Pronunciation · Everyday language

How to pronounce quay

Quay sounds like "key" in CMUdict (K IY1), with a second listed form, KAY (K EY1); neither one has the "kw" the spelling suggests.

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The dictionary sound sequence

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

Dictionary variant 1

K IY1

Syllable estimate: 1 vowel nucleus
Primary stress: 1st vowel position

Dictionary variant 2

K EY1

Syllable estimate: 1 vowel nucleus
Primary stress: 1st vowel position

Check quay 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 quay in context

Quay names a stone landing where boats tie up, and it turns up in harbor walks, travel guides and British place names. Readers who have only seen it written tend to say "kway", a form some US dictionaries list but CMUdict does not. The first dictionary entry matches the word key, and the second rhymes with day.

The ferry leaves from the north quay at half past nine.
We ate lunch on a bench by the quay and watched the fishing boats come in.

Read the sound tokens

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

Ksound in keyconsonant

IYsound in eatvowel

EYsound in atevowel

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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 quay

Word: quay
Dictionary variant: 1 of 2
CMUdict ARPABET: K IY1
Vowel nuclei / estimated syllables: 1
Primary stress: 1st vowel position

ORIGINAL AUDITION SCRIPT
The ferry leaves from the north quay at half past nine.
We ate lunch on a bench by the quay and watched the fishing boats come in.

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: Picture the word spelled k-e-y and read it that way. If a w creeps in after the K, slow down and try again.

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/quay

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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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