbsp;ɓ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Swahili '''''b'''wana 
| Like a [b] said while swallowing.
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Bilabial trill.ogg|Bilabial trill |<big>[&nbsp;ʙ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| 
| Like the ''brrr'' sound made when cold.
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced bilabial fricative.ogg|Voiced bilabial fricative|<big>[&nbsp;β&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Spanish ''la '''B'''amba'' 
| Like [b], but with the lips not quite touching.

|- id="C"
! colspan="3" | <div style="font-weight: normal; float: right;">[[#top|^ top]]</div> C
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiceless palatal plosive.ogg|Voiceless palatal plosive|<big>[&nbsp;c&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Turkish '''''k'''ebap'' "[[kebab]]", Czech s'''t'''ín "shadow"
| Rather like English '''''t'''une'' (RP) or '''''c'''ute.'' Sometimes used for [tʃ] in languages like Hindi.
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiceless palatal fricative.ogg|Voiceless palatal fricative|<big>[&nbsp;ç&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| German ''I'''ch''''' 
| More y-like than [x]. Some English speakers have a similar sound in '''''h'''uge''. To produce this sound, try whispering loudly the word "ye" as in "Hear ye!".
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiceless alveolo-palatal fricative.ogg|Voiceless alveolo-palatal fricative|<big>[&nbsp;ɕ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Mandarin '''''X'''i'an'' 
| More y-like than [ʃ]; something like English '''''sh'''e.''
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Open-mid back rounded vowel.ogg|Open-mid back rounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;ɔ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| see under [[#O|O]] 
| 

|- id="D"
! colspan="3" | <div style="font-weight: normal; float: right;">[[#top|^ top]]</div> D
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced alveolar plosive.ogg|Voiced alveolar plosive|<big>[&nbsp;d&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English '''''d'''i'''d''''' 
| 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced alveolar implosive.ogg|Voiced alveolar implosive|<big>[&nbsp;ɗ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Swahili '''''D'''o'''d'''oma'' 
| Like [d] said while swallowing.
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced retroflex plosive.ogg|Voiced retroflex plosive|<big>[&nbsp;ɖ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English "har'''d'''er"
| Like [d] with the tongue curled or pulled back.
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced dental fricative.ogg|Voiced dental fricative|<big>[&nbsp;ð&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English '''''th'''e, ba'''th'''e'' 
|
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced alveolar affricate.ogg|Voiced alveolar affricate|<big>[&nbsp;dz&nbsp;]</big>}}{{ref|d|1|}}
| English ''a'''dz'''e'', Italian '''''z'''ero''
| 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced postalveolar affricate.ogg|Voiced postalveolar affricate|<big>[&nbsp;dʒ&nbsp;]</big>}}{{ref|d|1|noid=noid}}
| English '''''j'''u'''dg'''e'' 
|
|-
| style="padding-left: 16px" |&nbsp;&nbsp;[[Voiced alveolo-palatal affricate|<big>[&nbsp;dʑ&nbsp;]</big>]]&nbsp;{{ref|d|1|noid=noid}}
| [[Polish phonology|Polish]] ''nie'''dź'''wiedź'' "bear"
| Like [dʒ], but with more of a y-sound.
|-
| style="padding-left: 16px" |&nbsp;&nbsp;[[Voiced retroflex affricate|<big>[&nbsp;dʐ&nbsp;]</big>]]&nbsp;{{ref|d|1|noid=noid}}
| Polish '''''dż'''em'' "jam"
| Like [dʒ] with the tongue curled or pulled back. 

|- id="E"
! colspan="3" | <div style="font-weight: normal; float: right;">[[#top|^ top]]</div> E
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Close-mid front unrounded vowel.ogg|Close-mid front unrounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;e&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Spanish ''f'''e''';'' French ''cl'''é''''' 
| 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Close-mid front unrounded vowel.ogg|Close-mid front unrounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;eː&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| German ''Kl'''ee''''' 
| Long [e]. Similar to English ''h'''e'''y'', before the y sets in.
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Mid central vowel.ogg|Mid central vowel|<big>[&nbsp;ə&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English '''''a'''bove,'' Hindi ठग [ʈʰəɡ] ''(thug)'' "thief" 
| (Only occurs in English when not stressed.)
|-
| style="padding-left: 16px" |&nbsp;&nbsp;[[R-colored vowel#R-colored vowel|<big>[&nbsp;ɚ&nbsp;]</big>]] 
| American English ''runn'''er''''' 
| 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Open-mid front unrounded vowel.ogg|Open-mid front unrounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;ɛ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English ''b'''e'''t'' 
| 
|-
| style="padding-left: 16px" |&nbsp;&nbsp;[[Nasal vowel|<big>[&nbsp;ɛ̃&nbsp;]</big>]] 
| French [[Agen|''Ag'''en''''']], ''v'''in''''', ''m'''ain'''''
| Nasalized [ɛ]. 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Open-mid central unrounded vowel.ogg|Open-mid central unrounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;ɜ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| RP ''b'''ir'''d'' (long) 
| 
|-
| style="padding-left: 16px" |&nbsp;&nbsp;[[R-colored vowel#R-colored vowel|<big>[&nbsp;ɝ&nbsp;]</big>]]
| American English ''b'''ir'''d'' 
| 

