One syllable: blue.
bloo
/blu/
blue is pronounced bloo (/blu/). It has one syllable (blue), with the stress on "blue". Blue is a color term used to describe the shade between green and violet in the visible spectrum. It also functions as an adjective meaning morose or sad, or as a verb in some contexts (e.g., blue-pencil to censor). In everyday use it conveys hue, mood, or affiliation (as in blue jeans or a blue ribbon).
adjectiveBlue is a color term used to describe the shade between green and violet in the visible spectrum. It also functions as an adjective meaning morose or sad, or as a verb in some contexts (e.g., blue-pencil to censor). In everyday use it conveys hue, mood, or affiliation (as in blue jeans or a blue ribbon).
"The sky was a clear, blue shade on a sunny afternoon."
"She wore a blue dress to the wedding."
"The patient’s mood turned blue after the news."
You say it as /bluː/. It’s a single syllable with a long “oo” vowel. Start with /b/ as a voiced bilabial stop, then glide into /l/ with the tongue at the alveolar ridge, and finish with a long /uː/ vowel, keeping lips rounded and jaw relatively closed. Tip: keep the vowel tense and avoid reducing it to /u/ or /ʊ/. Reference audio examples can be found in major pronunciation dictionaries.
Two common errors are shortening the vowel so it becomes /blʊ/ or turning the /uː/ into a lax /u/ or /o/ sound. Another pitfall is softening the /b/ or delaying the /l/ release, causing a blended or clipped result. Fix: hold the /uː/ for a full, steady beat, ensure the /l/ is a clear light lateral release, and finish with rounded lips to maintain the long vowel quality.
US/UK/AU all share /bluː/, but accent differences show in vowel length and onset easing. US tends to a slightly tenser /uː/ with clear rhoticity in connected speech, UK may have a slightly more centralized tongue position and less vowel reduction in rapid speech, while AU often shows a more centralized starting point and broader vowel space. Overall, the core /bluː/ remains, with subtle duration and consonant timing differences.
The difficulty lies in maintaining a full, long /uː/ vowel without turning it into a shorter /u/ or /ʊ/ and in producing a crisp /l/ that doesn’t blend with the following vowel. Speakers often back-raise the jaw or lean into a diphthong blend, which diminishes vowel length. Focus on a steady, rounded /uː/ and a clean /l/ with a brief, light release before the tongue moves to the back of the mouth.
Since blue is a monophthong with a long /uː/, you can practice by pairing it with a light, almost silence-like dotted onset to emphasize the vowel’s length. Place your tongue high and back for /uː/, maintain rounded lips, and keep a single, smooth release through /l/ without a secondary vowel. This helps prevent shortening and preserves the word’s clean, single-syllable identity.
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Blue comes from Old French bleu, from Latin caeruleus later Latin blavus, with Proto-Germanic roots. The term originally described the color of the sky and sea, later extending metaphorically to sadness (feeling blue) in Early Modern English. The word has cognates in many Germanic languages (Dutch blauw, German blau) reflecting a common Proto-Germanic term for the color of the clear sky. Its broader use as a verb or noun—such as blue ribbon or blue-pencil—emerged in the 19th and 20th centuries in contexts of work, censorship, and symbolism, reinforcing the color’s cultural associations with trust, depth, and melancholy.
💡 Etymology tip: Understanding word origins can help you remember pronunciation patterns and recognize related words in the same language family.
Help others use "blue" correctly by contributing grammar tips, common mistakes, and context guidance.
💡 These words have similar meanings to "blue" and can often be used interchangeably.
🔄 These words have opposite meanings to "blue" and show contrast in usage.
📚 Vocabulary tip: Learning synonyms and antonyms helps you understand nuanced differences in meaning and improves your word choice in speaking and writing.
Words that rhyme with "blue"
Practice with these rhyming pairs to improve your pronunciation consistency:
🎵 Rhyme tip: Practicing with rhyming words helps you master similar sound patterns and improves your overall pronunciation accuracy.
