How many syllables does california have

United States of Syllables - Geography Realm

Caitlin Dempsey | July 19, 2021November 15, 2016 | Geography Basics

A syllable is a unit of blended sounds considered to be the phonological building blocks of words.  

Listed here are the number of states by syllable.  

One thing to note: There is probably some regional debate about the syllable count of some states ending with “ia”.  California tends to be pronounced with two syllables: “n-ya”.  Virginia and Pennsylvania are typically pronounced with one syllable: “nyuh”.

How Many States Have Only One Syllable?

Maine is the only state in the United States that has only one syllable.

How Many States Have Two Syllables?

There are six states with two syllables in their name:

1. Georgia
2. Kansas
3. New York
4. Texas
5. Utah
6. Vermont

How Many States Have Three Syllables?

The most common syllable count for names of states is three.  There are 25 states with names that have three syllables:

1. Alaska
2. Arkansas
3. Delaware
4. Florida
5. Hawaii
6. Idaho
7. Illinois
8. Iowa
9. Kentucky
10. Maryland
11. Michigan
12. Missouri
13. Montana
14. Nebraska
15. Nevada
16. New Hampshire
17. New Jersey
18. Ohio
19. Oregon
20. Rhode Island
21. Tennessee
22. Virginia
23. Washington
24. Wisconsin
25. Wyoming

How Many States Have Four Syllables?

There are fourteen states with names that have four syllables:

1. Alabama
2. Arizona
3. Colorado
4. Connecticut
5. Indiana
6. Massachusetts
7. Minnesota
8. Mississippi
9. New Mexico
10. North Dakota
11. Oklahoma
12. Pennsylvania
13. South Dakota
14. West Virginia

How Many States Have Five Syllables?

There are four states that have names with five syllables:

1. California
2. Louisiana
3. North Carolina
4. South Carolina

Note that California is the only state ending in “ia” that pronounces it “n-ya” versus the “nyuh” ending of Pennsylvania and Virginia.

Table of States and Syllable Count

Here is a complete list of states by syllable.  

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How to Say All 50 US States with Clear Word Stress 🇺🇸 • English with Kim

Quick quiz: How do you say the names of these popular states?

• Is it CAlifornia, or CaliFORnia?
• Do you say FloRIda, or FLORida?
• Should you pronounce it NEW York, or New YORK?

If you’re not 100% sure how to say these states, don’t worry, you’re not alone.

Many of the non-native speakers I work with have trouble identifying which syllable to stress, or emphasize, when they’re saying the 50 United States.

Remember, these are people who live here in the United States, so they definitely want to get it right!

Let’s Review Word Stress

In American English, one syllable of every word will be stressed or emphasized more than the others.

When a syllable is stressed, the vowel sound will be longer, louder, and higher in pitch.

The vowel sound will be extra clear, with your mouth really exaggerating the sound and the shape.

The rest of the syllables in the word are unstressed, de-emphasized, or even reduced.

They’re less obvious: they’re shorter, quieter in lower in pitch.

When a syllable is reduced, the vowel sound will even change. It’ll turn into the schwa sound, which is the /ə/ sound, or into the /i/ sound.

Word stress is absolutely essential for clear pronunciation in American English.

If you’ve ever said the name of a state and someone didn’t understand you, chances are you emphasized the wrong syllable, or none at all.

That’s why we’re going to practice word stress with all 50 states in this video. Let’s get started!

Practice Word Stress with a Rubber Band

To get the most out of this word stress practice, be sure to grab a rubber band.

If you can’t find a rubber band, you can use your hands.

You can mimic the shape of a rubber band, conduct like a musician, or even clap.

The reason we use the rubber band when practicing stress is that we want to emphasize the contrast between stressed and unstressed syllables.

When we stress a syllable, we rise to that higher pitch and hold that syllable a little longer than usual.

Then we close back down afterwards.

The rubber band reminds you of the contrast and helps you remember both visually and physically.

A Note About Regional/Local Pronunciations of States

Another thing I want to mention is that I’m from the New England area and you may hear some regional influences on the way I say these words.

However, I’m going to do my best to pronounce the 50 states the way the locals do.

That said, people with other regional accents, including locals, may say them slightly differently than the way I would.

Here we go!

How to Say All 50 US States with Clear Word Stress

Let’s start in alphabetical order.

Alabama

The first state is Alabama, or /ˌæləˈbæmə/.

The stress is on the third syllable: AlaBAma, AlaBAma.

Be sure to hold that stressed syllable as you rise to your highest pitch. AlaBAma, AlaBAma.