|- id="F"
! colspan="3" | <div style="font-weight: normal; float: right;">[[#top|^ top]]</div> F
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiceless labiodental fricative.ogg|Voiceless labiodental fricative|<big>[&nbsp;f&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English '''''f'''un'' 
| 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced palatal plosive.ogg|Voiced palatal plosive|<big>[&nbsp;ɟ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| see under [[#J|J]]
| 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced palatal implosive.ogg|Voiced palatal implosive|<big>[&nbsp;ʄ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| see under [[#J|J]]
| 

|- id="G"
! colspan="3" | <div style="font-weight: normal; float: right;">[[#top|^ top]]</div> G
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced velar plosive.ogg|Voiced velar plosive|<big>[&nbsp;ɡ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English '''''g'''i'''g''''' 
| (no different from the symbol "g")
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced velar implosive.ogg|Voiced velar implosive|<big>[&nbsp;ɠ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Swahili ''U'''g'''anda'' 
| Like [ɡ] said while swallowing.
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced uvular plosive.ogg|Voiced uvular plosive|<big>[&nbsp;ɢ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| 
| Like [ɡ], but further back, in the throat. Found in some Arabic dialects for /q/, as in ''[[Muammar al-Gaddafi|Gaddafi]].''<!--Needs verification-->
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced postalveolar fricative.ogg|Voiced postalveolar fricative|<big>[&nbsp;ʒ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| see under [[#Z|Z]]
| English ''bei'''g'''e.''

|- id="H"
! colspan="3" | <div style="font-weight: normal; float: right;">[[#top|^ top]]</div> H
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiceless glottal fricative.ogg|Voiceless glottal fricative|<big>[&nbsp;h&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| American English '''''h'''ouse'' 
| 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced glottal fricative.ogg|Voiced glottal fricative|<big>[&nbsp;ɦ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English ''a'''h'''ead,'' when said quickly.
|
|-
| style="padding-left: 16px" |&nbsp;&nbsp;[[Aspiration|<big>[&nbsp;ʰ&nbsp;]</big>]]
| 
| The extra puff of air in English ''top'' [tʰɒp] compared to ''stop'' [stɒp], or to French or Spanish [t].
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiceless pharyngeal fricative.ogg|Voiceless pharyngeal fricative|<big>[&nbsp;ħ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Arabic محمد ''Mu'''h'''ammad'' 
| Far down in the throat, like [h], but stronger.
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Labial-palatal approximant.ogg|Labial-palatal approximant|<big>[&nbsp;ɥ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| see under [[#U|U]]
|
|-
| style="padding-left: 16px" |&nbsp;&nbsp;<big>[&nbsp;ɮ&nbsp;]</big> 
| see under [[#L|L]]
| 

|- id="I"
! colspan="3" | <div style="font-weight: normal; float: right;">[[#top|^ top]]</div> I
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Close front unrounded vowel.ogg|Close front unrounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;i&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| French ''v'''i'''lle'', Spanish [[Valladolid|''Valladol'''i'''d'']] 
|
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Close front unrounded vowel.ogg|Close front unrounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;iː&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English ''s'''ea''''' 
| Long [i].
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Near-close near-front unrounded vowel.ogg|Near-close near-front unrounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;ɪ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English ''s'''i'''t'' 
| 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Close central unrounded vowel.ogg|Close central unrounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;ɨ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Russian ты "you" 
| Often used for unstressed English ''ros'''e'''s.''

