--- title: "How to pronounce caribbean | Murmur" description: "Caribbean takes its stress on \"RIB\" or on \"EE\" in CMUdict (kuh-RIB-ee-un, kair-ib-EE-un), and mixing the two in one script is the trap." canonical: "https://www.murmurtts.com/pronunciation/caribbean" --- [Murmur](https://www.murmurtts.com/)/[Pronunciation](https://www.murmurtts.com/pronunciation)/caribbean Pronunciation · Science and learning # How to pronounce caribbean Caribbean takes its stress on "RIB" or on "EE" in CMUdict (kuh-RIB-ee-un, kair-ib-EE-un), and mixing the two in one script is the trap. [Buy $49](https://murmur-licenses.tarunyadav9761.workers.dev/checkout)[Download free for Apple Silicon (3-day Pro trial)](https://murmur-updates.tarunyadav9761.workers.dev/download/latest)Intel Mac? [Download here](https://murmur-updates.tarunyadav9761.workers.dev/download/intel).Not sure? Apple menu > About This Mac shows your chip. Free plan with Kokoro voices, 3,000 characters a day · 3-day Pro trial, then $49 once ## The dictionary sound sequence CMUdict lists these 2 North American English pronunciations for **caribbean**. Read each sequence from left to right. The numbers mark vowel stress: **1** primary, **2** secondary, **0** unstressed. Dictionary variant 1 `K ER0 IH1 B IY0 AH0 N` **Syllable estimate** 4 vowel nuclei **Primary stress** 2nd vowel position Dictionary variant 2 `K EH2 R IH0 B IY1 AH0 N` **Syllable estimate** 4 vowel nuclei **Primary stress** 3rd vowel position **Secondary stress** 1st vowel position [Check caribbean in Merriam-Webster and listen to available dictionary audio](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/caribbean). Syllable counts come from vowel tokens; CMUdict does not supply syllable boundaries here. Variant order follows the dictionary and does not rank correctness. This lexicon does not represent every accent or context. ## Use caribbean in context Travel ads, geography lessons and weather reports all mention the Caribbean. CMUdict gives one form stressed on "RIB" and another that pushes the stress to "EE". Both are widely used, and either can work, but a narrator switching between them sounds unprepared. 1. The storm moved slowly across the Caribbean overnight. 2. They spent a week sailing between Caribbean islands. ### A practice cue Say both versions aloud and pick the one that sounds natural to you. Then read any phrase that repeats the word, such as a list of destinations, to confirm the stress holds. ## Read the sound tokens Each example word below is a cue for the named sound, rather than a respelling of caribbean. Unstressed vowels may sound reduced. These cues follow the [CMU phoneme-set key (Appendix A)](https://www.cs.cmu.edu/~aria/Papers/MastersThesis.pdf#page=115). `K`sound in **key**consonant`ER`sound in **hurt**vowel`IH`sound in **it**vowel`B`sound in **be**consonant`IY`sound in **eat**vowel`AH`sound in **hut**vowel`N`sound in **knee**consonant`EH`sound in **Ed**vowel`R`sound in **read**consonant Take it to your next recording ## Make an audition worksheet Select a dictionary variant for your checklist. The two original sentences retain their normal spelling; this worksheet helps you review a recording rather than forcing a speech engine to use phonemes. Copying and downloading happen in your browser. No script upload or audio generation is needed. ## Dictionary source The phonemes on this page come from [CMU Pronouncing Dictionary](https://github.com/cmusphinx/cmudict/blob/74790861f652b15e4ac49015a90074ad62a27690/cmudict.dict). The dictionary maintainers acknowledge that errors and omissions can remain; check another source or a speaker when the pronunciation matters. [CMUdict README](https://github.com/cmusphinx/cmudict/blob/74790861f652b15e4ac49015a90074ad62a27690/README) · [Included dictionary license](https://www.murmurtts.com/downloads/cmudict-license.txt) Source version and checksum Commit: `74790861f652b15e4ac49015a90074ad62a27690` Dictionary SHA-256: `81917843c7f44ce2b094ac63873c2c7a4cf802040792c455ba3ca406891c3d22` ## Keep practising [How to pronounce arkansas](https://www.murmurtts.com/pronunciation/arkansas)[How to pronounce conch](https://www.murmurtts.com/pronunciation/conch)[How to pronounce coyote](https://www.murmurtts.com/pronunciation/coyote)[How to pronounce rendezvous](https://www.murmurtts.com/pronunciation/rendezvous) [Build a pronunciation test suite for local TTS](https://www.murmurtts.com/blog/pronunciation-test-suite-local-tts) · [Browse all word references](https://www.murmurtts.com/pronunciation) Murmur for Mac and Windows ## Check the word in a real voiceover. Murmur generates speech locally on Apple Silicon and Intel Macs, and on 64-bit Windows 10 and 11 as a beta. Try your audition sentences with your chosen model and voice, listen for pronunciation, and review the result before exporting. A dictionary sequence does not guarantee a model’s output. [Buy $49](https://murmur-licenses.tarunyadav9761.workers.dev/checkout)[Download free for Apple Silicon (3-day Pro trial)](https://murmur-updates.tarunyadav9761.workers.dev/download/latest)Intel Mac? [Download here](https://murmur-updates.tarunyadav9761.workers.dev/download/intel).Not sure? Apple menu > About This Mac shows your chip.[Explore Murmur](https://www.murmurtts.com/?utm_source=pronunciation&utm_medium=pseo&utm_campaign=wave1&utm_content=caribbean#product)[Get Murmur free by sharing it](https://www.murmurtts.com/free?utm_source=pronunciation&utm_medium=pseo&utm_campaign=wave1&utm_content=caribbean)