How to pronounce trying. Trying is the present participle of try, meaning to make an attempt or effort toward a goal. It also functions adjectivally to describe something fraught with effort or difficulty. In everyday speech, it often signals perseverance or challenge, and its pronunciation can reveal subtle vowel and consonant timings that affect clarity in connected speech.
Trying is the present participle of try, meaning to make an attempt or effort toward a goal. It also functions adjectivally to describe something fraught with effort or difficulty. In everyday speech, it often signals perseverance or challenge, and its pronunciation can reveal subtle vowel and consonant timings that affect clarity in connected speech.
- You may overemphasize the second syllable, turning it into a full vowel sound like /ɪ/ in ‘trying’ when it should be a quick /ɪŋ/. - The /aɪ/ diphthong can be shortened or clipped in fast speech, which can blur the boundary before /ŋ/. - People sometimes insert an extra vowel between /aɪ/ and /ŋ/ (e.g., /ˈtrai.ɪ.ŋ/).
"She’s trying to finish her project before the deadline."
"It’s a trying week for the team, full of tough decisions."
"He’s trying hard not to miss a single practice."
TRY-ing is pronounced with two syllables: /ˈtraɪ.ɪŋ/. The primary stress sits on the first syllable: TRY. Then you move quickly to a light, unstressed 'ing' pronounced as /ɪŋ/. Keep the diphthong /aɪ/ clear, as in light, then avoid overshadowing the /ɪŋ/ with a vowel added at the end. Practicing with a short pause between syllables helps clarity when speaking quickly.
Common errors include turning the second syllable into a full vowel (trying become try-ing with a clear /ɪ/ onset) or reducing the /ɪŋ/ to a muffled vowel. Another mistake is misplacing the primary stress, saying /ˈtraiɪŋ/ (as if 'train-ing') or de-emphasizing the /ɪŋ/ sound. Correct it by keeping the stress on TRY and shortening the second syllable to a quick /ɪŋ/, ensuring the /aɪ/ remains distinct before the nasal ending.
In US English, /ˈtraɪ.ɪŋ/ with strong /aɪ/ and a slightly clearer /ɪŋ/. UK English maintains the same two-syllable structure but may reduce the second syllable slightly and make the /ɪ/ less tense. Australian tends to be more centralized in vowel quality, with a fast, clipped second syllable and the /ɪŋ/ merging a touch toward /ɪn/. Across accents, the main variation is vowel length and the degree of rhoticity influencing surrounding vowels in connected speech.
The difficulty lies in coordinating the diphthong /aɪ/ across a rapid two-syllable sequence and producing the final nasal /ŋ/ without leaking into the preceding vowel. People often over-voice the /ɪ/ or insert an extra vowel between /aɪ/ and /ŋ/. Another challenge is maintaining the primary stress on the first syllable in fluent speech, especially when the word occurs in long sentences with multiple targets.
A key nuance is that the second syllable is weakly stressed and relies on a quick, clipped vowel. Don’t lengthen it; instead, keep it as a short /ɪ/ followed by /ŋ/. This can help avoid a mispronunciation like /ˈtraɪ.ɪŋ/ becoming /ˈtraɪ.ɪŋ/ with a prolonged second vowel. Focus on stopping the /ɪ/ early and letting the /ŋ/ close the word cleanly.
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- US: Keep rhotic-free influence mild; ensure /ˈtraɪ.ɪŋ/ with clear /aɪ/ and distinct /ŋ/. - UK: Slightly crisper /ɑ/ shift not present; maintain two-syllable rhythm with strong /aɪ/. - AU: Brighten the /aɪ/ and keep the second syllable compact; avoid elongation before /ŋ/. IPA references: US /ˈtraɪ.ɪŋ/, UK /ˈtraɪ.ɪŋ/, AU /ˈtraɪ.ɪŋ/.
The word trying comes from the verb try, which traces back to Old French tirer, meaning to pull or draw, connected to Latin trahere ‘to drag, pull’. In Middle English, tryyng or treyging, from Old French trier, suggested attempting or testing. The core sense evolved from “to attempt, to test the feasibility of” to expressing ongoing effort or hardship in adjectives like ‘a trying day’. The shift toward attributive use (a trying experience) solidified in Early Modern English as idiomatic speech became more complex and individualized, reflecting subjective human effort and endurance. First known uses appear in legal and literary contexts where ‘trying’ described ordeals and examinations, gradually expanding to everyday persistence and difficulty with the 16th–18th centuries. Today, the term retains both a verb form (to attempt) and an adjective sense (demanding or burdensome), often in phrases like a ‘trying time’ or ‘trying circumstances.’
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "trying" and can often be used interchangeably.
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Words that rhyme with "trying"
-ing sounds
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