|- id="J"
! colspan="3" | <div style="font-weight: normal; float: right;">[[#top|^ top]]</div> J
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Palatal approximant.ogg|Palatal approximant|<big>[&nbsp;j&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English '''''y'''es,'' German '''''J'''unge'' 
| 
|-
| style="padding-left: 16px" |&nbsp;&nbsp;[[Palatalization|<big>[&nbsp;ʲ&nbsp;]</big>]]
| Russian Ленин [lʲeˈnʲɪn]</big> 
| Indicates a sound is more y-like.
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced palatal fricative.ogg|Voiced palatal fricative|<big>[&nbsp;ʝ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Spanish ''ca'''y'''o'' (some dialects) 
| Like [j], but stronger. 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced palatal plosive.ogg|Voiced palatal plosive|<big>[&nbsp;ɟ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Turkish '''''g'''ör'' "see", Czech '''d'''íra "hole"
| Rather like English '''''d'''ew'' (RP) or ''ar'''g'''ue.'' Sometimes used for [dʒ] in languages like Hindi.
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced palatal implosive.ogg|Voiced palatal implosive|<big>[&nbsp;ʄ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Swahili '''''j'''ambo'' 
| Like [ɟ] said while swallowing.

|- id="K"
! colspan="3" | <div style="font-weight: normal; float: right;">[[#top|^ top]]</div> K
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiceless velar plosive.ogg|Voiceless velar plosive|<big>[&nbsp;k&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English ''ki'''ck''', s'''k'''ip'' 
| 

|- id="L"
! colspan="3" | <div style="font-weight: normal; float: right;">[[#top|^ top]]</div> L
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Alveolar lateral approximant.ogg|Alveolar lateral approximant|<big>[&nbsp;l&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English '''''l'''eaf'' 
| 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Velarized alveolar lateral approximant.ogg|Velarized alveolar lateral approximant|<big>[&nbsp;ɫ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English ''woo'''l''''' 
| "Dark" el.
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiceless alveolar lateral fricative.ogg|Voiceless alveolar lateral fricative|<big>[&nbsp;ɬ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Zulu '''''hl'''ala'' "sit" 
| Rather like [l] and [ʃ] or [l] and [θ] said together. Found in [[Welsh language|Welsh]] names like '''''Ll'''oyd'' and '''''Ll'''ywelyn'' and [[Nelson Mandela]]'s Xhosa name ''Roli'''hl'''a'''hl'''a.''
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Retroflex lateral approximant.ogg|Retroflex lateral approximant|<big>[&nbsp;ɭ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| 
| Like [l] with the tongue curled or pulled back.
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Alveolar lateral flap.ogg|Alveolar lateral flap|<big>[&nbsp;ɺ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| 
| A flapped [l], like [l] and [ɾ] said together.<!--This sound is not found in Japanese, so please don't use that language as an example.-->
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced alveolar lateral fricative.ogg|Voiced alveolar lateral fricative|<big>[&nbsp;ɮ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Zulu '''''dl'''a'' "eat" 
| Rather like [l] and [ʒ], or [l] and [ð], said together.

|- id="M"
! colspan="3" | <div style="font-weight: normal; float: right;">[[#top|^ top]]</div> M
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Bilabial nasal.ogg|Bilabial nasal|<big>[&nbsp;m&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English '''''m'''i'''m'''e'' 
| 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Labiodental nasal.ogg|Labiodental nasal|<big>[&nbsp;ɱ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English ''sy'''m'''phony'' 
| Like [m], but lips touch teeth as they do in [f].
|-
| style="padding-left: 16px" |&nbsp;&nbsp;<big>[&nbsp;ɯ&nbsp;]</big> 
| see under [[#W|W]]
|
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiceless labio-velar fricative.ogg|Voiceless labio-velar approximant|<big>[&nbsp;ʍ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| see under [[#W|W]]
|

|- id="N"
! colspan="3" | <div style="font-weight: normal; float: right;">[[#top|^ top]]</div> N
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Alveolar nasal.ogg|Alveolar nasal|<big>[&nbsp;n&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English '''''n'''u'''n''''' 
| 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Velar nasal.ogg|Velar nasal|<big>[&nbsp;ŋ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English ''si'''ng''''' 
| 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Palatal nasal.ogg|Palatal nasal|<big>[&nbsp;ɲ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Spanish ''Pe'''ñ'''a,'' French ''champa'''gn'''e'' 
| Rather like English ''ca'''ny'''on.''
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Retroflex nasal.ogg|Retroflex nasal|<big>[&nbsp;ɳ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Hindi वरुण [ʋəruɳ] [[Varuna|"Varuna"]] 
| Like [n] with the tongue curled or pulled back.
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Uvular nasal.ogg|Uvular nasal|<big>[&nbsp;ɴ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Castilian Spanish ''Do'''n''' Juan'' {{IPA|[doɴˈχwan]}}
| Like [ŋ], but further back, in the throat.

