How to pronounce else
Say it like ELS. Else 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 else. Choose Slow to hear each sound clearly.
- ELS
- Main stress
- Lighter stress
- Unstressed
Else pronunciation, sound by sound
Read the parts left to right, then blend them together without pausing.
- ELSSay this part loudest and longest. The vowel is the "e" in bed.
American vs British pronunciation of else
American and British speakers say else in essentially the same way: /ɛls/ in the US and /ɛls/ in the UK.
British respelling: ELS.
What does else mean?
- Other; in addition to previously mentioned items.“The instructor is busy. Can anyone else help me?”
- Otherwise, if not.“How else (= in what other way) can it be done?”
- For otherwise; or else.“Then the Wronskian of f and g must be nonzero, else they could not be linearly independent.”
Where does else come from?
Cognate with Old Frisian elles (“other”), Old High German elles, ellies (“other”), Danish eller (“or”), Danish ellers (“otherwise”), Swedish eljes, eljest (“or else, otherwise”), Norwegian elles (“else, otherwise”), Gothic 𐌰𐌻𐌾𐌹𐍃 (aljis, “ot
Similar and opposite words
Similar meaning
Questions about saying else
How do you pronounce else?
Say ELS. The American pronunciation is /ɛls/. In British English it is /ɛls/. Press play above to hear it at normal speed or slowly.
How many syllables are in else?
Else is a single syllable, so the whole word carries the stress. Broken into parts: ELS.
Do Americans and Brits say else the same way?
Almost exactly. The American form is /ɛls/ and the British form is /ɛls/, so you can use either pronunciation with any listener.