One syllable: herds.
hurdz
/hɝdz/
herds is pronounced hurdz (/hɝdz/). It has one syllable (herds), with the stress on "herds". Herds refers to a large group of animals, especially cattle or sheep, kept or moving together. It can also describe a crowd, or a group of people moving as a unit. The term emphasizes collective movement and social grouping rather than individual animals. In plural form, it denotes multiple such groups or one larger aggregation of animals.
Herds refers to a large group of animals, especially cattle or sheep, kept or moving together. It can also describe a crowd, or a group of people moving as a unit. The term emphasizes collective movement and social grouping rather than individual animals. In plural form, it denotes multiple such groups or one larger aggregation of animals.
- You sound like you’re saying /hɜːz/ (ending with /z/ only) or /hɜdz/ with an overly heavy /d/. Fix by inserting a short /d/ release before /z/, so it’s /hɝdz/ or /hɜːdz/ depending on accent. - You may compress the vowel too much, producing a schwa-like sound; keep the lax, mid-back vowel /ɝ/ or /ɜː/ depending on accent. - You might overemphasize the final /z/ or delay the transition to /z/; practice with a quick, tight /d/ release into /z/ for a natural affricate. - When in rapid speech, the r-controlled vowel in US can blur; practice a distinct but relaxed /ɜː/ or /ɝ/ before /dz/ to retain clarity. - In Australian English, vowel height can shift slightly; maintain a pure /ɜː/ before the /dz/ to preserve accuracy.
"The shepherd guided the herds to greener pastures at dawn."
"During the festival, the herds were herded past the cheering spectators."
"Researchers studied how the herds reacted to a sudden noise."
Pronounce as /hɝdz/ in US English, /hɜːdz/ in UK, and /hɜːdz/ in Australian English. Start with a lax, mid-back vowel, then release into a voiced liquid-like /ɹ/ quality before the final /dz/ cluster. The key is linking the /r/ (or approximant) to the/dz/ with a quick, smooth transition. Stress falls on the whole word (one syllable). If you’re listening to audio, you’ll hear the voiced end with a slight z-sibilant shimmer.
Common errors: (1) Using a voiceless end, saying /hɜːz/ or /hɜːdz/ with no clear /d/ before /z/. (2) Slurring the /r/ into a simple vowel, making it /hɜdz/ or /hɜːdz/ with underpronounced /r/. (3) Misplacing tongue for /dz/, producing a hard /t/ or /d/ + /s/ rather than the affricate /dz/. Correction: ensure a brief, crisp /d/ release into /z/; keep the vowel lax and the tongue slightly retracted for US /ɝ/ or UK /ɜː/; practice with minimal pair: herd vs herdless not meaningful; phrasing practice like “the herds moved.”
US tends to Merriam-Webster /hɝdz/ with rhotacized /ɝ/ and a crisp /dz/ ending; UK uses /hɜːdz/ with non-rhotic r (r-sound often weaker) and a longer vowel in /ɜː/; AU follows /hɜːdz/ similar to UK but with Australian vowel quality that’s often slightly higher and more centralized; in all, the ending is a voiced alveolar affricate /dz/ but the preceding vowel length and rhoticity vary.
The difficulty lies in the voiced alveolar affricate /dz/ after an unstressed or reduced vowel in rapid speech, plus maintaining accurate tongue position for /ɹ/ or rhoticized vowel in US; many speakers mispronounce as a simple /z/ or /d/ or shift to /hɜːdz/ about the wrong vowel length. Practicing the exact /d/ release into /z/ and sustaining a clear vowel before consonants helps. Focus on mouth positions and timing.
Is the final consonant cluster in herds more like a /dz/ or a /dɪz/? The answer: it’s an affricate /dz/ at the end of a one-syllable word; you should release a brief /d/ into /z/ with no extra voicing; ensure voicing is continuous, not a burst, by keeping tongue contact for the /d/ and letting air release into the /z/.
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- US: rhotic /ɹ/ influences the preceding vowel; aim for /hɝdz/ with a slightly pronounced /ɹ/ before /d/. The vowel is stressed and rhotacized. - UK: non-rhotic accent; /hɜːdz/ features a longer /ɜː/ vowel; no strong /r/; maintain a centralized lip roundness. - AU: /hɜːdz/ with vowel height closer to /ɜː/ but lower jaw; can sound flatter; keep the same /dz/ affricate ending. Use IPA cues to refine mouth shape across accents.
Herds comes from Old English heord, which referred to a flock or troop of animals, especially cattle. The root is related to German Hirte (herdsman) and Dutch hoerd, signifying a collective of animals tended by a herdsman. The word evolved to denote a large group moving together under supervision, rather than a single animal. The plural form emerges from the pattern of English plurals by adding -s, reflecting a countable collection. In early Middle English, the concept of “heards” or “heorde” also carried connotations of a crowd or multitude, which gradually narrowed to agricultural groups. By the 14th–15th centuries, “herd” was firmly established in agrarian vocabulary, while “herds” could refer to multiple groups or a single group large enough to be considered a collective. Today, “herds” is a stable, widely understood plural noun, used in farming, ecology, and metaphorical contexts to describe groups of animals or people moving in unity.
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Words that rhyme with "herds"
-rds sounds
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