How to pronounce "turkey" in English
ˈtɜːrki
TUR·kee
Primary stress: TUR
Hear native speakers say turkey in context across real video clips
Linguistic Pronunciation Masterclass: “turkey”
Phonetic mechanics, syllable architecture, and conversational cadence
Syllable Architecture & Stress Distribution
TUR
Tense long vowel with sustained acoustic resonance.
kee
Reduced vowel sound, relaxed jaw, and minimal vocal effort.
Primary emphasis falls on the first syllable ("TUR"). 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 "turkey" is followed by a word starting with a vowel, glide the final consonant into the opening vowel (e.g. "turkey is" sounds like "turkey-iz").
In natural sentences, avoid over-stressing "turkey" unless it conveys the core contrast or focal point of your message.
Authentic Spoken Quotes from Native Video Context
“Turkey and the Arab world is obviously different, but there's still some sense of connection that it can be done.”— Native SpeakerWatch clip
“Turkey, which is so extraordinarily indebted, do they start to submerge?”— Native SpeakerWatch clip
“turkey massive and so these are some of the places that are going to produce some of the best”— Native SpeakerWatch clip
“turkey the Turkish people the most most majority they are Muslim and they are free to practice what they”— Native SpeakerWatch clip
“Turkey, there was in the Ottoman Empire, which was a fairly tumultuous place because in 1908 and 1909,”— Native SpeakerWatch clip
“Turkey and Bulgaria I've planted rose Fields I have spent a lot of crops working working with as I mentioned with the Roma Community Pickers and this is a world that is so rich uh in human”— Native SpeakerWatch clip
Practice Speaking “turkey”
Listen to native pronunciation, record yourself repeating the sentence into your microphone, and receive real-time word-by-word accuracy scoring.
Turkey and the Arab world is obviously different, but there's still some sense of connection that it can be done.
Hear it in context: “turkey”
16,428 clipsThe English word “turkey” is transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) as ˈtɜːrki (phonetic respelling: TUR-kee). Phonologically, it consists of 2 syllables (TUR · kee), with primary lexical stress placed on the 1st (initial) syllable (TUR). Grammatically, “turkey” functions as a noun, adjective. SayItVid indexes 16,428 authentic English video clips demonstrating how native speakers articulate “turkey” in natural connected speech across American (US: 8 sampled), British (UK), and Australian (AUS) accents.
Spoken Video Transcripts & Contextual Quotes (5 Verified Clips)
- 🇺🇸 USClip #1 · @35:14
“that has a spread even outside. Turkey and the Arab world is obviously different, but there's still some sense of connection that it can be done. but there's still some sense of connection that it can be done.”
- 🇺🇸 USClip #2 · @30:47
“in Europe, is growing. What happens to Turkey, which is so extraordinarily indebted, do they start to submerge? A lot of this stuff is tapered over right indebted, do they start to submerge? A”
- 🇺🇸 USClip #3 · @1:22
“like indonesia huge turkey massive and so these are some of the places that are going to produce some of the best some of the best”
- 🇺🇸 USClip #4 · @35:14
“contradictory these two don't go together but turkey is denying this turkey the Turkish people the most most majority they are Muslim and they are free to practice what they Muslim and they are free to practice what they”
- 🇺🇸 USClip #5 · @75:20
“he spends a lot of time in the Ottoman Empire. Turkey, there was in the Ottoman Empire, which was a fairly tumultuous place because in 1908 and 1909, which was a fairly tumultuous place”
Definition & Meaning: “turkey”
- The guinea fowl (family Numididae).
- A bird in the genus Meleagris with a fan-shaped tail and wattled neck.
- Synonym of Turkey red (“dyed or colored Turkey red”).
- Synonym of Turkey blue (“dyed or colored Turkey blue”).
Example Sentences (2)
- “Turkey and the Arab world is obviously different, but there's still some sense of connection that it can be done.”
- “Turkey, which is so extraordinarily indebted, do they start to submerge? A lot of this stuff is tapered over right”
Common Phrases & Collocations
Pronounce: “turkey”
- Pronunciation:
- TUR-kee
- Syllables:
- TUR · kee
- Written Hyphenation:
- tur · key
- Primary stress:
- TUR
- IPA:
- ˈtɜːrki
- Hear it in context
- turkey
Words that Rhyme with “turkey”
-ɜrkiWords that Sound Identical (Homophones)
Unique Sound"turkey" (⁄ˈtɜːrki⁄) 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, "turkey" has a completely distinct phonetic identity.
Frequently asked questions about turkey
How do you pronounce “turkey”?
“turkey” is pronounced ⁄ˈtɜːrki⁄ (TUR-kee). Listen to the native-speaker clips above to hear it in real conversation.
How many syllables are in “turkey”?
“turkey” has 2 syllables: TUR · kee.
Where is the stress in “turkey”?
The primary stress in “turkey” is on “TUR”. Listen for that stressed syllable in the clips above.
What does “turkey” mean?
The guinea fowl (family Numididae).
How can I hear “turkey” used in real sentences?
This page has 16428 real-world video examples of “turkey” 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 “turkey”?
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⁄).