k/k/
Raise the back of your tongue to touch the soft palate (velum). Stop the air, then release.
How to pronounce copyright in American English
KAH·pee·rahyt
Start here
Americans pronounce copyright as KAH-pee-rahyt (/ˈkɑpiˌraɪt/). Stress falls on the first syllable — keep everything else short and quick. You'll hear it in sentences like "The intellectual property rights are protected by copyright law".
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Sound by sound
Every sound in "copyright".
3 syllables, 7 sounds. Tap a syllable to jump to its row, then explore each sound's mouth shape and how it's made.
ah/ɑ/
Relax your lips and drop your jaw significantly. The tongue tip lightly touches behind the bottom front teeth and the back part of the tongue presses down a little to create more dark space in the back of the mouth.
p/p/
Press your lips together to stop the air, then release. No vocal cord vibration.
ee/i/
Pull the corners of your lips back slightly. Arch the middle-front of your tongue high toward the roof of the mouth.
r/r/
Curl or bunch your tongue without letting the tip touch the roof of your mouth. Brace the sides of your tongue against your upper back teeth, and round your lips slightly.
ahy/aɪ/
Start with your jaw open wide and your tongue resting low and flat. Glide the front of your tongue up toward the roof of your mouth as your jaw closes halfway.
t/t/
Touch the tip or front edge of your tongue to the roof of your mouth just behind your teeth. Keep your jaw relaxed. Stop the air, then release with a puff.
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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
Releasing the final consonant with a puff of air.
In "copyright", the "t" is not released — the articulators get into position but hold without the burst of air. Air stops but there's no release burst — the articulators hold position.
copyright→KAH·pee·RAHYT
02
Stressing the wrong syllable.
Stress falls on the first syllable, not the others. Stretch KAH — keep everything else short and quick.
kah·PEE·RAHYT→KAH·pee·RAHYT
Questions
Questions people ask about this.
How is "copyright" stressed in American English?
Stress falls on the first syllable — say "KAH" with a longer, fuller vowel and keep every other syllable short and quick. The respell "KAH-pee-rahyt" marks the stressed syllable in capitals so the rhythm is easy to read at a glance.
Is the American pronunciation of "copyright" 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 "KAH-pee-rahyt" reflects the casual American form; British dictionaries typically print a citation form with crisper consonants and different vowel choices.
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