How to pronounce dead
Say it like DED. Dead 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 dead. Choose Slow to hear each sound clearly.
- DED
- Main stress
- Lighter stress
- Unstressed
Dead pronunciation, sound by sound
Read the parts left to right, then blend them together without pausing.
- DEDSay this part loudest and longest. The vowel is the "e" in bed.
American vs British pronunciation of dead
American and British speakers say dead in essentially the same way: /dɛd/ in the US and /dɛd/ in the UK.
British respelling: DED.
What does dead mean?
- no longer having or seeming to have or expecting to have life“the nerve is dead”“a dead pallor”
- not showing characteristics of life especially the capacity to sustain life; no longer exerting force or having energy or heat“Mars is a dead planet”“dead soil”
- very tired“was all in at the end of the day”“so beat I could flop down and go to sleep anywhere”
- people who are no longer living“they buried the dead”
- a time when coldness (or some other quality associated with death) is intense“the dead of winter”
- quickly and without warning“he stopped suddenly”
- completely and without qualification; used informally as intensifiers“an absolutely magnificent painting”“a perfectly idiotic idea”
Where does dead come from?
From Middle English ded, deed, from Old English dēad, from Proto-West Germanic *daud, from Proto-Germanic *daudaz.
Similar and opposite words
Opposite meaning
Words that rhyme with dead
Practicing rhymes is a quick way to lock in the vowel sound of dead.
Questions about saying dead
How do you pronounce dead?
Say DED. The American pronunciation is /dɛd/. In British English it is /dɛd/. Press play above to hear it at normal speed or slowly.
How many syllables are in dead?
Dead is a single syllable, so the whole word carries the stress. Broken into parts: DED.
Do Americans and Brits say dead the same way?
Almost exactly. The American form is /dɛd/ and the British form is /dɛd/, so you can use either pronunciation with any listener.