eh/ɛ/
Drop your jaw moderately. Touch the tongue tip behind the bottom front teeth and lift the mid-front part slightly toward the roof.
How to pronounce anything in American English
EH·nee·thuhng
Start here
Americans pronounce anything as EH-nee-thuhng (/ˈɛniˌθəŋ/). Stress falls on the first syllable — keep everything else short and quick. You'll hear it in sentences like "Let me know if you need anything at all" or "Is there anything else I can help you with?" — more examples below.
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Sound by sound
Every sound in "anything".
3 syllables, 6 sounds. Tap a syllable to jump to its row, then explore each sound's mouth shape and how it's made.
n/n/
Touch the tip or front edge of your tongue to the roof of your mouth behind your teeth. Air flows through your nose.
ee/i/
Pull the corners of your lips back slightly. Arch the middle-front of your tongue high toward the roof of the mouth.
th/θ/
Place the very tip of your tongue slightly between your teeth. Blow air gently around it without voicing.
uh/ʌ/
Relax your lips, jaw, and tongue completely. Drop your jaw slightly and keep the tongue neutral.
ng/ŋ/
Lift the back of your tongue to the soft palate. Lower your soft palate to let air flow through your nose.
In real conversation
Hear "anything" in the wild.
Click any sentence to see the full breakdown — every link, every reduction, every flap-T.
"How was your weekend by the way? Did you do anything fun?"
HOW wuhz yer WEE·kehnd bahy dhuh WAY dihd yuh doo EH·nee·thuhng FUHN
"I always compare prices before putting anything in my cart."
ahy AHL·wayz kuhm·PAIR PRAHY·suhz buh·FOR PUU·duhng EH·nee·thuhng uhn mahy KART
"I cannot commit to anything until I know my work schedule."
ahy KA·naht kuh·MIHT tuh EH·nee·thuhng uhn·TIHL ahy NOH mahy WURK SKEH·jool
"Is there anything else I can help you with?"
ihz DHAIR EH·nee·thuhng EHLS ahy kuhn HEHLP yuh wihth
"Let me know if you need anything at all."
LEHT mee NOH ihf yoo NEED EH·nee·thuhng uht AHL
"We should review the contract carefully before signing anything."
wee shuud ruh·VYOO dhuh KAHN·trakt KAIR·fuh·lee buh·FOR SAHY·nuhng EH·nee·thuhng
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Watch out
Common pronunciation mistakes in American English.
The textbook way isn't wrong — it's just not how anyone actually says it.
01
Stressing the wrong syllable.
Stress falls on the first syllable, not the others. Stretch EH — keep everything else short and quick.
eh·NEE·THUHNG→EH·nee·THUHNG
02
Pronouncing the unstressed syllable too fully.
Don't pronounce the second syllable too fully. The unstressed syllable reduces to a schwa — the lazy "uh" sound — in casual speech.
EH·nee·THUHNG→EH·nee·THUHNG
Questions
Questions people ask about this.
How is "anything" stressed in American English?
Stress falls on the first syllable — say "EH" with a longer, fuller vowel and keep every other syllable short and quick. The respell "EH-nee-thuhng" marks the stressed syllable in capitals so the rhythm is easy to read at a glance.
Why does the third syllable in "anything" reduce to "uh"?
Unstressed syllables in American English collapse toward a schwa — a lazy, neutral "uh" sound. The full vowel is what textbooks teach, but in actual American speech every unstressed vowel reduces. The respell "EH-nee-thuhng" shows the reduced form so you can hear the casual rhythm directly.
Is the American pronunciation of "anything" different from British English?
American English uses different vowel shapes, a relaxed retroflex R, and connected-speech tricks like flap-T and glottal-stop T that British Received Pronunciation generally avoids. The respell "EH-nee-thuhng" reflects the casual American form; British dictionaries typically print a citation form with crisper consonants and different vowel choices.
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