Accent Reduction 101: How to Pronounce US Cities and States in American English (Part 1)

SJ (VP of Customer Engagement)

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The US state and city names can be tricky to pronounce. From repetitive alphabets to silent letters, it is not easy for every non-native English speaker to get the articulation right when they pronounce an American state or city’s name.

To help you get the correct articulation of all 50 states plus the most famous cities of the US, here’s the right pronunciation for each when spoken in a neutral American accent.

Alabama

 [al] + [uh] + [bam] + [uh]

Alaska

[uh]+[las]+[kuh]

Arizona

[ar] + [uh] + [zoh] + [nuh]

Arkansas    

[ahr] + [kuhn] + [saw]

Boston

[bost] + [uhn]

California

[kal] + [uh] + [for] + [nyuh]

Chicago

[shi] + [kaa] + [goh]

Colorado     

[kol] + [uh] + [rad] + [oh]  

Connecticut     

[kuh] + [ned] + [i] + [kuht]      

Delaware     

[del] + [uh] + [wair] 

Florida     

[flor] + [i] + [duh]

Georgia     

[jor] + [juh]

Hawaii     

[huh] + [why] + [ee]

Idaho     

[ahy] + [duh] + [hoh]

Illinois     

[il] + [uh] + [noi]

Indiana     

[in] + [dee] + [an] + [uh]

Iowa     

[ahy] + [uh] + [wuh]

Kansas     

[kan] + [zuh]+ [s]

Kentucky     

[kuhn] + [tuhk] + [ee]

Las Vegas

[loss] + [vaygass]

Louisiana     

[loo] + [ee] + [zee] + [an] + [uh]

Maine     

[mayn]

Maryland     

[mer] + [uh] + [luhnd]

Massachusetts     

[mas] + [uh] + [choo] + [sits]

Michigan     

[mish] + [i] + [guhn]

Listen, repeat and pay attention to the primary stress marks. If you want to improve your American accent to sound like a native, try our live, one-to-one accent reduction training today.

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