Wikivoyage:Pseudo-phoneticization guide

This guide provides suggestions for making pseudo-phonetic pronunciation cues for Wikivoyage phrasebooks. The goal is to make somewhat phonetic suggestions that could be read aloud according to English spelling rules to make the correct sounds.

This guide is intended for editors who are writing articles. You can find a simplified guide for readers at Wikivoyage:Pronunciation guide.

Basic rules

The basic rules for pronunciation cues are as follows:

• Build up the cues from the pronunciation alphabet below.
• Separate words in the cue by spaces.
  • English "I love you" → igh luhv yoo
• Separate syllables in a word by hyphens.
  • English "over" → oh-vuhr
• Use ALL CAPS to show syllables that are emphasized.
  • English "emphasize" → EHM-fuh-sighz
• Leave off terminal periods ("."), but leave in terminal question marks ("?") or exclamation marks ("!").
  • English "It's OK." → ihtz oh-KAY
  • English "What's your name?" → WUHTZ yoor NAYM?
  • English "Help!" → HEHLP!
• Avoid the temptation to use English words in their entirety. Mixing words and phonetics makes it hard for a reader to tell how to pronounce phoneticizations that look like English words.
  • Spanish "hay" → igh, not eye
  • French "six" → seess, not cease

Pronunciation alphabet

The following alphabet shows how we like to represent sounds in Wikivoyage phrasebooks. Try to find the sound you're trying to approximate in the definitions, and then use the representation given. These are rough approximations; fine points of pronunciation can be glossed over, unless there's a risk of being misunderstood.

If there's a sound in the language you're trying to provide pronunciation cues for that isn't represented, add a representation here.

a

like 'a' in English "hat"

ah

like 'a' in English "father"

aw

like 'aw' in (British) English "dawn"

ay

like 'ay' in English "hay"

b

like 'b' in English "bird"

ch

like 'ch' in English "chin"

ck

like 'ck' in English "kick" (end of syllable only)

d

like 'd' in English "dog"

dh

like 'th' in English "those"

ee

like 'ee' in English "knee"

eh

like 'e' in English "bed"

eu

like 'eu' in Dutch "keuken" and French "heureux"

f

like 'f' in English "fun"

g

like 'g' in English "go"

gh

a voiced version of 'ch' in Scottish "loch"

h

like 'h' in English "hand"

ih

like 'i' in English "pin", "hit"

igh

like 'i' in English "time"

j

like 'j' in English "jump", like "dg" in English "edge"

k

like 'k' in English "kiss" (beginning of syllable only)

kh

like 'ch' in Scottish "loch"

ks

like 'x' in English "extra"

l

like 'l' in English "love"

ll

like 'll' in English "mill" (end of syllable only)

ly

like 'lli' in "million"

m

like 'm' in English "me"

n

like 'n' in English "nose"

ng

like 'ng' in English "sing"

ny

like 'ni' in English "onion"

o

like 'o' in (British) English "lot"

oh

like 'o' in English "hope"

oe

like ö in German "Königsberg," a bit like i in sir

oo

like 'oo' in English "moon"

ow

like 'ow' in English "cow"

oy

like 'oy' in English "boy"

p

like 'p' in English "push"

r

like 'r' in English "row"

rh

like 'r' in French "français"

rr

like 'rr' in Spanish "perro"

s

like 's' in English "sun" (beginning of syllable only)

sh

like 'sh' in English "shed", "mush"

ss

like 'ss' in English "hiss" (end of syllable only)

t

like 't' in English "top"

th

like 'th' in English "thin"

u

like 'u' in English "push"

uh

like 'u' in English "bud", 'a' in English "comma" (schwa)

uu

like 'u' in Dutch "nu", like 'ut' in French "salut"

uy

like 'ui' in Dutch "huis", like 'œ' in French "œil"

v

like 'v' in English "vase"

w

like 'w' in English "win"

y

like 'y' in English "yes"

z

like 's' in English "has", 'z' in English "zero"

zh

like 's' in English "treasure"