|- id="O"
! colspan="3" | <div style="font-weight: normal; float: right;">[[#top|^ top]]</div> O
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Close-mid back rounded vowel.ogg|Close-mid back rounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;o&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Spanish ''n'''o''','' French '''''eau''''' 
| 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Close-mid back rounded vowel.ogg|Close-mid back rounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;oː&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| German ''B'''o'''den'', French [[Vosges|''V'''o'''sges'']] 
| Long [o]. Somewhat reminiscent of English ''n'''o'''.''
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Open-mid back rounded vowel.ogg|Open-mid back rounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;ɔ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| German [[Oldenburg (disambiguation)|'''''O'''ldenburg'']], French [[Garonne|''Gar'''o'''nne'']] 
|
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Open-mid back rounded vowel.ogg|Open-mid back rounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;ɔː&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| RP ''l'''aw''''', French [[Limoges|''Lim'''o'''ges'']] 
| Long [ɔ].
|-
| style="padding-left: 16px" |&nbsp;&nbsp;[[Nasal vowel|<big>[&nbsp;ɔ̃&nbsp;]</big>]]
| French [[Lyon|''Ly'''on''''']], ''s'''on''''' 
| Nasalized [ɔ].
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Close-mid front rounded vowel.ogg|Close-mid front rounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;ø&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| French ''f'''eu''''', ''b'''œu'''fs'' 
| Like [e], but with the lips rounded like [o].
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Close-mid front rounded vowel.ogg|Close-mid front rounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;øː&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| German [[Johann Wolfgang von Goethe|''G'''oe'''the'']], French [[Deûle|''D'''eû'''le'']], ''n'''eu'''tre'' 
| Long [ø].
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Open-mid front rounded vowel.ogg|Open-mid front rounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;œ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| French ''b'''œu'''f'', ''s'''eu'''l'', German [[Göttingen|''G'''ö'''ttingen'']] 
| Like [ɛ], but with the lips rounded like [ɔ].
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Open-mid front rounded vowel.ogg|Open-mid front rounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;œː&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| French '''''œu'''vre'', ''h'''eu'''re'' 
| Long [œ].
|-
| style="padding-left: 16px" |&nbsp;&nbsp;[[Nasal vowel|<big>[&nbsp;œ̃&nbsp;]</big>]]
| French ''br'''un''''', ''parf'''um'''''
| Nasalized [œ].
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiceless dental fricative.ogg|Voiceless dental fricative|<big>[&nbsp;θ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English '''''th'''igh, ba'''th''''' 
| 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiceless bilabial fricative.ogg|Voiceless bilabial fricative|<big>[&nbsp;ɸ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Japanese 富士 [ɸɯdʑi] ''[[Mount Fuji|'''F'''uji]]''
| Like [p], but with the lips not quite touching

|- id="P"
! colspan="3" | <div style="font-weight: normal; float: right;">[[#top|^ top]]</div> P
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiceless bilabial plosive.ogg|Voiceless bilabial plosive|<big>[&nbsp;p&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English ''pi'''p''', s'''p'''it'' 
| 

|- id="Q"
! colspan="3" | <div style="font-weight: normal; float: right;">[[#top|^ top]]</div> Q
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiceless uvular plosive.ogg|Voiceless uvular plosive|<big>[&nbsp;q&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Arabic ''[[Qur'an|'''Q'''ur’ān]]'' 
| Like [k], but further back, in the throat.

|- id="R"
! colspan="3" | <div style="font-weight: normal; float: right;">[[#top|^ top]]</div> R
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Alveolar trill.ogg|Alveolar trill|<big>[&nbsp;r&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Spanish ''pe'''rr'''o,'' Scots ''bo'''rr'''ow'' 
| "Rolled R". (Generally used for English [ɹ] when there's no need to be precise.)
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Alveolar tap.ogg|Alveolar tap|<big>[&nbsp;ɾ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Spanish ''pe'''r'''o,'' American English ''ki'''tt'''y/ki'''dd'''ie'' 
| "Flapped R". 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Uvular trill.ogg|Uvular trill|<big>[&nbsp;ʀ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| 
| A trill in the back of the throat. Found for /r/ in some conservative registers of French.
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Retroflex flap.ogg|Retroflex flap|<big>[&nbsp;ɽ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Hindi साड़ी [sɑːɽiː] "sari"
| Like flapped [ɾ], but with the tongue curled back. 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Alveolar approximant.ogg|Alveolar approximant|<big>[&nbsp;ɹ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| RP ''bo'''rr'''ow'' 
| <!--This is not the sound or ''run,'' which is [ɹʷ].--> 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Retroflex approximant.ogg|Retroflex approximant|<big>[&nbsp;ɻ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| American English ''bo'''rr'''ow, butt'''er''''' 
| Like [ɹ], but with the tongue curled or pulled back, as pronounced by many English speakers.
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced uvular fricative.ogg|Voiced uvular fricative|<big>[&nbsp;ʁ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| French ''[[Paris|Pa'''r'''is]]'', German [[Bernhard Riemann|'''''R'''iemann'']] 
| Said back in the throat, but not trilled.

