ih/ɪ/
Drop your jaw slightly with relaxed lips. Touch the tongue tip behind the bottom front teeth and arch the top-front toward the roof.
How to pronounce international in American English
ihn·ter·NA·shuh·nuhl
Start here
Americans pronounce international as ihn-ter-NA-shuh-nuhl (/ˌɪntərˈnæʃənəl/). In "international", the "t" right after N is dropped — the tongue skips the T stop and moves directly from the N position to the next sound. This is called the Silent T after N, the kind of sound shift that makes everyday speech feel effortless. It comes out as IHN·ter·NA·shuh·nuhl. Stress falls on the third syllable — keep everything else short and quick. You'll hear it in sentences like "Is your flight domestic or international?" or "She presented her poster at an international conference" — more examples below.
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Sound by sound
Every sound in "international".
5 syllables, 11 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.
t/t/
DroppedThe T is skipped entirely. Your tongue doesn't make contact at the T position.
er/ər/
Relax your mouth and lift the tongue back and up. Keep the lips neutral.
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.
a/æ/
Drop the jaw noticeably. Keep the body of the tongue low and forward, and don't let the back of the tongue raise toward the soft palate. Pull the lip corners back slightly, almost a starting smile.
sh/ʃ/
Flare your lips and lift the mid-front tongue close to the roof of your mouth. Blow air through without voicing.
uh/ʌ/
Relax your lips, jaw, and tongue completely. Drop your jaw slightly and keep the tongue neutral.
n/n/
SyllabicThe schwa before N disappears — N becomes the vowel of the syllable. Go straight from the previous consonant to N.
uh/ʌ/
Relax your lips, jaw, and tongue completely. Drop your jaw slightly and keep the tongue neutral.
l/l/
DarkKeep the tongue tip down and pull the back of the tongue up toward the throat. The 'dark' sound comes from the back.
In real conversation
Hear "international" in the wild.
Click any sentence to see the full breakdown — every link, every reduction, every flap-T.
"Deforestation rates have decreased due to international pressure."
dee·for·uh·STAY·shuhn RAYTS huhv duh·KREEST DOO tuh ihn·ter·NA·shuh·nuhl PREH·sher
"International cooperation is essential for addressing global challenges."
ihn·ter·NA·shuh·nuhl koh·ah·puh·RAY·shuhn ihz uh·SEHN·shuhl fer uh·DREH·suhng GLOH·buhl CHA·luhn·juhz
"International observers monitored the election for any irregularities."
ihn·ter·NA·shuh·nuhl uhb·ZUR·verz MAH·nuh·terd dhee uh·LEHK·shuhn fer EH·nee uh·reh·gyuh·LAIR·uh·teez
"International trade agreements have boosted export opportunities."
ihn·ter·NA·shuh·nuhl TRAYD uh·GREE·muhnts huhv BOO·stuhd EHK·sport ah·per·TOO·nuh·teez
"Is your flight domestic or international?"
ihz yer FLAHYT duh·MEH·stuhk or ihn·ter·NA·shuh·nuhl
"She presented her poster at an international conference."
shee pruh·ZEHN·tuhd her POH·ster uht uhn ihn·ter·NA·shuh·nuhl KAHN·fer·uhns
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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
Pronouncing the silent T after N.
In "international", the "t" right after N is dropped — the tongue skips the T stop and moves directly from the N position to the next sound. /t/ is completely silent — the tongue skips the T stop and moves directly from the N position to the next sound.
international→IHN·ter·NA·shuh·nuhl
02
Treating every L the same.
The L in "international" is a dark L — the back of the tongue rises toward the soft palate, adding a small "uh" quality before the L. Dark L adds a small schwa-like "uh" before the L. The back of the tongue lifts toward the soft palate.
international→IHN·ter·NA·shuh·nuhl
03
Inserting a vowel before the syllabic consonant.
In "international", the short unstressed vowel before "n" disappears — the schwa is absorbed and the "n" becomes the syllable nucleus on its own. Schwa is absorbed — consonant becomes the syllable nucleus.
international→IHN·ter·NA·shuh·nuhl
04
Stressing the wrong syllable.
Stress falls on the third syllable, not the others. Stretch NA — keep everything else short and quick.
IHN·TER·na·SHUH·NUHL→IHN·ter·NA·shuh·nuhl
Questions
Questions people ask about this.
How is "international" stressed in American English?
Stress falls on the third syllable — say "NA" with a longer, fuller vowel and keep every other syllable short and quick. The respell "ihn-ter-NA-shuh-nuhl" marks the stressed syllable in capitals so the rhythm is easy to read at a glance.
Why does the fourth syllable in "international" 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 "ihn-ter-NA-shuh-nuhl" shows the reduced form so you can hear the casual rhythm directly.
How do I pronounce the R in "international"?
Americans use a relaxed retroflex R: the tongue curls back rather than rolling, and the R is one continuous sound with the vowel before it — not two separate sounds. Don't try to pronounce a separate vowel followed by a separate R. Treat them as a single shape.
Is the American pronunciation of "international" 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 "ihn-ter-NA-shuh-nuhl" reflects the casual American form; British dictionaries typically print a citation form with crisper consonants and different vowel choices.
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