How to pronounce "breathiness" in English
brea·thi·ness
Hear native speakers say breathiness in context across real video clips
of control that you suddenly have as the breathiness in the voice is something that can be very easily controlled when you are not going through this stage, that can be very easily controlled when
Linguistic Pronunciation Masterclass: “breathiness”
Phonetic mechanics, syllable architecture, and conversational cadence
Syllable Architecture & Stress Distribution
brea
Reduced vowel sound, relaxed jaw, and minimal vocal effort.
thi
Reduced vowel sound, relaxed jaw, and minimal vocal effort.
ness
Reduced vowel sound, relaxed jaw, and minimal vocal effort.
Keep the vowel length balanced, placing subtle emphasis on the root morpheme according to standard conversational rhythm.
Common Pronunciation Traps & Learner Mistakes
The Trap: Many learners substitute "th" with "s", "z", "t", or "d".
How Native Speakers Say It: Place the flat blade of your tongue lightly between your upper and lower incisors. Blow air gently without vocal chord vibration to produce the unvoiced ⁄θ⁄ sound.
Connected Speech & Natural Conversational Flow
When "breathiness" is followed by a word starting with a vowel, glide the final consonant into the opening vowel (e.g. "breathiness is" sounds like "breathiness-iz").
Maintain the stress-timed rhythm of English: compress unstressed syllables rapidly so the beat of "breathiness" aligns naturally with adjacent words.
Authentic Spoken Quotes from Native Video Context
“breathiness in the voice is something that can be very easily controlled when you are not going through this stage,”— TEDx TalksWatch clip
“Then I'll use a little bit more of my breathiness in my voice.”— TED-EdWatch clip
“and ultimately I hear a little bit of that that breathiness in his voice as well those cues come together to define the”— TEDx TalksWatch clip
Practice Speaking “breathiness”
Listen to native pronunciation, record yourself repeating the sentence into your microphone, and receive real-time word-by-word accuracy scoring.
breathiness in the voice is something that can be very easily controlled when you are not going through this stage,
Hear it in context: “breathiness”
3 clipsThe English word “breathiness”. Phonologically, it consists of 3 syllables (brea · thi · ness). Grammatically, “breathiness” functions as a noun. SayItVid indexes 3 authentic English video clips demonstrating how native speakers articulate “breathiness” in natural connected speech across American (US: 3 sampled), British (UK), and Australian (AUS) accents, including verified broadcasts from TEDx Talks, TED-Ed.
Spoken Video Transcripts & Contextual Quotes (3 Verified Clips)
- 🇺🇸 USTEDx TalksClip #1 · @4:01
“of control that you suddenly have as the breathiness in the voice is something that can be very easily controlled when you are not going through this stage, that can be very easily controlled when”
- 🇺🇸 USTED-EdClip #2 · @5:05
“Am I trying to be intimate? Am I trying to be a little sexy? Then I'll use a little bit more of my breathiness in my voice. But if I'm trying to be more energetic and more excited,”
- 🇺🇸 USTEDx TalksClip #3 · @5:01
“subtle what I hear is that his voice is weak and that it lacks pitch variability and ultimately I hear a little bit of that that breathiness in his voice as well those cues come together to define the well those cues come together to define the”
Definition & Meaning: “breathiness”
- The state or quality of being breathy.
- The result or product of being breathy.
Example Sentences (3)
- “The smooth, even surfaces of Mr. Glass’s music expose his weaknesses as a pianist, but the faults added a kind of human breathiness to the piano’s embellished tread (reminiscent of Satie’s “Gymnopédies”) in the concluding piece, “The Orchard.” Ms. Sutter and her borrowed cello sang a little raucously over it, like Carly Simon at the end of the night.”
- “Here standard acoustic instruments are played in ways that suggest electronic sound: violins whir and buzz, woodwinds produce a toneless breathiness and a gentle tapping evokes a heartbeat.”
- “breathiness in the voice is something that can be very easily controlled when you are not going through this stage,”
Pronounce: “breathiness”
- Syllables:
- brea · thi · ness
- Hear it in context
- breathiness
Words that Sound Identical (Homophones)
Unique Sound"breathiness" has no true homophones in standard English — there are no other words with identical pronunciation. Unlike sound-alike pairs like there / their or peace / piece, "breathiness" has a completely distinct phonetic identity.
Frequently asked questions about breathiness
How many syllables are in “breathiness”?
“breathiness” has 3 syllables: brea · thi · ness.
What does “breathiness” mean?
The state or quality of being breathy.
How can I hear “breathiness” used in real sentences?
This page has 3 real-world video examples of “breathiness” with synchronized subtitles. Use Previous / Next (or ← / → keys) to hear each one at the exact moment it is spoken.
What is the most common pronunciation mistake when saying “breathiness”?
Many learners substitute "th" with "s", "z", "t", or "d". Place the flat blade of your tongue lightly between your upper and lower incisors. Blow air gently without vocal chord vibration to produce the unvoiced ⁄θ⁄ sound.