How to pronounce bread
Say it like BRED. Bread is a single syllable, so the whole word carries the stress.
Click the play button next to American or British to hear how to pronounce bread. Choose Slow to hear each sound clearly.
- BRED
- Main stress
- Lighter stress
- Unstressed
Bread pronunciation, sound by sound
Read the parts left to right, then blend them together without pausing.
- BREDSay this part loudest and longest. The vowel is the "e" in bed.
American vs British pronunciation of bread
American and British speakers say bread in essentially the same way: /brɛd/ in the US and /brɛd/ in the UK.
British respelling: BRED.
What does bread mean?
- food made from dough of flour or meal and usually raised with yeast or baking powder and then baked
- informal terms for money
- cover with bread crumbs“bread the pork chops before frying them”
Where does bread come from?
Eclipsed non-native Middle English payn (“bread”), borrowed from Old French pain (“bread”).
Words that rhyme with bread
Practicing rhymes is a quick way to lock in the vowel sound of bread.
Questions about saying bread
How do you pronounce bread?
Say BRED. The American pronunciation is /brɛd/. In British English it is /brɛd/. Press play above to hear it at normal speed or slowly.
How many syllables are in bread?
Bread is a single syllable, so the whole word carries the stress. Broken into parts: BRED.
Do Americans and Brits say bread the same way?
Almost exactly. The American form is /brɛd/ and the British form is /brɛd/, so you can use either pronunciation with any listener.