2 syllables: Hi, ring. Stress on Hi.
HEYE-ring
/ˈhaɪɹɪŋ/
Hiring is pronounced HEYE-ring (/ˈhaɪɹɪŋ/). It has two syllables (Hi-ring), with the stress on "Hi". Hiring is the act of employing someone or the process of seeking and selecting candidates for a job. It also refers to a period when a company is actively recruiting. In everyday use, it often collocates with roles, positions, and recruitment timelines, and can imply ongoing or upcoming vacancies.
nounHiring is the act of employing someone or the process of seeking and selecting candidates for a job. It also refers to a period when a company is actively recruiting. In everyday use, it often collocates with roles, positions, and recruitment timelines, and can imply ongoing or upcoming vacancies.
- Common phonetic challenges: 1) mispronouncing the initial diphthong /aɪ/ as a short /ɪ/; correct by exaggerating the lips and jaw opening for /aɪ/ and transitioning quickly to /ɹ/. 2) Underpronouncing /ɹ/ in US accents; practice a light but audible rhotic approximant by curling the tip of the tongue slightly toward the palate without touching teeth. 3) Slurring the final /ɪŋ/ into /ɪn/; ensure you raise the nasal resonance and keep the mouth closed enough to maintain nasal quality. - Corrections: practice with razor-sharp onset for /ˈhaɪ/; put your index finger between lips to observe mouth shape; practice with mirror and recording to ensure a crisp consonant onset and clear vowel transition.
"The company announced hiring for several software engineers."
"During the hiring season, they conducted multiple rounds of interviews."
"Her experience in hiring and talent acquisition made her a strong candidate."
Pronounce it as HAIR-ing, with primary stress on the first syllable. IPA for US: /ˈhaɪrɪŋ/, UK: /ˈhaɪrɪŋ/, AU: /ˈhaɪrɪŋ/. Start with /h/ breathy air, then /aɪ/ as in “high,” followed by /r/ with a light curled tongue before the unstressed /ɪŋ/. In rapid speech, the /r/ can be slightly reduced before the /ɪŋ/ but should remain recognizable as /ˈhaɪrɪŋ/.
Common errors include misplacing stress on the second syllable (hi-RING) or losing the /r/ sound in non-rhotic varieties. Another mistake is pronouncing /h/ too softly, making it disappear. To correct: emphasize the /ˈhaɪ/ onset, ensure the /r/ is audible (even in non-rhotic accents, a linking or drawn /ɹ/ can help), and end with a crisp /-ɪŋ/. Practicing with minimal pairs like 'hired' vs 'hiring' can help isolate the final nasal.
In US English, /ˈhaɪrɪŋ/ features a pronounced rhotic /r/. UK English tends to be non-rhotic in some regions, which may reduce the /r/ bossing but still maintain the /ɪŋ/ ending; listeners expect a clear /ɪ/ before the nasal. Australian English often rhymes similarly to US but with slightly different vowel height and a broader /ɪ/ or /ɪə/ quality depending on speaker. Across accents, the main shift is rhoticity and vowel quality in the first syllable.
The challenge lies in blending the diphthong /aɪ/ with the /r/ sound in connect speech, especially when speakers reduce the /r/ in non-rhotic varieties. The rapid transition from /aɪ/ to /r/ to /ɪ/ can cause mis-timing, resulting in a blurred onset or intrusion of schwa. Focusing on a tight, rounded /ɹ/ (or a light American /ɹ/) and crisp /ˈhaɪ/ onset helps maintain clarity, particularly in fast speech.
There are no silent letters in 'hiring.' The stress is on the first syllable: /ˈhaɪrɪŋ/. A common confusion involves the /ɪ/ in the second syllable sounding like a schwa in quick speech. Aim for a clear /ɪ/ before the final nasal, so you hear the word as two distinct syllables HAIR-ING rather than a rapid, indistinct nasal.
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- US: rhotic /ɹ/ revealed; keep tongue tip high behind the upper teeth, allow a small retroflex /ɹ/; /ˈhaɪrɪŋ/ with full vowel length for /aɪ/. - UK: often non-rhotic; you may reduce /r/ after vowels unless linking; still deliver /ˈhaɪɪŋ/ with a slightly shorter /ɪ/ but crisp onset. - AU: rhotic but flatter /ɹ/; the /aɪ/ diphthong can be centralized; keep /ɪ/ clear; pause between syllables if needed to avoid blending. - IPA references: US /ˈhaɪrɪŋ/, UK /ˈhaɪrɪŋ/ (or /ˈhaɪərɪŋ/ in some speakers linking /r/), AU /ˈhaɪrɪŋ/.
Hiring derives from the verb hire, from Old English herean, meaning to give, grant, or allow. The noun form appeared later in Middle English as a nominalization of the act of hiring. The root here, related to granting or allowing, cognates with Dutch huren and German mieten, which convey renting or leasing. Over centuries, the semantic field broadened from “granting of permission” to “the act of employing someone” as labor markets professionalized. In Early Modern English, hiring referred to the arrangement or agreement to employ, often tied to agreed terms of service and compensation. As employment law and HR practices evolved in the 19th and 20th centuries, “hiring” became a standardized phrase in recruitment context, distinguishing the acquisition of labor from firing or termination. Today, “hiring” commonly appears in business, HR, and recruitment discourse, signaling active recruitment, vacancies, or the process of selecting new staff.
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Words that rhyme with "Hiring"
-ing sounds
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