tips
/tɪps/
tips is pronounced tips (/tɪps/). Tips is a short, plural noun meaning pieces of advice or hints. It can also function as a verb form in phrases like “tips the waiter.” In everyday use, tips refer to concise guidance or hints to help someone achieve a goal, or gratuities given to service staff. The core sense emphasizes helpful, actionable information delivered succinctly.
Tips is a short, plural noun meaning pieces of advice or hints. It can also function as a verb form in phrases like “tips the waiter.” In everyday use, tips refer to concise guidance or hints to help someone achieve a goal, or gratuities given to service staff. The core sense emphasizes helpful, actionable information delivered succinctly.
- You often mispronounce by turning the final /s/ into a voiced /z/ in rapid speech; keep it voiceless to preserve crisp final hiss. - A common error is elongating the /ɪ/ making TIPs sound like TEIPs; keep the vowel short and tense. - Another pitfall is a slurred transition between /t/ and /ɪ/ or /p/; practice the quick stop-release-aspiration of /t/ then /ɪ/, then /p/ and /s/ in one breath. - Correction tips: drill sequences t-ɪ-p-s slowly, then add speed while keeping the final /s/ clear. Use minimal pairs: tips vs tip, taps vs tips, tisp vs tips (nonword) to fix sequences.
"- Here are some tips to improve your pronunciation."
"- He gave me tips on how to save money while traveling."
"- The kitchen has tips for cleaning up after cooking."
Pronounce it as TIPs, with a short, crisp /ɪ/ vowel. Start with a relaxed jaw and a quick, voiceless /t/ followed by /ɪ/ and an unvoiced /p/ released into an /s/. The final /s/ is voiceless and slightly hissy. IPA: US/UK/AU: /tɪps/. Audio reference: you’ll hear similar to ‘tips’ in everyday speech, with no silent letters. Mouth position: tip of the tongue just behind the upper front teeth, tip of the tongue taps the alveolar ridge for /t/ and /d/ in some variants, lips neutral, vocal cords inactive for /t/ and /p/ segments in careful speech.
Common mistakes: (1) Releasing the final /s/ too early, making it sound like ‘tip’ or ‘tipp’—keep the final /s/ as a voiceless fricative. (2) Voicing the /t/ (as in a delayed stop), which softens the transition; aim for a clean alveolar stop release into /ɪ/ then /p/. (3) Over-lengthening the vowel /ɪ/ or inserting a schwa; keep the vowel short. Use practice with minimal pairs: tip vs tips; keep the s silent-like? No—here the s is essential. Correct by focusing on the crisp /t/ release and the final /s/ friction.
In US/UK/AU, tips is /tɪps/. The vowel /ɪ/ remains short and lax in all three; rhotics do not affect the word itself, as /tɪps/ is non-rhotic in some accents when surrounding phonemes softens, but the core pronunciation stays /t/ + /ɪ/ + /p/ + /s/. Australians may show a slightly more lax vowel and crisper /s/; UK speakers may have a marginally shorter vowel due to faster, clipped speech. Overall, the main variation lies in vowel quality and potential flapping in some dialect regions, but tips remains a short, closed syllable across accents.
The difficulty lies in coordinating a quick alveolar stop /t/ with a brief /ɪ/ vowel and a final voiceless /s/. The transition from the vowel to the alveolar plosive /p/ in rapid speech can blur the sequence; also, the /s/ must be clearly audible without voicing. Additionally, for non-native speakers, the blend of /t/ + /ɪ/ + /p/ can lead to a lengthened vowel or a merged /ps/ sequence. Focus on a clean, clipped /t/ release, then sharp /ɪ/, then immediate /p/ release into /s/.
A unique query for 'tips' could be: “Do you pronounce the final 's' as a full /s/ sound when the word is plural, or can it be a z-sibilant in connected speech?” In careful speech, the final sound is a clear /s/ as in /tɪps/. In rapid connected speech or assimilation with nearby voicing, it can be slightly voiced like /z/ in some fast contexts, but standard careful pronunciation uses /s/; avoid turning it into a voiced z unless the phonetic environment suggests voicing due to neighboring sounds.
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- US: crisp, unreduced /ɪ/; practice with eyelid-lip tension; keep rhotics neutral since /tɪps/ is non-rhotic in isolation. - UK: slightly shorter vowel duration and crisper /s/; enable clipped rhythm; ensure tongue blade touches alveolar ridge for /t/ and /d/ subtle voicing difference. - AU: similar to US but with slightly more centralized vowel quality; avoid over-aspiration on /t/; maintain a fast, light lip seal before /s/.
The word tips originated in Middle English as a shortening of ‘tippings’ from tippen, which meant to tap or strike lightly, and it ultimately comes from the Old English ‘tippian’ with meanings connected to tilting or tapping. In its modern sense, ‘tip’ first denoted a gratuity in the 17th century, evolving to include a small piece of information or advice associated with the notion of giving a small amount to tip someone off. By the 19th century, ‘tips’ commonly meant hints or pointers—succinct pieces of guidance—before broad usage expanded to gratuities. The plural form aligns with the idiomatic use in English where multiple hints or gratuities are discussed, and can also appear as a verb form in phrasal constructions like “tips the scales” or “tips over,” though these meanings vary by context. First known uses appear in English literature and billings during the late 1500s through the 1800s, with the “pieces of advice” sense becoming prominent in instructional and etiquette writings by the 19th century. Modern usage remains versatile: practical advice, small gratuities, or discreet hints that nudge outcomes in specific directions.
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "tips" and can often be used interchangeably.
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Words that rhyme with "tips"
-ips sounds
Practice with these rhyming pairs to improve your pronunciation consistency:
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