Alaska

Next, Alaska, or /əˈlæskə/.

This state is stressed on the second syllable: ALAska, ALAska, ALAska.

Arizona

Next up, we have Arizona, which is pronounced /ˌɛrəˈzoʊnə/ or /ˌærəˈzoʊnə/.

The stress is on the third syllable: AriZOna, AriZOna, AriZOna.

Arkansas

Let’s move on to Arkansas, or /ˈɑrkənˌsɔ/.

For this state, we stress the first syllable: ARkansas, ARkansas.

It can be challenging to stress the first syllable if you want to rush through the word.

Be sure to hold that first syllable and make it longer, louder, and higher in pitch: ARkansas, ARkansas.

California

Next, California, which is pronounced /ˌkæləˈfɔrnjə/.

As you can hear, we’re stressing the third syllable: CaliFORnia, CaliFORnia.

Be sure not to add an extra syllable to the end of California.

The “ia” is pronounced /j/, like the first sound of “yes”: CaliFORnia, CaliFORnia.

Colorado

Moving on: Colorado, which is pronounced /ˌkɑləˈrɑdoʊ/, or /kɑləˈrædoʊ/ by some locals. 

Once again, the stress is on the third syllable: ColoRAdo, ColoRAdo, ColoRAdo.

(The correct pronunciation of Colorado is regularly debated by residents of the state. This video helps you understand why.)

Connecticut

Here’s a state that a lot of people find tricky: Connecticut, or /kəˈnɛtəkət/.

As you can hear, Connecticut is stressed on the second syllable: ConNEcticut, ConNEcticut, ConNEcticut.

You can also hear the reductions in this word (look for all the /ə/ sounds!).

Delaware

Next up, Delaware, which is pronounced /ˈdeləˌwɛər/.

This state is stressed on the first syllable: DElaware, DElaware, DElaware.

Remember, you need to hold that stressed syllable, and then close back down afterwards: DElaware, DElaware.

Florida

Let’s move on to Florida, which is pronounced /ˈflɔrədə/ or /ˈflɑrədə/.

As you can hear, Florida is also stressed on the first syllable: FLORida, FLORida, FLORida.

Georgia

Now we have Georgia, or /ˈdʒɔrdʒə/.

As you can hear, this is just two syllables, and it’s stressed on the first syllable: GEORgia, GEORgia, GEORgia.

Hawaiʻi

Let’s move on to Hawaiʻi, or /həˈwɑʻi/.

You may hear people say Hawaii like /həˈwaɪi/ (with the /aɪ/ sound you hear in the word “why.”

You may also hear native Hawaiians say Hawaiʻi with a /v/ sound, /həˈvɑ’i/

You’ll hear a glottal stop before the last syllable of this word, but it is stressed on the second syllable: HaWAIʻi, HaWAIʻi, HaWAIʻi.

As I mentioned, you’ll hear mainland Americans say Hawaii as /həˈwaɪi/ without the glottal stop. The stress will still be on the second syllable: HaWAIi, HaWAIi.

Check out this video for a more detailed explanation of how to say Hawaiʻi like native Hawaiians.

Idaho

Next up is Idaho, or /ˈaɪdəˌhoʊ/.

This state is stressed on the first syllable: Idaho, Idaho, Idaho.

Illinois

Let’s move on to Illinois, or /ˌiləˈnɔi/.

This state is stressed on the last syllable and it’s pronounced a little different than it looks: IlliNOIS, IlliNOIS, IlliNOIS.

Indiana

Moving on, we have Indiana, or /ˌɪndiˈænə/.

As you can hear, this is stressed on the third syllable: IndiAna, IndiAna, IndiAna.

Iowa

Let’s keep going with Iowa, or /ˈaiəwə/.

We stress Iowa on the first syllable: Iowa, Iowa, Iowa.

Kansas

Moving on: Kansas, or /ˈkænzəs/.

As you can hear, this is stressed on the first syllable: KANsas, KANsas, KANsas.

Kentucky

The next state is Kentucky, or /kənˈtʌki/.

This state is stressed on the second syllable: KenTUcky, KenTUcky, KenTUcky.

Louisiana

Now we have Louisiana, which is pronounced /luˌiziˈænə/ or /ˌluəziˈænə/ depending on where you’re from.

Like Indiana, it’s stressed on the second to last syllable: LouisiAna, LouisiAna, LouisiAna.

Maine

Let’s move on to Maine, or /meɪn/.

As you can hear, Maine is one syllable. However, remember that one syllable content words are still stressed.

