I wonder how an American pronounces…
quit … quite … quiet
/kwɪt/ … /kwayt/ … /ˈkwa–yɪt/
quit
/kwɪt/
The sign says:
“Quit smoking.”
quite
/kwayt/
The box is quite heavy, but not too heavy to carry.
quite + adjective
That box is quite heavy.
quite + adverb
He quite often has to carry heavy boxes.
quite a + (adjective) + noun
It’s quite a heavy box.
quiet
/ˈkwa–yɪt/
We have to be quiet in a library.
And now it’s your turn.
Here’s your audio pronunciation quiz.
Listen to each sentence.
Which word do you hear?
How do you spell the word that you hear?
Answers are at the bottom of the page.
NO PEEKING!
1. Living in a small town is __________different than living in a big city.
2. I love a ______________ afternoon on the lake.
3. It’s been ___________ a long day, but I’m still not finished.
4. I wish she would ____________ complaining about everything!
5. Excuse me, I didn’t ___________ catch what you said.
I understood most of it, but not everything.
6. ____________ hitting me!
7. That’s ______________ a flag.
I’ve never seen one that big.
8. ___________yelling. I need some peace and _____________.
9. We live in a _____________ neighborhood.
10. We have department meetings ______________regularly,
almost every Thursday.
Answers
1. Living in a small town is quite different than living in a big city.
2. I love a quiet afternoon on the lake.
3. It’s been quite a long day, but I’m still not finished.
4. I wish she would quit complaining about everything!
5. Excuse me, I didn’t quite catch what you said.
I understood most of it, but not everything.
6. Quit hitting me!
7. That’s quite a flag. I’ve never seen one that big.
8. Quit yelling. I need some peace and quiet.
9. We live in a quiet neighborhood.
10. We have department meetings quite regularly, almost every Thursday.
