In pronunciation, is there a difference between “pupil” and “people”? Thank you, dear tutors. 🤲
21 answers from our tutors
Best answer
PUPIL - say: PYOO-PIL PEOPLE - say: PEE-PIL
"Pupil" is a singular noun that means a student or a learner, or the black part of the eye. "People" is a plural noun that means a group of individuals or humans in general. "Pupil" has two syllables: /ˈpjuː.pəl/. The first syllable has a long /u/ sound as in "you". The second syllable has a schwa sound /ə/ as in "about". The stress is on the first syllable. "People" has two syllables: /ˈpiː.pəl/. The first syllable has a long /i/ sound as in "see". The second syllable has a schwa sound /ə/ as in "about". The stress is on the first syllable. The main difference between "pupil" and "people" is the vowel sound in the first syllable. /u/ and /i/ are different sounds that can change the meaning of words.
1.People: break the word by saying PEE+PUHL 2.Pupil: break the word by saying PYOO+PUHL
Check your English level for free
Take our quick and free test to find out your current level of English
Start testyes. pupil= poopil people= peoople
Yes, there is a difference. “Pupil” is pronounced pyoo-puhl and “people” pronounced pee-puhl
yes, there is a huge difference, in people there is no /u/ sound
the"u" letter in pupil pronounces like "you" but the second part of People is pronounced like : E
"Pupil" starts low, and goes higher in tone. "People" starts high and goes down. That's the easiest way to differentiate them in an ambiguous situation, hope this helps.
- TapashyaEnglish tutor
yes, there is a difference between those two words. although both words share a similar pattern, the vowels differentiate their pronunciation.
yes there is a difference between the pronunciation of pupil and people.
I believe your issue is not with meaning, but rather with pronunciations so I am not going into explanation what is what. You probably know that. My advice would be to simply listen as often and hard until your notices the difference.