You need to make the vowel sound in Maine longer, louder, and higher in pitch: MAINE, MAINE, MAINE.

Maryland

Next up is Maryland, or /ˈmɛrələnd/.

As you can hear, the first syllable is stressed: MARyland, MARyland, MARyland.

Massachusetts

Now let’s talk about Massachusetts, which is pronounced /ˌmæssəˈtʃusɪts/.

Massachusetts is home to Boston, one of my favorite cities.

We’re going to stress the third syllable: MassaCHUsetts, MassaCHUsetts, MassaCHUsetts.

Michigan

Moving on, we have Michigan, or /ˈmɪʃɪgən/.

As you can hear, we’re stressing the first syllable: MIchigan, MIchigan, MIchigan.

Minnesota

Next up, Minnesota, pronounced /ˌmɪnəˈsoʊtə/.

This state is stressed on the third syllable: MinneSOta, MinneSOta, MinneSOta.

Mississippi

Now let’s talk about Mississippi, or /ˌmɪsəˈsɪpi/.

This is also stressed on the third syllable: MissisSIppi, MissisSIppi, MissisSIppi.

Missouri

Next, let’s look at Missouri, which is pronounced /mɪˈzuri/, or /mɪˈzurə/ by some locals.

Missouri is stressed on the second syllable: MisSOURi, MisSOURi, MisSOURi.

How to pronounce Missouri is also a topic of hot debate, with politicians choosing the pronunciation depending on the region.

Notice the Contrast Between Stressed and Unstressed Syllables

We’re halfway through the 50 states! How are you feeling about the stress?

Are you remembering to make the stressed syllable longer, louder, and higher in pitch?

You’re probably noticing the reduced syllables as well.

Listen for the ones that don’t sound the way you expect; they’re reduced to the schwa sound or the /i/ sound.

Remember, it’s this contrast between stressed and unstressed syllables that gives English its natural rhythm and melody.

Let’s keep going!

Montana

Let’s go on to Montana, or /mɑnˈtænə/.

Montana is stressed on the second syllable: MonTAna, MonTAna, MonTAna.

Nebraska

Moving on: Nebraska, or /nəˈbræskə/.

Nebraska is stressed on the second syllable: NeBRAska, NeBRAska, NeBRAska.

Nevada

Now we have a state that you may hear people pronounce incorrectly: Nevada, or /nəˈvædə/.

You may hear Americans from other parts of the country say Nevada as /nəˈvɑdə/.

But locals pronounce it Nevada with the /æ/ sound and stress on the second syllable: NeVAda, NeVAda, NeVAda.

Like Colorado and Missouri, there is a lot of debate about how to say Nevada, especially when it comes to politicians using the wrong vowel!

New Hampshire

Now let’s move on to the state where I was born: New Hampshire, or /ˌnu ˈhæmpʃər/.

This is the first two-word state.

When states have two words, the stress will be on the stressed syllable of the second word.

The first word will receive secondary stress.

It will still be easy to understand, but it won’t be emphasized.

Let’s say that again: New Hampshire.

The stress is on the first syllable of the second word: New HAMPshire, New HAMPshire, New HAMPshire.

New Jersey

Here’s another state that begins with “new”: New Jersey, or /ˌnu ˈdʒərzi/.

Once again, the stress will be on the second word. It’s on the first syllable of the second word: New JERsey, New JERsey, New JERsey.

New Mexico

Moving on, New Mexico, pronounced /ˌnu ˈmeksɪkoʊ/.

Once again, we’re stressing the first syllable of the second word: New MEXico, New MEXico, New MEXico.

Here’s another one of my favorite states: New York, or /ˌnu ˈyɔrk/.

As you can hear, we’re stressing the second word, “York”: New YORK, New YORK, New YORK.

North Carolina

Here are a few more two-word states. Next up we have North Carolina, pronounced /ˌnɔrθ kærəˈlaɪnə/.

This state is stressed on the third syllable of the second word: North CaroLIina, North CaroLIna, North CaroLIna.

North Dakota

Here’s another “north” state: North Dakota, or /ˌnɔrθ dəˈkoʊtə/.

Once again, we’re stressing the second word, and in this case it’s on the second syllable: North DaKOta, North DaKOta, North DaKOta.

Ohio

Let’s talk about Ohio, which is pronounced /oʊˈhaɪoʊ/.

Ohio is stressed on the second syllable: OHIo, OHIo, OHIo.

Oklahoma

Next, Oklahoma, or /ˌoʊkləˈhoʊmə/.

