How to pronounce "foreign born" in English
ˈfɔːr.ənˌbɔːrn
FOR·ən·born
Primary stress: FOR
Hear native speakers say foreign born in context across real video clips
Linguistic Pronunciation Masterclass: “foreign born”
Phonetic mechanics, syllable architecture, and conversational cadence
Syllable Architecture & Stress Distribution
FOR
Tense long vowel with sustained acoustic resonance.
ən
Neutral schwa (⁄ə⁄): relaxed jaw, brief unstressed breath.
born
Neutral schwa (⁄ə⁄): relaxed jaw, brief unstressed breath.
Primary emphasis falls on the first syllable ("FOR"). 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 "foreign born" is followed by a word starting with a vowel, glide the final consonant into the opening vowel (e.g. "foreign born is" sounds like "foreign born-iz").
Maintain the stress-timed rhythm of English: compress unstressed syllables rapidly so the beat of "foreign born" aligns naturally with adjacent words.
Authentic Spoken Quotes from Native Video Context
“foreign born down to the track level the thing with tracks is you can only get detailed survey data”— Harvard UniversityWatch clip
“foreign born either documented or undocumented those kid those families also have not just first generation kids that were born outside but more commonly”— StanfordWatch clip
“For foreign born workers in the labor force were 77.”— TEDx TalksWatch clip
“or foreign born, or Yankees fan or Red Sox fan, or what have you, it wouldn't be too hard to eventually find”— MIT OpenCourseWareWatch clip
“And this foreign born population is much more concentrated in the 20 to 38 range, more likely to have children,”— Native SpeakerWatch clip
“either foreign born or have foreign Roots campaigning is hard work it takes commitment and energy”— Native SpeakerWatch clip
Practice Speaking “foreign born”
Listen to native pronunciation, record yourself repeating the sentence into your microphone, and receive real-time word-by-word accuracy scoring.
foreign born down to the track level the thing with tracks is you can only get detailed survey data
Hear it in context: “foreign born”
219 clipsThe English word “foreign born” is transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) as ˈfɔːr.ənˌbɔːrn (phonetic respelling: FOR-ən-born). Phonologically, it consists of 3 syllables (FOR · ən · born), with primary lexical stress placed on the 1st (initial) syllable (FOR). Grammatically, “foreign born” functions as a adjective. SayItVid indexes 219 authentic English video clips demonstrating how native speakers articulate “foreign born” in natural connected speech across American (US: 8 sampled), British (UK), and Australian (AUS) accents, including verified broadcasts from Harvard University, Stanford, TEDx Talks.
Spoken Video Transcripts & Contextual Quotes (5 Verified Clips)
- 🇺🇸 USHarvard UniversityClip #1 · @79:20
“individual tracks and how i don't know foreign born down to the track level the thing with tracks is you can only get detailed survey data is you can only get detailed survey data”
- 🇺🇸 USStanfordClip #2 · @11:04
“use uh chair n family a child living in a family for one or or both parents are foreign born either documented or undocumented those kid those families also have not just first generation kids that were born outside but more commonly also have not just first generation kids that were born outside but more commonly”
- 🇺🇸 USTEDx TalksClip #3 · @3:46
“but it's 51.9 million immigrants in the United States in 2020. For foreign born workers in the labor force were 77. 3%, while native born workers were only 61. 7%. My point admitting while native born workers were only 61.7%. My point admitting”
- 🇺🇸 USMIT OpenCourseWareClip #4 · @42:35
“into two groups, and started looking at things like US born or foreign born, or Yankees fan or Red Sox fan, or what have you, it wouldn't be too hard to eventually find have you, it wouldn't be too hard to eventually find”
- 🇺🇸 USClip #5 · @14:24
“and the Midwest. And this foreign born population is much more concentrated in the 20 to 38 range, more likely to have children, in the 20 to 38 range, more likely to have children,”
Definition & Meaning: “foreign born”
- Born in a country other than the one in which one currently lives or is a citizen.
Example Sentences (3)
- “The city has a thriving community of foreignborn entrepreneurs.”
- “foreign born down to the track level the thing with tracks is you can only get detailed survey data”
- “foreign born either documented or undocumented those kid those families also have not just first generation kids that were born outside but more commonly”
Pronounce: “foreign born”
- Pronunciation:
- FOR-ən-born
- Syllables:
- FOR · ən · born
- Written Hyphenation:
- for · eign · born
- Primary stress:
- FOR
- IPA:
- ˈfɔːr.ənˌbɔːrn
- Hear it in context
- foreign born
Words that Sound Identical (Homophones)
Unique Sound"foreign born" (⁄ˈfɔːr.ənˌbɔːrn⁄) 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, "foreign born" has a completely distinct phonetic identity.
Frequently asked questions about foreign born
How do you pronounce “foreign born”?
“foreign born” is pronounced ⁄ˈfɔːr.ənˌbɔːrn⁄ (FOR-ən-born). Listen to the native-speaker clips above to hear it in real conversation.
How many syllables are in “foreign born”?
“foreign born” has 3 syllables: FOR · ən · born.
Where is the stress in “foreign born”?
The primary stress in “foreign born” is on “FOR”. Listen for that stressed syllable in the clips above.
What does “foreign born” mean?
Born in a country other than the one in which one currently lives or is a citizen.
How can I hear “foreign born” used in real sentences?
This page has 219 real-world video examples of “foreign born” 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 “foreign born”?
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⁄).