One syllable: no.
noh
/noʊ/
no is pronounced noh (/noʊ/). It has one syllable (no), with the stress on "no". No is a short, monosyllabic adverb used to negate or refuse, often functioning as a standalone response or a modifier in phrases. It conveys denial, prohibition, or refusal with a concise, clipped delivery. In speech, it tends to be unstressed in sentences, but can receive emphasis for contrast or emphasis.
adverbNo is a short, monosyllabic adverb used to negate or refuse, often functioning as a standalone response or a modifier in phrases. It conveys denial, prohibition, or refusal with a concise, clipped delivery. In speech, it tends to be unstressed in sentences, but can receive emphasis for contrast or emphasis.
- Common error: under- or over-articulating the diphthong; fix by practicing the glide from /o/ to /ʊ/ with a relaxed jaw. - Common error: closed, tense mouth causing a clipped, 'no' rather than a natural diphthong; fix by soft lip rounding and gentle jaw relaxation. - Common error: inserting an extra syllable or prolonging the vowel in fast speech; fix by rehearsing brief, crisp production and relying on quick consonant onset.
"No, I don’t want any cake."
"We’re not allowed to enter after midnight, no matter what they say."
"No, that’s not correct; try this approach instead."
Phonetically, you say /noʊ/ (US) or /nəʊ/ (UK/AU). Start with an open-mid back vowel that quickly rises to a closing diphthong, ending with a soft /ʊ/ or glide. Keep the tongue high and the jaw relaxed; the lips start neutral and round slightly toward the off-glide. In careful speech, emphasize the vowel, as in contrastive 'No, not this'.
Two frequent errors: (1) Underpronouncing the diphthong by reducing it to a plain /o/; (2) Pronouncing with a stiff mouth and an exaggerated 'o' reflex, making it sound like 'noh' or 'nah'. To correct: smoothly glide from /o/ to /ʊ/ toward the end of the syllable, keep the jaw relaxed, and allow a gentle lips rounding into the glide. Visualize a tiny y-like glide into the sound.
In US English, you hear a clear /noʊ/ with a prominent closing diphthong and rhotic influence on surrounding vowels. In UK English, /nəʊ/ often features a less rhotic approach and a slightly shorter nucleus with a crisp off-glide. Australian English tends toward a centralized start with a rounded, shorter /əʊ/ sound, sometimes approaching /ɐʊ/ in casual speech. Accent differences are subtle but affect vowel quality and vowel length.
The challenge lies in the diphthongal nucleus, which requires a precise jaw and lip movement transitioning from a rounded vowel to a higher vowel quickly. In rapid speech, the glide can be reduced or altered, changing from /noʊ/ to a more monophthongal /noː/ or /nəʊ/. Mastery involves controlled tongue height change and comfortable lip rounding without adding extra syllables.
Because 'No' is a monosyllable with a short vowel, stress typically falls on the syllable as part of a larger phrase, but when used as a standalone response, it carries perceptual emphasis through duration and pitch. You’ll often hear a slight deceleration and a modal rise or fall in pitch in contrastive usage: 'No, I won’t.' Track this with a small but clear vowel nucleus and a sharp, short consonant onset.
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- US: emphasize the diphthong /oʊ/ with a full jaw bend and mild rhotic influence in surrounding vowels. - UK: /əʊ/ has a slightly more centralized nucleus; keep a lighter mouth and crisper off-glide. - AU: /əʊ/ with a more centralized onset and subtle vowel height variation; maintain rounded lips into the glide. - IPA references: US /noʊ/, UK/AU /nəʊ/.
The word no traces to Old English na, from Proto-Germanic *na- meaning not or no. It evolved under the influence of the negating prefix, aligning with other English negators. Across Germanic languages, cognates reflect a negative response or denial. By Middle English, no emerged as the standard negative adverb used to negate verbs, adjectives, and clauses, replacing more archaic forms in everyday speech. The word’s usage broadened from negating actions to express disagreement, prohibition, or refusals, often contrasted with yes. Its pronunciation remained compact and clipped, contributing to its frequent use in rapid speech and informal dialogue. First known written attestations appear in medieval texts, with the form and function stabilizing into contemporary English as a basic, essential negator.
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "no" and can often be used interchangeably.
🔄 These words have opposite meanings to "no" and show contrast in usage.
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Words that rhyme with "no"
-low sounds
Practice with these rhyming pairs to improve your pronunciation consistency:
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