|- id="S"
! colspan="3" | <div style="font-weight: normal; float: right;">[[#top|^ top]]</div> S
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiceless alveolar fricative.ogg|Voiceless alveolar fricative|<big>[&nbsp;s&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English '''''s'''a'''ss''''' 
| 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiceless postalveolar fricative.ogg|Voiceless postalveolar fricative|<big>[&nbsp;ʃ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English '''sh'''e 
| 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiceless retroflex fricative.ogg|Voiceless retroflex fricative|<big>[&nbsp;ʂ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Mandarin ''[[Shaolin Monastery|'''Sh'''àolín]],'' Russian [[Alexander Pushkin|Пу'''ш'''кин ''(Pu'''sh'''kin)'']] 
| Acoustically similar to {{IPA|[ʃ]}}, but with the tongue curled or pulled back.<br>

|- id="T"
! colspan="3" | <div style="font-weight: normal; float: right;">[[#top|^ top]]</div> T
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiceless alveolar plosive.ogg|Voiceless alveolar plosive|<big>[&nbsp;t&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English ''to'''t''', s'''t'''op'' 
| 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiceless retroflex plosive.ogg|Voiceless retroflex plosive|<big>[&nbsp;ʈ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Hindi ठग [ʈʰəɡ] ''(thug)'' "thief" 
| Like [t], but with the tongue curled or pulled back.
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiceless alveolar affricate.ogg|Voiceless alveolar affricate|<big>[&nbsp;ts&nbsp;]</big>}}{{ref|t|2}}
| English ''ca'''ts''','' Russian '''ц'''арь '''''ts'''ar'' 
| 
|-
| style="padding-left: 16px" |&nbsp;&nbsp;[[Voiceless postalveolar affricate|<big>[&nbsp;tʃ&nbsp;]</big>]]&nbsp;{{ref|t|2|noid=noid}}
| English '''''ch'''ur'''ch''''' 
| 
|-
| style="padding-left: 16px" |&nbsp;&nbsp;[[Voiceless alveolo-palatal affricate|<big>[&nbsp;tɕ&nbsp;]</big>]]&nbsp;{{ref|t|2|noid=noid}}
| Mandarin 北京 {{audio-pipe|Zh-Beijing.ogg|Beijing|''Běi'''j'''īng''}}, Polish '''''ci'''ebie'' "you"
| Like [tʃ], but with more of a y-sound.
|-
| style="padding-left: 16px" |&nbsp;&nbsp;[[Voiceless retroflex affricate|<big>[&nbsp;tʂ&nbsp;]</big>]]&nbsp;{{ref|t|2|noid=noid}}
| Mandarin '''''zh''''', Polish '''''cz''''' 
| Like [tʃ] with the tongue curled or pulled back . 

|- id="U"
! colspan="3" | <div style="font-weight: normal; float: right;">[[#top|^ top]]</div> U
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Close back rounded vowel.ogg|Close back rounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;u&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| French ''v'''ou'''s'' "you"
|
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Close back rounded vowel.ogg|Close back rounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;uː&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| RP ''f'''oo'''d'', French [[Rocquencourt|''Rocquenc'''ou'''rt'']], German [[Michael Schumacher|''Sch'''u'''macher'']] 
| Long [u].
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Near-close near-back rounded vowel.ogg|Near-close near-back vowel|<big>[&nbsp;ʊ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English ''f'''oo'''t'', German ''B'''u'''ndesrepublik''
| 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Close central rounded vowel.ogg|Close central rounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;ʉ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Australian English ''f'''oo'''d'' (long) 
| Like [ɨ], but with the lips rounded as for [u].
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Labial-palatal approximant.ogg|Labial-palatal approximant|<big>[&nbsp;ɥ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| French ''l'''u'''i'' 
| Like [j] and [w] said together.
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Close back unrounded vowel.ogg|Close back unrounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;ɯ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| see under [[#W|W]]
| 

|- id="V"
! colspan="3" | <div style="font-weight: normal; float: right;">[[#top|^ top]]</div> V
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced labiodental fricative.ogg|Voiced labiodental fricative|<big>[&nbsp;v&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English '''''v'''er'''ve''''' 
| 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Labiodental approximant.ogg|Labiodental approximant|<big>[&nbsp;ʋ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Hindi वरुण [ʋəruɳə] [[Varuna|"Varuna"]] 
| Between [v] and [w]. Used by some Germans and Russians for ''v/w'', and by some speakers of British English for ''r''.
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced velar fricative.ogg|Voiced velar fricative|<big>[&nbsp;ɣ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Arabic / Swahili '''''gh'''ali'' "expensive" 
| Sounds rather like French [ʁ].
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Close-mid back unrounded vowel.ogg|Close-mid back unrounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;ɤ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Mandarin ''[[Henan|H'''é'''nán]]'' 
| Like [o] but without the lips rounded, something like a cross of [ʊ] and [ʌ].
|-
| style="padding-left: 16px" |&nbsp;&nbsp;<big>[&nbsp;ʌ&nbsp;]</big> 
| see under [[#A|A]]
|

