How to pronounce week in American English

IPA /wik/ Syllables 1 · week Stress 1st syllable

WEEK

Start here

Americans pronounce week as WEEK (/wik/).

Now you try.

Record yourself saying "week" 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

Common mistakes

Releasing the final consonant with a puff of air.

In "week", the "" 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.

Unlock the full report in the app

Why it sounds different

Why "week" sounds like WEEK.

In "week", the "" is not released — the articulators get into position but hold without the burst of air. This is called the Unreleased Stops, a hallmark of natural-sounding American speech. It comes out as WEEK.

In real conversation

Hear "week" in the wild.

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

"Are you available this week or next week?"

ar yoo uh·VAY·luh·buhl dhihs WEEK or NEHKST WEEK

"Could we possibly reschedule to sometime next week instead?"

kuud wee PAH·suh·blee ree·SKEH·juhl tuh SUHM·tahym nehkst WEEK uhn·STEHD

"He has been going to the gym three times a week."

hee huhz bihn GOH·uhng tuh dhuh JIHM THREE TAHYMZ uh WEEK

"I have a question about the reading assignment for next week."

ahy hav uh KWEHS·chuhn uh·BOWT dhuh REE·duhng uh·SAHYN·muhnt fer NEHKST WEEK

"I moved into the dormitory during the first week of orientation."

ahy moovd IHN·too dhuh DOR·muh·tor·ee DUUR·uhng dhuh FURST WEEK uhv or·ee·uhn·TAY·shuhn

"I need to review the study guide before the test next week."

ahy NEED tuh ruh·VYOO dhuh STUH·dee GAHYD buh·FOR dhuh TEHST NEHKST WEEK

Watch out

Common pronunciation mistakes in American English.

The textbook way isn't wrong — it's just not how anyone actually says it.

Releasing the final consonant with a puff of air.

In "week", the "" 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.

week→WEEK

Questions

Questions people ask about this.

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

Now you try.

Get your accent profile and 5-axes assessment.

Overall assessment

Common mistakes

Releasing the final consonant with a puff of air.

Why "week" sounds like WEEK.

Hear "week" in the wild.

Words that work the same way.

Common pronunciation mistakes in American English.

Releasing the final consonant with a puff of air.

Questions people ask about this.

Stop reading about "week". Start saying it.