How to Pronounce Genre
How do you say genre?
US ZHAHN-ruh
UK ZHON-ruh
- IPA (US)
- /ˈʒɑːnrə/
- IPA (UK)
- /ˈʒɒnrə/
zhahn·ruh
2 syllables, stress on the first.
Is it JEN-ree or ZHAHN-ruh?
- ✗ Not standard JEN-ree: Reading it as an English word. The 'en' is French, so it sounds like 'ahn' or 'on', and the final 're' is 'ruh'.
- ✓ Also accepted JAHN-ruh: Using a J in place of the French ZH sound is very common and is listed in US dictionaries. ZHAHN-ruh is closer to the original.
Genre pronunciation in British vs American English
American English: ZHAHN-ruh, with a broad 'ah'. JAHN-ruh is also very common.
British English: ZHON-ruh, with the short 'o' of 'hot'. Some speakers nasalise the vowel, as in French.
What does genre mean?
A category of art, music or writing with shared conventions, such as horror, jazz or science fiction.
Where does genre come from?
From French genre, 'kind' or 'sort', from Latin genus, 'birth, race, kind', the same root as 'gender', 'general' and 'genus'. English borrowed the word from French in the late 18th century and kept the French ZH sound for the G.
Genre in a sentence
- Horror is her favourite film genre.
- The band blends folk with several other genres.
- Science fiction became a popular genre in the 1950s.