English spellings/Catalogs/I
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| Alphabetical word list | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Retroalphabetical list | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Common misspellings |
This page lists pronunciations of English words that begin with I. To see a different letter navigate with the table above. The apostrophe is treated as the last letter of the alphabet, after Z.
For a pronunciation key, click on the blue "Catalogs" link below the article title.[e]
Î letter, me = eŷe sight = aŷe yes
Ìan person, cf. îron, silent r (the cricketer Ìan Bôtham—first syllable as bôth—was pronounced by some as "Îron Bóttom")
îceberg one word
Îceland -lənd
Icelándic
îcon
Îdaho
idêa *îdêə, cf. monosyllables pêa, têa, where the a is not sounded separately, = names of the letters P and T
ídeogram
idêólogy - î or í
idiosýncrasy
îdle lazy = îdol god = AmE îdyll idyllic
Idomenèo
ídyll BrE; AmE îdyll = îdle = îdol
ígnorance
ignŏre
IKÊA Î-
illegálity
illícit illegal = elícit get
Íllinŏis *Íllinŏi
íll-thŏught-òut
illûsion, íl-, cf. allûsion, əl-
illûsive illusory = elûsive elude
ímage -íj
imaginâtion
imágíne
imbróglio *imbrólyo
immêdìately
imménse cf. eménd
ímmigrate cf. émigrate
ímpact noun, affect
impáct fix, wedge
impâle
impàla
ímpásse can be pronounced, French-style, *ámpásse
impêach
impéccable
impêrial
impéril
ímpetus
ímpìous, cf. pîous
impŏrtance, impŏrtant
ímpotence, ímpotent
impresàrio - one hissing s
ímpress noun
impréss verb
imprimàtur, imprímatur
improprîety
ímprovîse
improvisâtion BrE -əvî-, AmE -óví-
ímpudent -yû-
impûte ascribe cf. ínput put in *ímpùt
ín abséntia
inadvërtent
inbetwêen can be two words
íncense smoke
incénse anger
ínches *ínchíz
inchôâte ínk-
íncident
incidéntal
incidéntally
incîsor
incîte provoke = in sîght looming, cf ínsight discernment
íncòme or *ínkum
incrédible
incúmbent cf. encúmber: minimal pair in non-rhotic pronunciations, like the standard British English of England
indepéndent cf. depéndent adjective, depéndant noun
indepéndents = indepéndence
ín-dépth adjective
Índian - can be spelt without a capital when referring to American indians
Indiána
índicês, plural of índex
indîct *indîte, cf. éxtradîte
indígenous
indispénsable
índustry
indústrial
inévitable
ín fáct two words
infállible
ínfamous cf. fâmous
infatuâtion
infinitésimal
inflámmatory -mm-
ínfluence
influéntial
ín frònt of three words
ingênious, cf. gênius
ingénûous
Ingushétia *Ingushéttia: too rare to have palatalised to -shêesha
inhérent or inhêrent
inhérit
inítial *iníshəl
inítiative *iníshətíve
ínjure cf. endûre
ínland adjective
inlánd adverb
ínn pub = ín preposition
innovâtion
ínnovative
innuéndo
inóculate
ínpùt put in *ímpùt, cf. impûte ascribe
inquîre, inquîry or enquîre, enquîry; AmE ínquiry = enquiry
ínroads
insâtiable
ínsight *ínsîte expertise, cf. in sîght visible = incîte provoke
insístent
ín sítu
insofàr ás
insoûciance
ín spîte óf three words
inståll (some AmE: instål)
instålled
instålment BrE; AmE instållment
instéad one word
insůre insurance, verify = ensůre verify; BrE *inshåw, AmE *inshûr [1]
insürgent cf. sürge
intáct one word, cf. ín fáct (minimal pair)
intégral
íntegrate
intélligent
intër bury, cf. ínter- prefix
interáction
intercêde
intercéssor
interfêre
interfêrence
interlócutor
intërment burial cf. intërnment prison (minimal pair)
intërnal
internátional -áshnəl, cf. nâtion
internêcîne
ínternet (only the worldwide one can be capitalised: thê Ínternet)
intërpret
intërpreter
intervêne
intervéntion
ínterview
intestînal or intéstinal
íntimate adjective -ət
íntimâte verb
ínto *íntû or *íntə: one word - but ón to is still two, as is òut of
íntricacy
íntricate
íntrìgue noun *íntrêeg
intrìgue verb *ín-trêeg
introspéction
íntrovërt
ínundâte
ín vâin
inválid valid
ínvalid ill
invèigle
invént
ínventory (minimal pair in British English: *ínvəntry, ínfantry)
in-yer-fâce
îodìne BrE; AmE îodîne
îón electron cf. îron metal, *îən, silent r
Iôna *Î-ôna
iôta *î-ôta
Îowa
îPód ® showing a trend towards internal capitalisation ("camel case") also seen in EastÉnders
Irān *Í-rān, cf. îron metal, which has silent r
Irânian or Irànian: Hillary Clinton used both pronunciations in her speech after the 2009 Iranian election, but probably the former is more common in BrE, the latter in AmE
Irāq *Í-rāk
Irāqi -kì
irâte = Î râte
Îreland BrE *Îələnd, cf. îsland *îlənd
Irênê e.g. Irene Handl
Irêne e.g. Goodnight Irene silent final e
iridéscent *írridéssant
îron metal BrE *îyən, cf. îón electron, Ìan person, Iràn country
irónic
îrony *îrənỳ
irresístible
irréverent
irrévocable
írrigate cf. erádicate
Îsaac *Îzək
Ísabél, -z-, like Márian, has an o variant, Ísobél
Isaîah *Î-zîə
îsland *îlənd, cf. Îreland
Íslám Íz- is probably the least affected pronunciation, though some say Íss- and/or -àm, and/or stress the second syllable
Islámic
Îslay *Îlə
îsle island *île = aîsle theatre
Îsle of Wîght *Île of Wîte
Íslington Íz-
îsobar -ss-, cf. Ísobél = Ísabél, -z-
Ísrâel (not -eâ-) *Ízrâle, *Ízrul in rapid AmE
Isrâeli *Izrâyly ("Isrà-èli", common in the Arab world, is not an anglophone pronunciation)
íssue: *íshû is long established but is mocked by fans of the spelling pronunciation *íssyû
Istanbùl (cf. old spelling in Graham Greene’s novel title Stamboul Train, reflecting Turkish stress on a)
ísthmus
íts belonging to it = ít’s it is: ít’s for íts is probably the most common mistake of all, and an understandable one, as nouns in the genitive have 's: the dóg's tâil, but íts tâil. Compare the less notorious but similar whose of whom and who's who is, the latter similarly incorrectly used for the former
Îvan
Îvor
îvory
îvy plant = Îvy person