2 syllables: Rear, ing. Stress on Rear.
RIR-ing
/ˈɹɪɹɪŋ/
Rearing is pronounced RIR-ing (/ˈɹɪɹɪŋ/). It has two syllables (Rear-ing), with the stress on "Rear". Rearing (noun) refers to the act of bringing up and educating someone, or the process of maintaining a posture or set of movements in animals, especially young horses or cattle. It can also describe an emotional or experiential rise, such as a rearing of eyebrows or a sudden emotional response. The term emphasizes development, growth, and care across contexts.
nounRearing (noun) refers to the act of bringing up and educating someone, or the process of maintaining a posture or set of movements in animals, especially young horses or cattle. It can also describe an emotional or experiential rise, such as a rearing of eyebrows or a sudden emotional response. The term emphasizes development, growth, and care across contexts.
- You may generalize the first syllable: avoid turning /iː/ into a short /ɪ/. Keep it long and tense for clarity. - Do not fuse the second syllable with the first; keep /rɪŋ/ distinct, with a light, crisp /ɪ/ and a clear final velar nasal /ŋ/. - For non-rhotic speakers, ensure you still articulate the /r/ in the first syllable before the vowel, even if the final rhotic sound isn’t pronounced in some contexts. - Don’t underplay the /r/ sound; in American English it should be pronounced, and avoid stopping the flow between syllables. - Rate matters: speaking too quickly makes the /ˈriːr/ portion flatten; slow the onset slightly for precision, then speed up with practice to retain the two-syllable structure.
How to Pronounce Rearing
"The rearing of children requires consistency, patience, and clear boundaries."
"In equestrian training, proper rearing techniques help ensure the horse learns to respond to cues without fear."
"The politician spoke of the city’s rearing population as a sign of the community’s resilience."
REAR-ing is pronounced with two syllables: /ˈriː.rɪŋ/ in UK/AU and /ˈriːr.ɪŋ/ in most US varieties. The first syllable has a long 'ee' vowel, the second is a reduced, unstressed 'ing' with a short, lax vowel. Ensure the rhotic 'r' is tapped aggressively in rhotic accents and kept smooth in non-rhotic variants. Your mouth starts with a high front position for /iː/ and quickly transitions to a relaxed /ɪ/ for the second syllable.
Common errors include turning the first syllable into a short /ɪ/ or misplacing the stress on the second syllable. Some speakers also de-voice the final /ŋ/ or let the /ɪ/ in the second syllable be too lax. Correct it by holding the /iː/ a touch longer than a typical short vowel, and ensure the /r/ is either strongly pronounced (US) or quietly present without an intrusive vowel between syllables. Practice with exposure to /ˈriːrɪŋ/ in natural phrases.
In US English, you’ll hear /ˈriːrɪŋ/, with a pronounced rhotic /r/. UK and AU typically use /ˈriːrɪŋ/ or /ˈriːrɪŋ/, often with non-rhotic finishing in some regional speech where linking to the following consonant is subtle. The main difference is rhoticity and vowel length; US speakers often maintain /r/ more visibly, while some UK variants reduce the post-vocalic /r/ more in casual speech. Overall, the nucleus is a long /iː/ followed by a reduced /ɪŋ/.
The challenge lies in the sequence of a long tense vowel /iː/ followed by a short lax /ɪ/ in rapid speech, which can blur into a single vowel or create an unintended schwa. The /r/ cluster at the syllable boundary can also be tricky for non-rhotic speakers who avoid post-vocalic /r/. Maintaining clear two-syllable rhythm and not merging the /r/ with the following vowel is essential for natural pronunciation.
The term combines a strong initial long vowel with a short, quick second syllable and a trailing /ŋ/. Its combination of a lengthened nucleus /iː/ and a clipped final /ɪŋ/ is specific to morphophonemic contrasts in English and can be sensitive to speaker’s accent and speech rate. Paying attention to syllable separation and not reducing the first syllable helps preserve clarity.
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- US: Emphasize the rhotic /ɹ/ at the start; keep /iː/ as a long vowel with lip spread, and release quickly into /ɹɪŋ/. - UK: The /r/ can be weaker or absent in some speakers; still ensure the nucleus /iː/ remains long and clear before the reduced /ɪŋ/. - AU: Similar to UK, but may feature more rounded lips on /iː/ and a slightly broader fronted /ɪ/ in the second syllable. Use IPA cues to keep vowels distinct, especially around the syllable boundary.
Rearing comes from the verb rear, meaning to lift up, raise, or bring up. The verb rear originates from Old English receran, receren, related to medieval Germanic and Frisian forms that meant to lift or lift up physically. By the 14th century, the noun sense of rearing—upbringing and education—emerged in English literature and legal language, often paired with child-rearing or animal husbandry. The figurative use broadened to denote the rise of emotion or action, such as ‘the rearing of a dispute’ or ‘a rearing of eyebrows,’ capturing a sense of emergence and ascent. Over time, the term became standard in education, parenting, and animal training discourse, retaining its core connotation of growth, development, and advancement while expanding into behavioral and physiological contexts. The word sits at the intersection of care and ascent, etymologically anchored in the root meaning of lifting or elevating both physically and metaphorically.
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "Rearing" and can often be used interchangeably.
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Words that rhyme with "Rearing"
-ing sounds
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