How to pronounce quark
Say it like KWARK. Quark 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 quark. Choose Slow to hear each sound clearly.
- KWARK
- Main stress
- Lighter stress
- Unstressed
Quark pronunciation, sound by sound
Read the parts left to right, then blend them together without pausing.
- KWARKSay this part loudest and longest. The vowel is the "ah" in father.
American vs British pronunciation of quark
- Americans pronounce the r after a vowel; most British speakers leave it silent and lengthen the vowel instead.
British respelling: KWAHK.
What does quark mean?
- In the Standard Model, one of a number of elementary subatomic particles having fractional electric charge that forms matter. They are theorized not to exist in isolation, but only in combinations in hadrons such as neutrons and protons or in quark–gluon plasmas.
- An integer that uniquely identifies a text string.
- A nonsense, trivial text string.
- A soft, creamy, unripened cheese made from cow's milk, originating from and eaten throughout central, northern, eastern, and southeastern Europe, as well as the Low Countries.
- The black-crowned night heron (Nycticorax nycticorax).
Where does quark come from?
Etymology 1 sense 1 (“subatomic particle”) was coined by the American physicist Murray Gell-Mann (1929–2019) in 1963, apparently an arbitrary word.
Similar and opposite words
Similar meaning
Words that rhyme with quark
Practicing rhymes is a quick way to lock in the vowel sound of quark.
Questions about saying quark
How do you pronounce quark?
Say KWARK. The American pronunciation is /kwɑrk/. In British English it is /kwɑːk/. Press play above to hear it at normal speed or slowly.
How many syllables are in quark?
Quark is a single syllable, so the whole word carries the stress. Broken into parts: KWARK.
Is quark pronounced differently in British English?
Yes. Americans pronounce the r after a vowel; most British speakers leave it silent and lengthen the vowel instead. The British form is /kwɑːk/ (KWAHK).