How to pronounce kidney
Say it like KID-nee. Kidney has two syllables, and the main stress falls on the first one (KID).
Click the play button next to American or British to hear how to pronounce kidney. Choose Slow to hear each sound clearly.
- KID
- nee
- Main stress
- Lighter stress
- Unstressed
Kidney pronunciation, sound by sound
Read the parts left to right, then blend them together without pausing.
- KIDSay this part loudest and longest. The vowel is the "i" in sit.
- neeKeep this part quick and light. The vowel is the "ee" in see.
American vs British pronunciation of kidney
American and British speakers say kidney in essentially the same way: /ˈkɪdni/ in the US and /ˈkɪdni/ in the UK.
British respelling: KID-nee.
What does kidney mean?
- either of two bean-shaped excretory organs that filter wastes (especially urea) from the blood and excrete them and water in urine“urine passes out of the kidney through ureters to the bladder”
Where does kidney come from?
An alternate etymology traces the first element to Old English cwiþ, cwiþa (“belly, womb, stomach”), though the loss of /w/ in a stressed syllable is difficult to explain.
Questions about saying kidney
How do you pronounce kidney?
Say KID-nee. The American pronunciation is /ˈkɪdni/. In British English it is /ˈkɪdni/. Press play above to hear it at normal speed or slowly.
How many syllables are in kidney?
Kidney has two syllables, and the main stress falls on the first one (KID). Broken into parts: KID · nee.
Do Americans and Brits say kidney the same way?
Almost exactly. The American form is /ˈkɪdni/ and the British form is /ˈkɪdni/, so you can use either pronunciation with any listener.