A free online English text-to-speech tool and AI voice generator that reads any text aloud. Use this English text reader to hear text spoken in natural-sounding native voices, view phonetic transcription (IPA), and improve your pronunciation with karaoke-style word highlighting.
Words that are commonly mispronounced in English. Click to hear the correct pronunciation.
The Sounds Learners Get Wrong Most
TH [θ] and [ð]
Only a small minority of the world's languages have these, so learners swap in T/S or D/Z and "think" turns into "sink". The tongue tip rests lightly between the teeth and the air keeps flowing.
R [ɹ]
English r is an approximant: the tongue curls but never touches the roof of the mouth. Most languages use a trill or a tap instead, which is why a rolled r is the most recognisable accent marker of all.
Schwa [ə]
Unstressed vowels collapse into one short, neutral sound, so spelling stops predicting it — the a of "about" and the o of "problem" are the same vowel. Giving every syllable its full value is what makes speech sound over-articulated.
Dark L [ɫ] at the end
After a vowel the l is formed further back and edges towards a w sound. Keeping the bright front l of most other languages — or dropping it altogether — is the usual slip.
English Words That Trip People Up
ˈskwɪɹl̩squ is skw and British says it as two syllables ending in a dark l.
ˈθʌɹəthe ough reduces to a plain schwa, so it is THUH-ruh with no oh-diphthong at the end.
ˈkɜːnəlpronounced exactly like the word kernel as the written l and o leave no trace and British is non-rhotic so the first syllable is a long vowel with no r-colouring.
ˈɹɔːɹəltwo r sounds with only a weak vowel between them which makes the tongue travel.
kləʊ(ð)zthe th is nearly swallowed so it sounds like close with a soft z at the end and the vowel is the British oh (əʊ).
sˈɪksθthe ending piles ks onto th so say all three k s th and do not drop the s.
ˈkʌm.fə.tə.bəlusually squeezed to KUMF-tuh-buhl as the or in the middle disappears.
wˈɛnzdeɪThe 'd' is silent, so it sounds like 'Wenz-day' rather than 'Wed-nes-day'.
fˈɛbɹuːəɹɪin careful British speech both r sounds are kept and the ending is a light -ry while the middle is often reduced in fast speech.
ˈskɛ.dʒu.əlthis word splits the language as British says SHED-yool while the button here plays the AMERICAN form on purpose and the transcription shown is the American one.
kjuːthe four vowel letters are silent so it is just the name of the letter Q.
wˈʊstəʃɐpronounced WUUS-tuh-shuh as most letters are silent and British is non-rhotic so neither ending has an r sound.
Hear the Difference
sɪt/siːtShort lax [ɪ] against long tense [iː]. Length is only half of it: [ɪ] is looser and a little lower, so "sit" never sounds like a clipped "seat".
mæn/mɛnLow wide [æ] against mid [ɛ]. The jaw drops for [æ]; merge them and the singular and the plural become the same word.
θɪk/tɪk[θ] against [t]. [θ] is a continuous stream of air between the teeth, [t] a single burst released at the gum ridge.
vɛst/wɛst[v] against [w]. [v] presses the upper teeth into the lower lip; [w] only rounds the lips, with no teeth involved.
kat/kʌtthe contrast is the vowel as cat has a short open front a and cut has a short central uh while in British the a of cat is a plain short a.
Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know about Speecher.org
Which English accents does Speecher offer (US, UK, Australian, Indian, others)?
Speecher supports 8+ English accents from major browsers and Universal voices: American (General American), British (Received Pronunciation), Australian, Indian, Canadian, South African, Irish, and Nigerian. Use the US/UK accent radio to filter the voice grid by accent.
Can it show IPA transcription for English words?
Yes — enable Karaoke mode and IPA appears beneath every English word as it's spoken. The default "Word + IPA" display covers the whole text, with accent-aware transcriptions (US, UK, AU) selectable via the accent radio.
Can I compare the same phrase in different English accents?
Yes — type any text and click between voices in the voice grid. The same phrase plays back with American /æ/ vs British /ɑː/ in words like "bath", "dance", "class" — helping you train your ear to the differences.
Can Speecher help me practice commonly mispronounced English words?
Yes — the Dictionary tab on the homepage lists tricky English words (entrepreneur, colonel, schedule, Worcestershire, …). Click any to hear the correct pronunciation in your chosen accent.
Can I download English audio as MP3 for offline practice?
Yes — for Universal English voices, click the MP3 button to download. Browser voices play in real time only.
Does Speecher.org have an on-screen keyboard for English?
Yes. On the Speak page, click the keyboard button next to the Karaoke toggle and the English keyboard opens below the text box. You can type with your mouse or finger without switching your device's layout. Speecher's on-screen keyboard supports 29 languages — including Cyrillic, Arabic, Chinese (pinyin and cangjie), Hangul and kana — and on phones it doesn't cover the screen with the system keyboard.
Can I dictate English text by voice?
Yes. Speecher's Speech-to-Text turns your spoken English into editable text: open the Speech-to-Text section and tap the microphone. In Google Chrome the words are recognized in real time as you speak, and it also works in other modern browsers. Over 40 dictation languages are supported.
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