This state is stressed on the third syllable: OklaHOma, OklaHOma, OklaHOma.

Oregon

Moving on, Oregon, which is pronounced /ˈɔrɪgən/ or /ˈɑrɪgən/.

Oregon is stressed on the first syllable: ORegon, ORegon, ORegon.

I just wanted to mention that you may hear Americans who are not from the West Coast mispronounce this state as Oregon, or /ˈɔrɪˌgɑn/, with the /ɑ/ sound on the last syllable.

That’s how I pronounced the word until somebody finally corrected me when I was in college!

Pennsylvania

Moving on, Pennsylvania, or /ˌpɛnsəlˈveɪnjə/.

The stress will be on the third syllable: PennsylVAnia, PennsylVAnia, PennsylVAnia.

If you ever feel a little stressed when you see a long word like Pennsylvania, try to identify the stressed syllable.

That will help you be able to understand how to construct the rest of the word.

When you break a word into syllables, it’s easier to pronounce.

Rhode Island

Moving on, Rhode Island, or /ˌroʊd ˈaɪlənd/.

Once again, the stress will be on the second word. In this case, it’s on the first syllable: Rhode ISland, Rhode ISland, Rhode ISland.

South Carolina

Next up, South Carolina, pronounced /ˌsaʊθ  kærəˈlaɪnə/.

As you can hear, we’re stressing the third syllable of the second word: South CaroLIna, South CaroLIna, South CaroLIna.

The only time you’ll stress “north” or “south” is when you need to clarify because someone didn’t understand you.

Did you say South Carolina? No, NORTH Carolina.

Otherwise, the stress will be on the second word.

South Dakota

Now let’s talk about South Dakota, or /ˌsaʊθ dəˈkoʊtə/.

Once again, we’re going to stress the second syllable of the second word: South DaKOta, South DaKOta, South DaKOta.

Tennessee

Let’s move on to Tennessee, or /ˌtɛnəˈsi/.

As you can hear, the stress is on the final syllable of this word: TennesSEE, TennesSEE, TennesSEE.

Texas

Now, let’s talk about Texas, or /ˈtɛksəs/.

This state is stressed on the first syllable: TEXas, TEXas, TEXas.

Utah

Here’s another state: Utah, or /ˈjutɔ/.

Once again, this state is stressed on the first syllable: Utah, Utah, Utah.

Vermont

Now we have Vermont, pronounced /vərˈmɑnt/.

Vermont is stressed on the second syllable: VerMONT, VerMONT, VerMONT.

Virginia

Moving on, let’s talk about Virginia, or /vərˈdʒɪnjə/.

Virginia is stressed on the second syllable: VirGInia, VirGInia, VirGInia.

Washington

Now we have the state of Washington, which is pronounced /ˈwɑʃɪŋtən/.

Washington is stressed on the first syllable: WAshington, WAshington, WAshington.

You can really hear the reduced syllable at the end of the word.

West Virginia

Just a few more: West Virginia, or /ˌwest vərˈdʒɪnjə/.

Remember, we’re going to stress the second word, and in this case it’s the second syllable of this word: West VirGInia, West VirGInia, West VirGInia.

Wisconsin

Moving on, Wisconsin, or /wɪsˈkɑnsən/.

We’re going to stress the second syllable: WisCONsin, WisCONsin, WisCONsin.

Wyoming

Last but not least, Wyoming,or /waɪˈoʊmɪŋ/.

Wyoming is stressed on the second syllable: WyOming, WyOming, WyOming.

Practice Stress by Category

As you can hear, getting the stress right makes a big difference in how clearly you pronounce these states.

Just like we did with all of the 50 states, it can be helpful to practice stress by category.

While there are definitely stress patterns that you can practice and learn, sometimes the stress seems a little random.

In this case, it’s helpful to make a list of words you use all the time, such as states, cities, or countries, and practice the stress for all of them.

That way you’ll get more comfortable identifying and saying the stressed syllable.

How to Stress the US Territories and District of Columbia

As a little bonus, let’s talk about the territories of the United States, as well as the District of Columbia.

Washington DC

As you probably know, Washington DC is the capitol of the United States.

However, it is not a state itself.

When we talk about our nation’s capitol, we say Washington DC, or /ˌwɑʃɪŋtən ˌdiˈsi/, with stress on the “C” at the end of that word: Washington DC, Washington DC, Washington DC.

Locals are much more likely to refer to the nation’s capitol as DC or /ˌdiˈsi/ with stress on the letter “C”: DC, DC, DC.

Similarly, when we talk about the US, pronounced /ˌjuˈɛs/, we stress the letter “S”: US, US, US.

