How to pronounce "goriot" in English
ɡɔːrˈjoʊ
gor·YOH
Primary stress: YOH
Hear native speakers say goriot in context across real video clips
Linguistic Pronunciation Masterclass: “goriot”
Phonetic mechanics, syllable architecture, and conversational cadence
Syllable Architecture & Stress Distribution
gor
Reduced vowel sound, relaxed jaw, and minimal vocal effort.
YOH
Gliding diphthong with sustained vocal resonance.
Primary emphasis falls on the second syllable ("YOH"). 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 "goriot" is followed by a word starting with a vowel, glide the final consonant into the opening vowel (e.g. "goriot is" sounds like "goriot-iz").
In natural sentences, avoid over-stressing "goriot" unless it conveys the core contrast or focal point of your message.
Authentic Spoken Quotes from Native Video Context
“There's a scene in an old Balzac novel called--all Balzac novels by definition are old, obviously--Old Goriot,”— YaleCoursesWatch clip
“You read, "Pere Goriot," it's amazing novel, hilarious.”— Native SpeakerWatch clip
“After Goriot dies, he's up in the northeast quadrant of Paris at Père Lachaise cemetery.”— YaleCoursesWatch clip
“Père Goriot, in which Rastignac, who was sort of this down-and-out noble who wants to make the big time in Paris by sleeping with all the right”— YaleCoursesWatch clip
“A Rastignac was--it was before this course, but was the central figure, or one of them, in Balzac's novel Old Goriot, Père Goriot, and he's a sort of a”— YaleCoursesWatch clip
“If you've read Balzac's Old Goriot ever in your reading career, at the very end of the story Rastignac is up at Père Lachaise Cemetery,”— YaleCoursesWatch clip
Practice Speaking “goriot”
Listen to native pronunciation, record yourself repeating the sentence into your microphone, and receive real-time word-by-word accuracy scoring.
There's a scene in an old Balzac novel called--all Balzac novels by definition are old, obviously--Old Goriot,
Hear it in context: “goriot”
6 clipsThe English word “goriot” is transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) as ɡɔːrˈjoʊ (phonetic respelling: gor-YOH). Phonologically, it consists of 2 syllables (gor · YOH), with primary lexical stress placed on the 2nd syllable (YOH). Grammatically, “goriot” functions as a proper noun. SayItVid indexes 6 authentic English video clips demonstrating how native speakers articulate “goriot” in natural connected speech across American (US: 6 sampled), British (UK), and Australian (AUS) accents, including verified broadcasts from YaleCourses.
Spoken Video Transcripts & Contextual Quotes (5 Verified Clips)
- 🇺🇸 USYaleCoursesClip #1 · @39:00
“This guy goes out to kill. There's a scene in an old Balzac novel called--all Balzac novels by definition are old, obviously--Old Goriot, novels by definition are old, obviously--Old Goriot,”
- 🇺🇸 USClip #2 · @114:10
“Who's obviously wrote in French. You read, "Pere Goriot," it's amazing novel, hilarious. And it's like, you're not really getting it.”
- 🇺🇸 USYaleCoursesClip #3 · @39:19
“make the big time in Paris by sleeping with all the right people. After Goriot dies, he's up in the northeast quadrant of Paris at Père Lachaise cemetery. After Goriot dies, he's up in the northeast”
- 🇺🇸 USYaleCoursesClip #4 · @39:09
“novels by definition are old, obviously--Old Goriot, Père Goriot, in which Rastignac, who was sort of this down-and-out noble who wants to make the big time in Paris by sleeping with all the right who was sort of this down-and-out noble who wants to”
- 🇺🇸 USYaleCoursesClip #5 · @4:10
“political, social and cultural domination of the capital. A Rastignac was--it was before this course, but was the central figure, or one of them, in Balzac's novel Old Goriot, Père Goriot, and he's a sort of a figure, or one of them, in Balzac's novel Old”
Definition & Meaning: “goriot”
- The titular impoverished father in Honoré de Balzac's 1835 novel Le Père Goriot.
Example Sentences (3)
- “Father Goriot sacrifices everything for his ungrateful daughters in Balzac's masterpiece.”
- “There's a scene in an old Balzac novel called--all Balzac novels by definition are old, obviously--Old Goriot,”
- “You read, "Pere Goriot," it's amazing novel, hilarious.”
Common Phrases & Collocations
Pronounce: “goriot”
- Pronunciation:
- gor-YOH
- Syllables:
- gor · YOH
- Written Hyphenation:
- go · ri · ot
- Primary stress:
- YOH
- IPA:
- ɡɔːrˈjoʊ
- Hear it in context
- goriot
Words that Rhyme with “goriot”
-oʊWords that Sound Identical (Homophones)
Unique Sound"goriot" (⁄ɡɔːrˈjoʊ⁄) 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, "goriot" has a completely distinct phonetic identity.
Frequently asked questions about goriot
How do you pronounce “goriot”?
“goriot” is pronounced ⁄ɡɔːrˈjoʊ⁄ (gor-YOH). Listen to the native-speaker clips above to hear it in real conversation.
How many syllables are in “goriot”?
“goriot” has 2 syllables: gor · YOH.
Where is the stress in “goriot”?
The primary stress in “goriot” is on “YOH”. Listen for that stressed syllable in the clips above.
What does “goriot” mean?
The titular impoverished father in Honoré de Balzac's 1835 novel Le Père Goriot.
How can I hear “goriot” used in real sentences?
This page has 6 real-world video examples of “goriot” 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 “goriot”?
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⁄).