How to pronounce free
Say it like FREE. Free 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 free. Choose Slow to hear each sound clearly.
- FREE
- Main stress
- Lighter stress
- Unstressed
Free pronunciation, sound by sound
Read the parts left to right, then blend them together without pausing.
- FREESay this part loudest and longest. The vowel is the "ee" in see.
American vs British pronunciation of free
American and British speakers say free in essentially the same way: /fri/ in the US and /friː/ in the UK.
British respelling: FREE.
What does free mean?
- grant freedom to; free from confinement
- relieve from“Rid the house of pests”
- remove or force out from a position“The dentist dislodged the piece of food that had been stuck under my gums”“He finally could free the legs of the earthquake victim who was buried in the rubble”
- not limited or hampered; not under compulsion or restraint“free enterprise”“a free port”
- unconstrained or not chemically bound in a molecule or not fixed and capable of relatively unrestricted motion“free expansion”“free oxygen”
- costing nothing“complimentary tickets”“free admission”
- people who are free“the home of the free and the brave”
Where does free come from?
Germanic and Celtic are the only Indo-European language branches in which the PIE word with the meaning of "dear, beloved" acquired the additional meaning of "free" in the sense of "not in bondage".
Similar and opposite words
Similar meaning
Opposite meaning
Words that rhyme with free
Practicing rhymes is a quick way to lock in the vowel sound of free.
Questions about saying free
How do you pronounce free?
Say FREE. The American pronunciation is /fri/. In British English it is /friː/. Press play above to hear it at normal speed or slowly.
How many syllables are in free?
Free is a single syllable, so the whole word carries the stress. Broken into parts: FREE.
Do Americans and Brits say free the same way?
Almost exactly. The American form is /fri/ and the British form is /friː/, so you can use either pronunciation with any listener.