TEN-uhs
/ˈtɛnəs/
tennis is pronounced TEN-uhs (/ˈtɛnəs/). Tennis is a sport played with a racket on a rectangular court, where players hit a ball over a net. The word refers both to the game itself and to the equipment used. In everyday use, “tennis” often functions as a noun, sometimes as an adjective in phrases like “tennis court,” and it is widely recognized in sport, leisure, and broadcasting contexts.
Tennis is a sport played with a racket on a rectangular court, where players hit a ball over a net. The word refers both to the game itself and to the equipment used. In everyday use, “tennis” often functions as a noun, sometimes as an adjective in phrases like “tennis court,” and it is widely recognized in sport, leisure, and broadcasting contexts.
- You: focus on 2-3 phonetic challenges: (1) Inaccurate first syllable vowel: /tɛn/ vs /tiː.nɪs/. Practice with minimal pairs to stabilize. (2) Vowel reduction in fast speech: /ˈtɛn.ɪs/ can become /ˈtɛn.əs/; keep /ɪ/ distinct. (3) Final /s/ voicing: sometimes becomes /z/ in connected speech; emphasize voiceless /s/ and airflow.
"She trained for hours on the tennis court, perfecting her serve."
"The tennis match drew a large crowd to the stadium."
"He joined a tennis club to improve his backhand."
Pronounce it as /ˈtɛn.ɪs/ in US and UK English, with primary stress on the first syllable. The first vowel is a short open-front /e/ as in “bet,” then a short schwa-like /ɪ/ in the second syllable before the final /s/. Think: TENN-iss, with a crisp voiceless /s/ at the end. In Australian English, the vowels stay similar, but you may hear a slightly clipped second syllable and a marginally broader /æ/ influence in some regional speakers. Listening to native speakers can help tune the quick transition from /t/ to /ɛn/ to /ɪs/. Audio references: Cambridge Audio, Forvo pronunciations for native models.
Common mistakes: (1) Pronouncing as /ˈtiː.nɪs/ by elongating the first vowel; correct is /ˈtɛn.ɪs/. (2) Overlapping syllables and making /n/ too nasal within the second syllable; aim for a light /n/ transitioning into /ɪ/. (3) Dropping the final /s/ or making it a /z/; ensure voiceless /s/ sound at the end. Corrections: keep short, crisp vowel sounds; release the /t/ quickly into /ɛn/, then move to /ɪs/ without exaggeration. Practicing with minimal pairs like TENNIS vs TEN-NESS can help refine the end consonant.
US: /ˈtɛn.ɪs/ with rhotic proximity and a slightly sharper /t/ release. UK: /ˈten.ɪs/ similar but often with a shorter /ɪ/ and a more clipped final /s/. AU: /ˈten.ɪs/ can have a broader vowel in the first syllable and a mildly flatter /ɪ/; some speakers may slightly reduce the first vowel to /ɛ/ or /e/. All share the stress on the first syllable, but vowel quality and intonation patterns reflect regional shifts; listening for continuum between /ɛ/ and /e/ in the first vowel is common in Australian speech.
Two key challenges: (1) Short, clipped vowels require precise timing between /t/ -> /ɛn/ -> /ɪs/; beginners often insert an extra vowel or borrow a longer /i/ sound. (2) Final /s/ must be voiceless and crisp in all contexts, especially when followed by a consonant in rapid speech. The sequence /tɛn.ɪs/ demands careful coordination of tongue position: /t/ with a small alveolar stop release, /ɛn/ with a light front vowel, then /ɪ/ and a clear /s/ energy. Improving through minimal pairs and shadowing helps stabilize the rapid transitions.
No—tennis never has a silent letter in standard pronunciation. Each letter contributes to the spoken form: the T initiates /t/, the E in the first syllable contributes to /ɛ/ or /e/ sound, the second syllable houses /ɪ/ and the final /s/ is a voiceless fricative. The spelling aligns with pronunciation in modern English, and the word is not subject to irregular silent-letter conventions. In careful phonetic practice, you should articulate all segments clearly: /ˈtɛn.ɪs/.
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- US/UK/AU vowel details: US tends to have a sharper /t/ release and a crisp /ɪ/; UK often features a slightly shorter /ɪ/ with a more clipped final /s/; AU may show a broader vowel in the first syllable and more variable /ɪ/; IPA references: US /ˈtɛn.ɪs/, UK /ˈten.ɪs/, AU /ˈten.ɪs/.
Tennis derives from the French phrase tenez, used as a call to play or take the ball in the medieval jeu de paume, a handball court predating modern racket sports. By the 14th to 16th centuries, the term evolved in Old French as tenies or tenetz, with meaning related to grasping or holding. The modern English form tennis appeared in the 16th–18th centuries as a designation for the game with rackets, evolving from popular indoor and court games of the era. The word’s first documented English use appears in 16th- to 17th-century sporting literature, often linked to royal or aristocratic courts where racquet-based games were played. The sport’s formal codification—rules, equipment, and standardized court dimensions—emerged in the late 19th century, solidifying tennis as both the pastime and the competitive sport we know today. The progression from “tenez” calls to “tennis” reflects broader linguistic adaptation of French-derived terms into English sporting jargon, with pronunciations adapting to English phonology over time.
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Words that rhyme with "tennis"
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