|- id="W"
! colspan="3" | <div style="font-weight: normal; float: right;">[[#top|^ top]]</div> W
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced labio-velar approximant.ogg|Voiced labial-velar approximant|<big>[&nbsp;w&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English '''''w'''ow'' 
| 
|-
| style="padding-left: 16px" |&nbsp;&nbsp;[[Labialisation|<big>[&nbsp;ʷ&nbsp;]</big>]]
| English '''''r'''ain'' [ɹʷɛn]</big> 
| Indicates a sound has lip rounding, ''q'''u'''ick.''
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiceless labio-velar fricative.ogg|Voiceless labio-velar approximant|<big>[&nbsp;ʍ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| '''''wh'''at'' (some dialects)
| like [h] and [w] said together
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Close back unrounded vowel.ogg|Close back unrounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;ɯ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Turkish ''kay'''ı'''k'' "caïque" 
| Like [u], but with the lips flat; something like [ʊ].<!--This sound is not found in Japanese, so please don't use that language as an example-->
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced velar approximant.ogg|Velar approximant|<big>[&nbsp;ɰ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Spanish ''a'''g'''ua'' 
|

|- id="X"
! colspan="3" | <div style="font-weight: normal; float: right;">[[#top|^ top]]</div> X
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiceless velar fricative.ogg|Voiceless velar fricative|<big>[&nbsp;x&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Scottish English ''lo'''ch''''', German ''[[Johann Sebastian Bach|Ba'''ch''']],'' Russian '''х'''ороший [xɐˈroʂɨj] "good" 
| 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiceless uvular fricative.ogg|Voiceless uvular fricative|<big>[&nbsp;χ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| [[Dutch phonology|Dutch]] [[Scheveningen|''S'''ch'''eveningen'']], Castilian Spanish ''Don '''J'''uan'' {{IPA|[doɴˈχwan]}} 
| Like [x], but further back , in the throat. Some German and Arabic speakers have [χ] for [x].

|- id="Y"
! colspan="3" | <div style="font-weight: normal; float: right;">[[#top|^ top]]</div> Y
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Close front rounded vowel.ogg|Close front rounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;y&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| French ''r'''u'''e'' 
| Like [i], but with the lips rounded as for [u].
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Close front rounded vowel.ogg|Close front rounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;yː&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| German [[Bernhard von Bülow|''B'''ü'''low'']], French ''s'''û'''r'' 
| Long [y]. 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Near-close near-front rounded vowel.ogg|Near-close near-front rounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;ʏ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| German [[Eisenhüttenstadt|''Eisenh'''ü'''ttenstadt'']] 
| Like [ɪ], but with the lips rounded as for [ʊ].
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Palatal lateral approximant.ogg|Palatal lateral approximant|<big>[&nbsp;ʎ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Spanish '''''ll'''ama'' (Castilian) 
| More y-like than [l]. Rather like English ''mi'''lli'''on.''
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Labial-palatal approximant.ogg|Labial-palatal approximant|<big>[&nbsp;ɥ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| see under [[#U|U]]
|
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Close-mid back unrounded vowel.ogg|Close-mid back unrounded vowel|<big>[&nbsp;ɤ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| see under [[#V|V]]
|
|-
| style="padding-left: 16px" |&nbsp;&nbsp;<big>[&nbsp;ɣ&nbsp;]</big> 
| see under [[#V|V]]
| 

|- id="Z"
! colspan="3" | <div style="font-weight: normal; float: right;">[[#top|^ top]]</div> Z
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced alveolar fricative.ogg|Voiced alveolar fricative|<big>[&nbsp;z&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English '''''z'''oo'''s''''' 
| 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced postalveolar fricative.ogg|Voiced postalveolar fricative|<big>[&nbsp;ʒ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English ''vi'''si'''on,'' French '''''j'''ournal'' 
| 
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced alveolo-palatal fricative.ogg|Voiced alveolo-palatal fricative|<big>[&nbsp;ʑ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| formal Russian '''жж'''ёшь [ʑːoʂ] "you burn" 
| More y-like than [ʒ], something like ''bei'''ge'''y.''
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced retroflex fricative.ogg|Voiced retroflex fricative|<big>[&nbsp;ʐ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Mandarin 人民日报 '''''R'''énmín '''R'''ìbào'' "People's Daily", Russian '''ж'''урнал "journal"
| Like [ʒ] with the tongue curled or pulled back . 
|-
| style="padding-left: 16px" |&nbsp;&nbsp;<big>[&nbsp;ɮ&nbsp;]</big> 
| see under [[#L|L]]
| 

