Knew

Pronounce as /njuː/ in most varieties. The initial consonant is a voiced alveolar nasal /n/, followed by a long close front rounded vowel /uː/. The lips form a rounded position, with the tongue high and forward. The blend creates a light palatal offglide before the vowel, so the word sounds like “nyoo.” Stress is on the single syllable. For reference, listen to native speakers on reputable dictionaries or pronunciation platforms; you can compare with words like “new” in careful speech to feel the subtle rounding. IPA: US /nuː/, UK /njuː/, AU /njuː/.

Common errors include reducing it to a simple /nu/ without the initial /n/ light nasal onset, or pronouncing it as a separate cluster like /kn/ that is too aspirated. Some learners insert an extra vowel, saying /njuːw/ or /njuːw/, or mis-timing the long /uː/ vowel. The fix: start with a clean nasal /n/, keep the tongue high and forward for /uː/, and avoid adding a final /w/ sound. Practice saying ‘new’ with a careful mouth position, then transition to /njuː/ without adding extra syllables.

In US English, /nuː/ tends to be a straightforward long /uː/ after a light nasal onset. UK and AU accents maintain /njuː/ with a slightly more pronounced j-glide after the /n/, producing a subtle /nj/ sequence before the /uː/. Rhoticity doesn’t change this word much because the nucleus vowel dominates. Overall, you’ll hear: US: /nuː/, UK/AU: /njuː/. Emphasis stays on the vowel, not a strong r-colored quality since the word itself isn’t rhotic.

Two main challenges: a) keeping a clean nasal onset without inserting extra vowels or consonants, and b) producing a long /uː/ vowel that can easily shorten to /u/ in casual speech. The mouth position should be high and rounded with minimal lip tension; the tongue stays high and forward. People also tend to mishear /kn/ as a hard /kn/ cluster; in careful speech it’s simply an initial /n/ with a palatal glide. Focusing on the /njuː/ sequence helps you avoid over-articulation.

Yes—the historical spelling preserves a phonetic cue from earlier English where the /kn/ cluster carried a stronger onset, even though modern pronunciation compresses it to an /n/ onset with a light /j/ in careful speech. The result is a palatal glide before a long /uː/ vowel. In practice, you should hear a quick, almost invisible /j/ color before the vowel in careful enunciation, especially when contrasting with the homograph ‘new’ in rapid speech.