Pronunciation · Work and business

How to pronounce data

Data opens with either "day" or "da" in CMUdict, D EY1 T AH0 or D AE1 T AH0; switching vowels partway through a script is the real error.

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The dictionary sound sequence

CMUdict lists these 2 North American English pronunciations for data. Read each sequence from left to right. The numbers mark vowel stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

Dictionary variant 1

D EY1 T AH0

Syllable estimate: 2 vowel nuclei
Primary stress: 1st vowel position

Dictionary variant 2

D AE1 T AH0

Syllable estimate: 2 vowel nuclei
Primary stress: 1st vowel position

Check data in Merriam-Webster and listen to available dictionary audio.

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 data in context

Data appears in almost every product demo, report and tutorial, often several times a minute. Both CMU forms stress the first syllable and end in a light "tuh"; they differ only in the opening vowel. Listeners rarely mind which one a narrator chooses, but they do notice when it changes.

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Read the sound tokens

Each example word below is a cue for the named sound, rather than a respelling of data. Unstressed vowels may sound reduced. These cues follow the CMU phoneme-set key (Appendix A).

Dsound in deeconsonant

EYsound in atevowel

Tsound in teaconsonant

AHsound in hutvowel

AEsound in atvowel

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.

Worksheet pronunciation variant

Your plain-text audition worksheet

How to pronounce data

Word: data
Dictionary variant: 1 of 2
CMUdict ARPABET: D EY1 T AH0
Vowel nuclei / estimated syllables: 2
Primary stress: 1st vowel position

ORIGINAL AUDITION SCRIPT
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REVIEW CHECKLIST
[ ] Read both sentences naturally; keep the source wording.
[ ] Compare the intended pronunciation with the selected dictionary variant.
[ ] Listen for vowel sounds, consonants, and word stress in context.
[ ] Check with a speaker or another dictionary when accent or meaning matters.
[ ] Generate and listen to a short Murmur sample before exporting the full script.

Practice note: Pick a vowel and note it in the script header. In a long technical read, spot-check a few later instances to make sure fatigue has not pulled you to the other form.

CMUdict is a North American English lexicon, not a recording or a complete accent guide.
Variant order is dictionary order; it is not a ranking of correctness.
Source: https://github.com/cmusphinx/cmudict/blob/74790861f652b15e4ac49015a90074ad62a27690/cmudict.dict
Source commit: 74790861f652b15e4ac49015a90074ad62a27690
License: https://www.murmurtts.com/downloads/cmudict-license.txt
Reference: https://www.murmurtts.com/pronunciation/data

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Dictionary source

The phonemes on this page come from CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. The dictionary maintainers acknowledge that errors and omissions can remain; check another source or a speaker when the pronunciation matters.

CMUdict README · Included dictionary license

Source version and checksum

Commit: 74790861f652b15e4ac49015a90074ad62a27690

Dictionary SHA-256: 81917843c7f44ce2b094ac63873c2c7a4cf802040792c455ba3ca406891c3d22

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