2 syllables: Bu, reau. Stress on Bu.
BYUUR-oh
/ˈbjʊɹoʊ/
Bureau is pronounced BYUUR-oh (/ˈbjʊɹoʊ/). It has two syllables (Bu-reau), with the stress on "Bu". Bureau is a noun meaning an office, department, or agency, especially of a government or organization. It can also denote a chest of drawers. The term is frequently used to describe administrative offices or divisions within larger entities, and appears in contexts ranging from public administration to corporate branding and genealogy. Its pronunciation and usage are common in formal and semi-formal discourse.
nounBureau is a noun meaning an office, department, or agency, especially of a government or organization. It can also denote a chest of drawers. The term is frequently used to describe administrative offices or divisions within larger entities, and appears in contexts ranging from public administration to corporate branding and genealogy. Its pronunciation and usage are common in formal and semi-formal discourse.
How to Pronounce Bureau
"The Health Bureau released new guidelines for patient privacy."
"She worked in the Bureau of Statistics before transferring to the Communications Department."
"The travel bureau helped us plan our itinerary."
Pronounce it as two syllables with primary stress on the first: /ˈbjʊəˌroʊ/ (US) or /ˈbjʊə.rəʊ/ (UK/AU). Start with a rounded lip position for /ˈbjʊə/—the /ju/ sequence sounds like 'you' with a fleeting /ə/—then glide to /roʊ/ in US or /rəʊ/ in UK/AU. Keep the second syllable light and quick in casual speech, but full in careful pronunciation. You’ll hear the two-syllable cadence clearly in audio references and dictionaries.
Common errors: (1) Pronouncing as /ˈbjuːr.oʊ/ or /ˈbjɜːroʊ/ by treating the middle vowel as /uː/ instead of /ˈbjʊə/. (2) Dropping the /ə/ in the second syllable or making it a full /oʊ/ in all accents. Correction: aim for /ˈbjʊəˌroʊ/ in US, with /ˈbjʊə.rəʊ/ in UK/AU; keep the /ə/ unstressed in the second syllable or reduce to a schwa. Practice the /ˈbjʊə/ chunk first, ensuring the /j/ is a 'y' sound transitioning into a short /ə/.
US: /ˈbjʊəˌroʊ/ with a rhotic, ending /roʊ/. UK: /ˈbjuːˈrəʊ/ or /ˈbjʊə.rəʊ/, less rhotic, middle vowel closer to /ɪə/; AU: /ˈbjʊəˌrəʊ/ similar to UK but with Australian vowel shifts. Key differences: vowel length and the second syllable rhoticity varies; US tends to a pronounced /r/ in final syllable when followed by vowels; UK often reduces /r/ unless linking; AU tends to /ə/ in non-rhotic contexts but can show slight /ɹ/ in careful speech.
The difficulty stems from the thin, fronted /j/ + schwa sequence in /ˈbjʊə/ and the exact realization of the second syllable: US /roʊ/ vs UK/AU /rəʊ/. Learners often misplace the lip rounding on /juː/ and confuse the /ə/ in the second syllable, creating /ˈbwero/ or /ˈbjuret/. Focus on keeping the /j/ smooth and the vowel transition from /ʊ/ to /ə/ subtle, with a light, quick second syllable in connected speech.
Yes—two consecutive vowels with a soft, central schwa in the second syllable when non-final in US, and a more discrete /rəʊ/ or /roʊ/ depending on dialect. The tricky part is the /ˈbjʊə/ onset: avoid collapsing it into /bjuː/ or /bjʊ/ by ensuring a clear /ə/ or schwa in the second half of the first syllable before the final consonant cluster. IPA cues: US /ˈbjʊəˌroʊ/, UK/AU /ˈbjʊə.rəʊ/.
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Bureau entered English in the 17th century via French bureau, which originally meant a cloth-covered board or a space for writing on, ultimately from Old French burel ‘pelt, skin’ and Italian burro ‘buttery’, though the exact lineage for the desk sense comes from the Old French beret, later broadened to denote a desk with drawers. The sense 'office or department' emerged in the 18th–19th centuries as bureaucratic administration expanded in Europe and North America. Early English usage often related to a desk or workroom furnishing; in government and corporate contexts, the term evolved to designate organized divisions or agencies. First known uses refer to both physically distinct desks and to bodies organized around administrative functions, with the modern sense of an organizational subdivision solidifying in government lexicon by the 1800s. Over time, bureau also acquired metaphorical resonance in journalism and management, describing specialized units or stylistic branding (the “bureaucratic” tone). Modern usage retains both the furniture sense (a bureau as a chest) and the organizational sense (a government bureau or agency).
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "Bureau" and can often be used interchangeably.
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Words that rhyme with "Bureau"
-eau sounds
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