TAY-buhl-spoon
/ˈteɪbəlˌspun/
tablespoon is pronounced TAY-buhl-spoon (/ˈteɪbəlˌspun/). Tablespoon is a unit of measurement equal to 1/16 of a cup or three teaspoons. In everyday cooking, it refers to the spoon used to measure this amount; it can also describe the quantity in a recipe. The term combines the words table and spoon, indicating a standard utensil-derived measure used in kitchens, with the plural form typically either tablespoon or tablespoons depending on quantity.
Tablespoon is a unit of measurement equal to 1/16 of a cup or three teaspoons. In everyday cooking, it refers to the spoon used to measure this amount; it can also describe the quantity in a recipe. The term combines the words table and spoon, indicating a standard utensil-derived measure used in kitchens, with the plural form typically either tablespoon or tablespoons depending on quantity.
- Difficulty with the /ˈteɪ/ diphthong and the following /bəl/ leading into /spuːn/. People often compress the middle syllable, turning it into /ˈteɪ.bɪ.spun/ or /ˈteɪ.bəl.spɔn/. - Incorrect handling of the /sp/ cluster; some insert an extra vowel or mispronounce as /ˈteɪ.bəs.puːn/. - Final /uːn/ can be shortened to /uː/ or /u/ in rapid speech, losing the /n/. - Stress misplacement: placing secondary stress on spoon rather than keeping TABLE- as primary. Correction tips: slow the sequence to maintain /ˈteɪ.bəl/ then /spuːn/, practice with minimal pairs to separate syllables, and rehearse with deliberate long /uː/ and final /n/.
"You’ll need two tablespoons of cream for the sauce."
"Stir in one tablespoon of vinegar, then taste."
"She added a tablespoon to the batter for extra moisture."
Pronounce as /ˈteɪ.bəlˌspuːn/ for US and UK varieties; the primary stress is on the first syllable TABLE-, with a secondary stress on the second part -spoon in careful speech. Start with the long A sound /eɪ/ in TABLE, then “bəl” as schwa + l, and end with /spuːn/. In connected speech you may hear the middle syllable reduce slightly: /ˈteɪ.bəlˌspun/ depending on speed. Audio examples from Pronounce or Forvo can reinforce the exact phonemes.
Common errors include misplacing stress and mispronouncing the second part as /spɔn/ or /spən/. Some speakers reduce the vowel in the second syllable too aggressively, producing /ˈteɪ.bəl.spun/ or “tey-ble-spown.” Correction: keep the second part clear with /spuːn/—open mouth for /p/ followed by a long /uː/ before the /n/. Practice the two-syllable break: TABLE- and SPOON, rehearse with slight pause between parts.
In US/UK accents, the final /spuːn/ typically ends with a clear long /uː/ and /n/. Australians often preserve the same /spuːn/ but with slightly more relaxed vowels in the preceding /ˈteɪ.bəl/ and a softer /r/ in other words; however tablespoon remains non-rhotic in most Australian speech, so final /n/ is pronounced. The first syllable /ˈteɪ/ remains identical across the three regions. Overall, differences are subtle: stress and vowel length are largely consistent, with minor vowel-tuning.
The difficulty lies in the chain of sounds: the /ˈteɪ/ diphthong followed by a light /bəl/ that can elide in fast speech, then the consonant cluster /sp/ before /uːn/. Speakers often misplace the pause or merge the two syllables, producing /ˈteɪ.bəs.puːn/ or /ˈteɪ.bəl.spɔn/. Focusing on the precise /sp/ onset and the long /uː/ vowel after it, while keeping the /l/ and final /n/ distinct, helps keep listeners accurate.
The key nuance is the combination of TABLE (two-syllable with a clear /eɪ/ and /bəl/) and SPOON, with the boundary between the two chunks sometimes softened in fluent speech. The /l/ in table often links into the /sp/ onset of spoon, especially in rapid speech, sometimes sounding like /ˈteɪbəl.spən/ if the /uː/ is reduced. Maintain distinct /l/ and /sp/ when practicing, and anchor the long /uː/ to prevent merging with the following nasal.
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- US: keep rhoticity in related words, but tablespoon remains non-rhotic in contexts; maintain full /ˈteɪbəl/ with a clear /spuːn/. - UK: emphasize /ˈteɪ.bəl.spʊn/ with a slightly rounded /ʊ/ in spoon depending on speaker; maintain non-rhotic /r/ absence. - AU: similar to US/UK, with a relaxed /ə/ in the middle; ensure the /uː/ is a full back vowel; avoid /spɔn/ in rapid speech.
The word tablespoon derives from the combination of table, referring to the dining table, and spoon, the utensil used for scooping. Its earliest sense evolved in English to denote a standard serving spoon used in households for measurements relating to cooking and dining. The phrase occurs in Middle English as tablespon, aligning with evolving spelling conventions that standardized the term as tablespoon in the modern era. The first recorded uses appear in 17th- to 18th-century cookbooks and household manuals, where standardized measures were increasingly required for recipes and medical preparations. Over time, tablespoon settled as the common measure for cooking in many English-speaking countries, with the plural form tablespoons used when referring to multiple units. The abbreviation tbsp or Tbsp entered use in the 19th and 20th centuries as convenience for scientific and culinary texts, while the long form tablespoon remains preferred in formal writing. The concept resembles other tableware-based measures globally, though exact volumes can vary by country (e.g., US tablespoon is 15 ml, UK tablespoon is 15 ml but sometimes treated as 17.7 ml historically in different contexts), reinforcing the word’s evolution from a utensil reference to a standard metric measure.
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "tablespoon" and can often be used interchangeably.
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Words that rhyme with "tablespoon"
-oon sounds
-une sounds
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