Puerto Rico

Another territory of the United States is Puerto Rico, or /ˌpwɛrtə ˈrikoʊ/ (or sometimes /ˌpɔrtə ˈrikoʊ/).

As you probably know, people in Puerto Rico speak Spanish, so they will pronounce their territory differently than the average American.

However, because we’re talking about the pronunciation in English, I’m going to pronounce it as it is in English: Puerto Rico.

As you can hear, the stress is still on the second word. It’s on the first syllable of the second word: Puerto RIco, Puerto RIco, Puerto RIco.

Guam

Now let’s talk about Guam, or /gwɑm/.

Guam is one syllable, but it will still be stressed.

You need to make the vowel sound longer, louder, and higher in pitch: GUAM, GUAM, GUAM.

American Samoa

Next, let’s talk about American Samoa, or /əˌmerɪkən səˈmoʊə/.

As we’ve practiced with the states and other territories, the second word will be stressed.

In this case, it will be the second syllable: American SaMOa, American SaMOa, American SaMOa.

US Virgin Islands

Now let’s talk about the US Virgin Islands, pronounced /ˌjuˈɛs ˌvɜrdʒɪn ˈaɪləndz/.

As you can hear, we’re going to stress the “S” in US as well as the first syllable of the last word, “islands”: US Virgin ISlands, US Virgin ISlands, US Virgin ISlands.

Northern Mariana Islands

Last, we have the Northern Mariana Islands, which is pronounced /ˌnɔrðərn mæriˌɑnə ˈaɪləndz/.

Once again, we’re going to stress that last word. We’re going to stress the first syllable of “islands”: Northern Mariana ISlands, Northern Mariana ISlands, Northern Mariana ISlands.

Your Turn

Now that you’ve learned how to stress all of the 50 states as well as the US territories, be sure to practice.

If you’re not used to emphasizing the stressed syllables of words or word pairs, it can take some time.

Remember to make the stressed syllable longer, louder, and higher in pitch, with an extra clear vowel sound.

Be sure to watch this video on contrast if you need more practice distinguishing between stressed and unstressed syllables.

Leave a comment letting me know which states you’ve visited or which states you’d like to visit. Remember to stress them correctly!

English stress: part 2

English teacher: JenniferESL
Video lesson duration: 10 minutes 28 seconds

Today in the stress topic we will discuss those words that consist of more than one syllable . How to find the number of syllables in a word? To do this, you need to count the number of vowels. Let me show you how.

Here are some words that will help us understand how to count syllables. At the beginning of the previous lesson there was a sentence with the words job , then steamboat , river , different , states . To find out the number of syllables in them, you need to count the vowel sounds.

The first word of job has only one vowel, here is its phonetic transcription: [ d ʒɒ b ].

The next word is steamboat . How many vowels are there? Two, here is the phonetic transcription: [ʹ stimbo ʊ t ]. Therefore, we have two syllables: two vowels - two syllables. These two words remind us that a vowel in writing can sometimes be represented by one letter (as in job ), sometimes by two ( steamboat ).

The next word is river . How many vowels does it have? Two: [ʹ r ı v ɚ]. Two vowels - two syllables. nine0008

How many vowels are in states ? One: [ ste ı ts ]. This word reminds us that sometimes we see a vowel in a word, but it is “mute”, does not denote a sound. Often this happens with the vowel e . In a word, one vowel means one syllable.

The last word is different . In very slow speech, especially official, this word is pronounced like this: [ʹ d ı f ǝ r ǝ nt ]. But very often in fluent speech we skip a vowel, and we get this pronunciation: [ʹ d ı fr ǝ nt ]. So, how do we determine the number of vowels in this word? We can look it up in a dictionary and also listen to how most people pronounce it. Most Americans pronounce this word like it has two vowels: [ı] and [ǝ]. So in fast speech we get two syllables.

Now our task is to determine which of the syllables (if there are more than one) is stressed. We don't need the words job and states because they only have one syllable.

As for steamboat , looking in the dictionary or listening to people say, we will hear that the first syllable is stressed. The same thing - with the word river : you can listen to people, you can look in the dictionary to understand that the first syllable is stressed. nine0008

Different : looking in a dictionary or listening to a speech, you will see: the first syllable is stressed.

Exercise 3

Count the number of syllables in each word. Here's an example: look at a word and say it out loud. This word is travel . How many syllables are there? Two, since there are two vowels, and the phonetic transcription looks like this: [ʹ tr æ v ǝ l ]. nine0015