How to pronounce folk
Say it like FOHK. Folk 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 folk. Choose Slow to hear each sound clearly.
- FOHK
- Main stress
- Lighter stress
- Unstressed
Folk pronunciation, sound by sound
Read the parts left to right, then blend them together without pausing.
- FOHKSay this part loudest and longest. The vowel is the "o" in go.
American vs British pronunciation of folk
- The long o starts further forward in British English, closer to "uh-oo" than the American "oh".
British respelling: FOHK.
What does folk mean?
- people in general (often used in the plural)“they're just country folk”“folks around here drink moonshine”
- a social division of (usually preliterate) people
- people descended from a common ancestor“his family has lived in Massachusetts since the Mayflower”
Where does folk come from?
Cognate with Saterland Frisian Foulk, West Frisian folk, Dutch volk, German Low German and German Volk, Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, and Swedish folk, Faroese and Icelandic fólk.
Words that rhyme with folk
Practicing rhymes is a quick way to lock in the vowel sound of folk.
Questions about saying folk
How do you pronounce folk?
Say FOHK. The American pronunciation is /foʊk/. In British English it is /fəʊk/. Press play above to hear it at normal speed or slowly.
How many syllables are in folk?
Folk is a single syllable, so the whole word carries the stress. Broken into parts: FOHK.
Is folk pronounced differently in British English?
Yes. The long o starts further forward in British English, closer to "uh-oo" than the American "oh". The British form is /fəʊk/ (FOHK).