|- id="other"
! colspan="3" | <div style="font-weight: normal; float: right;">[[#top|^ top]]</div> other
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Glottal stop.ogg|Glottal stop|<big>[&nbsp;ʔ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English ''uh-oh, Hawai'''‘'''i,'' German 
| The 'glottal stop', a catch in the breath. For some people, found in ''bu'''tt'''on'' [ˈbʌʔn̩], or between vowels across words: ''Deus ex machina'' [ˌdeɪəsˌʔɛksˈmɑːkɨnə]; for some Americans, in ''a apple'' [ʌˈʔæpl̩].
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Voiced pharyngeal fricative.ogg|Voiced pharyngeal fricative|<big>[&nbsp;ʕ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Arabic عربي ''(<sup>'''c'''</sup>arabī)'' "Arabic" 
| A subtle sound deep in the throat.
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Dental click.ogg|Dental click|<big>[&nbsp;ǀ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English ''tsk-tsk!'' or ''tut-tut!,'' Zulu ''i'''c'''i'''c'''i'' "earring" 
| (The English click used for disapproval.) The Zimbabwean MP [[Welshman Ncube|N'''c'''ube]] has this click in his name.
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Alveolar lateral click.ogg|Alveolar lateral click|<big>[&nbsp;ǁ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| English ''tchick! tchick!,'' Zulu ''i'''x'''o'''x'''o'' "frog" 
| (The English click used to urge on a horse.) Found in the name of the [[Xhosa|'''X'''hosa]].
|-
|{{audio-pipe|Postalveolar click.ogg|Postalveolar click|<big>[&nbsp;ǃ&nbsp;]</big>}} 
| Zulu ''i'''q'''a'''q'''a'' "polecat" 
| A hollow popping sound, like a cork pulled from a bottle.
|}

*{{note|d|1}}{{note|t|2}} These symbols are officially written with a tie linking them (''e.g.'' {{IPA|t͡ʃ}}), and are also sometimes written as single characters (''e.g.'' {{IPA|ʧ}}) though the latter convention is no longer official. They are written without ligatures here to ensure correct display in all browsers.

==Diacritic marks==
All [[diacritic]]s are here shown on a carrier letter such as the vowel ''a.''

