Phonetic spelling tool

Look up American English pronunciation in ARPAbet sound codes, including stress and dictionary alternatives. Unknown words are clearly marked.

On your device · No account

Privacy details

Phonetic spelling tool processes your input in this browser. Inputs and results are excluded from analytics. Recent tools save tool names, visit counts and last-visit times. Saved tools store only their names. Draft saving is optional and stays on this device; delete saved text with the draft controls. Loading text from a URL is optional and contacts that server; its URL and your IP address are visible to the server. An optional “Use in” action keeps a handoff in this tab. The next tool removes it on arrival and ignores it if more than a minute has passed.

Copy link includes the inputs you choose to share in the address. Anyone with that link can reopen them. Files and generated results are excluded. Password and key tools share settings only.

Your English text

American English pronunciation

How to read the sound codes

ARPAbet uses letters for sounds, not alphabet names. HH AH0 L OW1 spells the sounds in “hello.” On vowels, 1 marks primary stress, 2 secondary stress and 0 no stress. A slash separates dictionary alternatives; it does not mean a syllable break.

AH is the vowel in “hut”; OW in “oat”; IY in “eat”; IH in “it”; AE in “at”; EY in “ate”; AY in “ice”; AW in “out”; OY in “toy”; ER in “her”; UW in “two”; UH in “book”; EH in “bed”; AA in “odd”; AO in “ought.” CH is “chew,” SH “she,” TH “thin,” DH “then,” JH “joy,” ZH the middle sound of “measure,” and NG the end of “sing.”

Reset reloads the tool with its starting values and releases open files and device controls. Saved drafts stay on this device until you delete them.

Links include your inputs and settings. Anyone with the link can see them, so leave out private text. Files and generated results are left out; random draws run again.

Keyboard shortcuts

Updated 2026-09-19

How the phonetic spelling tool works

Enter a word or short phrase to see how the American English pronunciation dictionary represents its sounds. The output uses ARPAbet, with a sound-code guide below the result.

Stress numbers belong to vowel sounds. Every recorded pronunciation is shown; spelling alone cannot choose the meaning of a word such as “read.” Copy or download the result, or pass the same words to the syllable counter.

Next: Syllable counter

Next: Readability score checker

A worked example

“Hello” produces HH AH0 L OW1 and HH EH0 L OW1: the final vowel is stressed in both listed pronunciations.

Before you use the result

This is American English dictionary lookup, not audio, IPA, natural-language translation or the NATO alphabet. It does not invent pronunciation for names or missing words. Alternatives are not ranked by the meaning of your sentence.

Next: Word counter

Cite this page

Citation style

ToolOctopus. “Phonetic spelling tool.” Updated 2026-09-19. https://tooloctopus.com/phonetic-spelling-tool.

Add an access date if your instructions require one.

Citation formatting uses citeproc-js by Frank Bennett and Citation Style Language styles. Licence and source code.