How to pronounce "close ups" in English
ˈkloʊ.sʌps
KLOH·suhps
Primary stress: KLOH
Hear native speakers say close ups in context across real video clips
Linguistic Pronunciation Masterclass: “close ups”
Phonetic mechanics, syllable architecture, and conversational cadence
Syllable Architecture & Stress Distribution
KLOH
Gliding diphthong with sustained vocal resonance.
suhps
Reduced vowel sound, relaxed jaw, and minimal vocal effort.
Primary emphasis falls on the first syllable ("KLOH"). Raise your pitch and sustain the vowel length on this syllable while relaxing the surrounding syllables.
Common Pronunciation Traps & Learner Mistakes
The Trap: Avoid pronouncing every vowel with full acoustic weight. Non-native speakers often over-enunciate unstressed vowels.
How Native Speakers Say It: Only give full vowel clarity to the primary stressed syllable. Relax all unstressed vowels into a neutral, low-energy schwa (⁄ə⁄).
Connected Speech & Natural Conversational Flow
When "close ups" is followed by a word starting with a vowel, glide the final consonant into the opening vowel (e.g. "close ups is" sounds like "close ups-iz").
In natural sentences, avoid over-stressing "close ups" unless it conveys the core contrast or focal point of your message.
Authentic Spoken Quotes from Native Video Context
“And then you might go into close ups of the knives, and the people working, and the kids playing.”— MIT OpenCourseWareWatch clip
“You were using these medium close ups a lot of the time, static shots where they needed to be.”— Native SpeakerWatch clip
“And just having no close ups, or nothing-- sharing the frame with four guys.”— Native SpeakerWatch clip
“Some extreme close ups, we you know, we knew that the camera was going to basically fly into Alita’s eye.” But the difference between this face and this one isn't just the skin.”— Native SpeakerWatch clip
“We'll punch in for some close ups.”— Native SpeakerWatch clip
“a close up on the faces of the bad guy or close ups of the normal people on the train.”— Native SpeakerWatch clip
Practice Speaking “close ups”
Listen to native pronunciation, record yourself repeating the sentence into your microphone, and receive real-time word-by-word accuracy scoring.
And then you might go into close ups of the knives, and the people working, and the kids playing.
Hear it in context: “close ups”
100 clipsThe English word “close ups” is transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) as ˈkloʊ.sʌps (phonetic respelling: KLOH-suhps). Phonologically, it consists of 2 syllables (KLOH · suhps), with primary lexical stress placed on the 1st (initial) syllable (KLOH). Grammatically, “close ups” functions as a noun. SayItVid indexes 100 authentic English video clips demonstrating how native speakers articulate “close ups” in natural connected speech across American (US: 8 sampled), British (UK), and Australian (AUS) accents, including verified broadcasts from MIT OpenCourseWare.
Spoken Video Transcripts & Contextual Quotes (5 Verified Clips)
- 🇺🇸 USMIT OpenCourseWareClip #1 · @63:04
“So you're kind of located in space. And then you might go into close ups of the knives, and the people working, and the kids playing. and the people working, and the kids playing.”
- 🇺🇸 USClip #2 · @23:38
“in a lot of places. You were using these medium close ups a lot of the time, static shots where they needed to be. of the time, static shots where they needed to be.”
- 🇺🇸 USClip #3 · @36:52
“I'd never experienced anything like that. And just having no close ups, or nothing-- sharing the frame with four guys. sharing the frame with four guys.”
- 🇺🇸 USClip #4 · @4:07
“So we actually draw curves on along these flow lines. Some extreme close ups, we you know, we knew that the camera was going to basically fly into Alita’s eye.” But the difference between this face and this one isn't just the skin. into Alita’s eye.””
- 🇺🇸 USClip #5 · @22:29
“we'll use the stunt doubles for all of the big action. We'll punch in for some close ups. And we would just laugh and be like, sure, sure, sure.”
Definition & Meaning: “close ups”
- Photographs or films taken at close range to show greater detail.
Example Sentences (3)
- “The director requested several closeups of the actor's face during the emotional scene.”
- “And then you might go into close ups of the knives, and the people working, and the kids playing.”
- “You were using these medium close ups a lot of the time, static shots where they needed to be.”
Pronounce: “close ups”
- Pronunciation:
- KLOH-suhps
- Syllables:
- KLOH · suhps
- Written Hyphenation:
- close · ups
- Primary stress:
- KLOH
- IPA:
- ˈkloʊ.sʌps
- Hear it in context
- close ups
Words that Sound Identical (Homophones)
Unique Sound"close ups" (⁄ˈkloʊ.sʌps⁄) 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, "close ups" has a completely distinct phonetic identity.
Frequently asked questions about close ups
How do you pronounce “close ups”?
“close ups” is pronounced ⁄ˈkloʊ.sʌps⁄ (KLOH-suhps). Listen to the native-speaker clips above to hear it in real conversation.
How many syllables are in “close ups”?
“close ups” has 2 syllables: KLOH · suhps.
Where is the stress in “close ups”?
The primary stress in “close ups” is on “KLOH”. Listen for that stressed syllable in the clips above.
What does “close ups” mean?
Photographs or films taken at close range to show greater detail.
How can I hear “close ups” used in real sentences?
This page has 100 real-world video examples of “close ups” 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 “close ups”?
Avoid pronouncing every vowel with full acoustic weight. Non-native speakers often over-enunciate unstressed vowels. Only give full vowel clarity to the primary stressed syllable. Relax all unstressed vowels into a neutral, low-energy schwa (⁄ə⁄).