{| class="IPA wikitable" style="margin: 1em"
! Symbol !! Example !! colspan="2" | Description
|-
| align="center" | [[Stress (linguistics)|<big>[ ˈa ]</big>]] 
| rowspan="2" | ''pronunciation''<br>[pʰɹɜʊ̯ˌnɐnsiˈeɪʃn̩] 
| colspan="2" | Main stress. The mark denotes the stress of the ''following'' syllable.  
|-
| align="center" | [[Secondary stress|<big>[ ˌa ]</big>]] 
| colspan="2" | Weaker stress. The mark denotes the stress of the ''following'' syllable.
|-
| align="center" | [[Length (phonetics)|<big>[ aː ]</big>]] 
| English ''shh!'' [ʃː] 
| colspan="2" | Long. Often used with English vowels or diphthongs: ''Mayo'' /ˈmeːoː/ for [ˈmeɪ̯ɜʊ̯], ''etc.''
|-
| align="center" | [[Length (phonetics)|<big>[ aˑ ]</big>]] 
| RP ''caught'' [ˈkʰɔˑt] 
| colspan="2" | Semi-long. (Although the vowel is different, this is also longer than ''cot'' [ˈkʰɒt].)
|-
| align="center" | [[diphthong|<big>[ a̯ ]</big>]] 
| English ''co'''w''''' [kʰaʊ̯], ''ko'''i''''' [kʰɔɪ̯] 
| colspan="2" | This vowel runs into the vowel next to it. (In English, the diacritic is generally left off: [kaʊ].) 
|-
| align="center" | [[nasal vowel|<big>[ ã ]</big>]] 
| French ''vi'''n''' bla'''n'''c'' [vɛ̃blɑ̃] "white wine" 
| colspan="2" | A [[nasalization|nasal]] vowel, as with a Texas twang.
|-
| align="center" | [[Voice (phonetics)#Voiceless vowels and other sonorants|<big>[ n̥ ]</big>]] 
| 
| colspan="2" | Sounds like a loud whisper; [n̥] is like a whispered breath through the nose. [l̥] is found in Tibetan '''''Lh'''asa.''
|-
| align="center" | [[Syllabic consonant|<big>[ n̩ ]</big>]] 
| English ''butt'''on''''' 
| colspan="2" | A consonant without a vowel. (English [n̩] is often transcribed /ən/.)
|-
| align="center" | [[Dental consonant|<big>[ d̪ ]</big>]] 
| Spanish '''''d'''os,'' French '''''d'''eux'' 
| colspan="2" | The tongue touches the teeth more than it does in English.
|-
| align="center" | [[Ejective consonant|<big>[ k’ ]</big>]] 
| Zulu ''u'''k'''uza'' "come" 
| colspan="2" | Like a popped [k], pushed from the throat. Similarly [t’ p’ q’ tʃ’ ts’ tɬ’].
|-
| align="center" | [[Tone (linguistics)|<big>[ á ]</big>]] 
| Mandarin '''妈'''妈 [mámā] "mother" 
| High tone. 
| rowspan="5" | Careful! <br>The [[Pinyin]] Romanization used for <br>Mandarin has these same diacritics, <br>but with different values. (However, <br>[[Thai language#Phonology|Thai]] Romanization uses them the <br>way the IPA does.)
|-
| align="center" | [[Tone (linguistics)|<big>[ ā ]</big>]] 
| Mandarin 妈'''妈''' [mámā] "mother" 
| Mid tone.<!--Yes, I know this syllable is phonemically toneless, but after a high tone it is ''phonetically'' mid.-->
|-
| align="center" | [[Tone (linguistics)|<big>[ à ]</big>]] 
| Mandarin '''马'''的 [màdɤ] "horse's" 
| Low tone.<!--This is only a dipping tone when spoken in isolation. In context, it surfaces as a phonetic low tone.-->
|-
| align="center" | [[Tone (linguistics)|<big>[ â ]</big>]] 
| Mandarin 骂 [mâ] "scold" 
| Falling tone.
|-
| align="center" | [[Tone (linguistics)|<big>[ ǎ ]</big>]] 
| Mandarin 麻 [mǎ] "hemp" 
| Rising tone.
|-
| align="center" | [[Syllable|<big>[ . ]</big>]] 
| English ''London'' [ˌlɐn.dən] 
| colspan="2" | [[Syllable]] break. (this is often redundant and therefore left off)
|}

==Brackets==
Two types of brackets are commonly used to enclose transcriptions in the IPA:
*[Square brackets] indicate the [[phonetics|phonetic]] details of the pronunciation, regardless of whether they are actually meaningful to a native speaker. This is what a foreigner who does not know the structure of a language might hear. For instance, the English word ''lulls'' is pronounced {{IPA|[ˈlɐɫz]}}, with different el sounds at the beginning and end. This is obvious to speakers of some other languages, though a native English speaker might not believe it. Likewise, Spanish ''la bomba'' has two different ''b'' sounds to foreign ears, {{IPA|[laˈβomba]}}, though a Spaniard might not be able to hear it. Omitting such detail does not make any difference to the identity of the word. 
*/Slashes/ indicate [[phoneme]]s. That is, changing symbol between slashes would make a difference in the meaning of the word, or produce nonsense. Since there is no meaningful difference between the two el sounds in the word ''lulls,'' they need to be transcribed with the same symbol: {{IPA|/ˈlʌlz/}}. Similarly, Spanish ''la bomba'' is phonemically transcribed {{IPA|/laˈbomba/}}.

A third kind of bracket is occasionally seen: 
*|Pipes| indicate that the sounds are theoretical constructs that aren't actually heard. (This is called [[morphophonology]].) For instance, if it is decided that the ''-s'' at the ends of verbs, which surfaces as either {{IPA|/s/}}, as in ''talks'' {{IPA|/tɔːks/}}, or {{IPA|/z/}}, as in ''lulls'' {{IPA|/lʌlz/}}, is actually the former (the difference between /s/ and /z/ is meaningful in English, unlike for example in Spanish), then that could be written |s|, for a claim that phonemic {{IPA|/lʌlz/}} is essentially {{IPA|<nowiki>|</nowiki>lʌls<nowiki>|</nowiki>}}. This is not standardized; other conventions are {{IPA|//lʌls//}}, {{IPA|<nowiki>||</nowiki>lʌls<nowiki>||</nowiki>}}, and {{IPA|<nowiki>{</nowiki>lʌls<nowiki>}</nowiki>}}. 

Lastly, 
*<Angle brackets> are occasionally used to represent the [[orthography]]: <lulls>, <la bomba>.  

[[Category:IPA]]
[[Category:Help]]

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