How to pronounce "tanpura" in English
tæmˈpʊəɹə
tam·POOR·ə
Primary stress: POOR
Hear native speakers say tanpura in context across real video clips
Linguistic Pronunciation Masterclass: “tanpura”
Phonetic mechanics, syllable architecture, and conversational cadence
Syllable Architecture & Stress Distribution
tam
Neutral schwa (⁄ə⁄): relaxed jaw, brief unstressed breath.
POOR
Elevated pitch, sustained vowel length, and full acoustic clarity.
ə
Neutral schwa (⁄ə⁄): relaxed jaw, brief unstressed breath.
Primary emphasis falls on the second syllable ("POOR"). 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 followed by a vowel, insert a subtle glide (/w/ or /j/) to connect into the subsequent word without an abrupt glottal stop.
Maintain the stress-timed rhythm of English: compress unstressed syllables rapidly so the beat of "tanpura" aligns naturally with adjacent words.
Authentic Spoken Quotes from Native Video Context
“You know, it came in my mind that all Indian instruments sitar, sarode, tanpura, sarangi, they have hollow neck.”— TEDx TalksWatch clip
“background music is played with the veena and a tanpura and temple bells a”— StanfordWatch clip
“An empty room where I'm sitting in front of a selfie camera with a tanpura on and singing”— TEDx TalksWatch clip
“Tanpura's humming, kids building good skills, and”— TEDx TalksWatch clip
“And I just went and sang, practiced rugby on the tanpura.”— TEDx TalksWatch clip
“So fearful was I of having to ignore my calling that when I was leaving to campus I packed my practice mat, my tanpura, my music books only to realize”— TEDx TalksWatch clip
Practice Speaking “tanpura”
Listen to native pronunciation, record yourself repeating the sentence into your microphone, and receive real-time word-by-word accuracy scoring.
You know, it came in my mind that all Indian instruments sitar, sarode, tanpura, sarangi, they have hollow neck.
Hear it in context: “tanpura”
8 clipsThe English word “tanpura” is transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) as tæmˈpʊəɹə (phonetic respelling: tam-POOR-ə). Phonologically, it consists of 3 syllables (tam · POOR · ə), with primary lexical stress placed on the 2nd syllable (POOR). Grammatically, “tanpura” functions as a noun. SayItVid indexes 8 authentic English video clips demonstrating how native speakers articulate “tanpura” in natural connected speech across American (US: 8 sampled), British (UK), and Australian (AUS) accents, including verified broadcasts from TEDx Talks, Stanford.
Spoken Video Transcripts & Contextual Quotes (5 Verified Clips)
- 🇺🇸 USTEDx TalksClip #1 · @9:43
“I during the 90s, I added a simple different neck. You know, it came in my mind that all Indian instruments sitar, sarode, tanpura, sarangi, they have hollow neck. tanpura, sarangi, they have hollow neck.”
- 🇺🇸 USStanfordClip #2 · @48:17
“the temple floor with with or on a slate and there's a scene where where the background music is played with the veena and a tanpura and temple bells a very very authentic feel of of the kind of music that he would have been”
- 🇺🇸 USTEDx TalksClip #3 · @7:56
“those songs. So, imagine a room, right? An empty room where I'm sitting in front of a selfie camera with a tanpura on and singing of a selfie camera with a tanpura on and”
- 🇺🇸 USTEDx TalksClip #4 · @4:11
“mom enrolled me in a music class. At first, I didn't understand anything. Tanpura's humming, kids building good skills, and I didn't understand anything. Tanpura's”
- 🇺🇸 USTEDx TalksClip #5 · @1:06
“and I thought, I have to sing there. And I just went and sang, practiced rugby on the tanpura. And at first he showed no response.”
Definition & Meaning: “tanpura”
- Alternative spelling of tambura.
Example Sentences (2)
- “You know, it came in my mind that all Indian instruments sitar, sarode, tanpura, sarangi, they have hollow neck.”
- “background music is played with the veena and a tanpura and temple bells a”
Common Phrases & Collocations
Pronounce: “tanpura”
- Pronunciation:
- tam-POOR-ə
- Syllables:
- tam · POOR · ə
- Written Hyphenation:
- tan · pu · ra
- Primary stress:
- POOR
- IPA:
- tæmˈpʊəɹə
- Hear it in context
- tanpura
Words that Rhyme with “tanpura”
-ʊərəWords that Sound Identical (Homophones)
Unique Sound"tanpura" (⁄tæmˈpʊəɹə⁄) 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, "tanpura" has a completely distinct phonetic identity.
Frequently asked questions about tanpura
How do you pronounce “tanpura”?
“tanpura” is pronounced ⁄tæmˈpʊəɹə⁄ (tam-POOR-ə). Listen to the native-speaker clips above to hear it in real conversation.
How many syllables are in “tanpura”?
“tanpura” has 3 syllables: tam · POOR · ə.
Where is the stress in “tanpura”?
The primary stress in “tanpura” is on “POOR”. Listen for that stressed syllable in the clips above.
What does “tanpura” mean?
Alternative spelling of tambura.
How can I hear “tanpura” used in real sentences?
This page has 8 real-world video examples of “tanpura” 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 “tanpura”?
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⁄).