How to pronounce state in American English

IPA /steɪt/ Syllables 1 · stayt Stress 1st syllable

STAYT

Start here

Americans pronounce state as STAYT (/steɪt/). You'll hear it in sentences like "Explain the nature of the chaotic state agency" or "The laboratory is equipped with state-of-the-art technology" — more examples below.

Now you try.

Record yourself saying "state" and play it back. The mic stays on your device — nothing's uploaded.

Ready when you are

Tap the mic to start

Preview your accent profile

Get your accent profile and 5-axes assessment.

Sounds

75%

Clarity

68%

Stress

78%

Intonation

65%

Fluency

62%

Overall assessment

Our AI coach listens to your recording and grades 5 dimensions of pronunciation — then tells you exactly what to fix next.

72% Noticeable accent

Unlock the full report in the app

Sound by sound

Every sound in "state".

1 syllable, 4 sounds. Explore each sound's mouth shape and how it's made.

s/s/

Place your tongue tip near the roof of your mouth behind your top teeth. Push air through the narrow gap. No voicing.

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.

ay/eɪ/

Start with your jaw slightly open and the front of your tongue forward and slightly up. Glide upward, your jaw closes a little more and your tongue arches higher toward the roof of the mouth.

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.

In real conversation

Hear "state" in the wild.

Click any sentence to see the full breakdown — every link, every reduction, every flap-T.

"Explain the nature of the chaotic state agency."

uhk·SPLAYN dhuh NAY·cher uhv dhuh kay·AH·duhk STAYT AY·juhn·see

"He is conducting a literature review to understand the current state of the field."

hee ihz kuhn·DUHK·tuhng uh LIH·duh·ruh·chur ree·VYOO tuh uhn·der·STAND dhuh KUR·uhnt STAYT uhv dhuh FEELD

"The laboratory is equipped with state-of-the-art technology."

dhuh LA·bruh·tor·ee ihz uh·KWIHPT wihth STAYT uhv dhee ART tehk·NAH·luh·jee

Find another

Looking for a different word or sentence?

Search the entire library

Press / anywhere to focus the search box.

Questions

Questions people ask about this.

Is the American pronunciation of "state" 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 "STAYT" reflects the casual American form; British dictionaries typically print a citation form with crisper consonants and different vowel choices.