How to Pronounce Gyro
How do you say gyro?
YEER-oh
- IPA (US)
- /ˈjɪroʊ/
- IPA (UK)
- /ˈjɪərəʊ/
yeer·oh
2 syllables, stress on the first.
Is it JY-roh or YEER-oh?
- ✓ Also accepted JY-roh: Widely heard and listed in US dictionaries, but it is the pronunciation of 'gyro' as in gyroscope. YEER-oh is closer to the Greek and is what you will hear in most Greek restaurants.
Gyro pronunciation in British vs American English
American English: YEER-oh is closest to the Greek. JY-roh and JEER-oh are both common and listed in US dictionaries.
British English: The dish is usually called 'gyros' (YEER-oss), keeping the Greek -s, with the stress on the first syllable.
Australian English: Often spelled and said 'yiros' (YEER-oss), especially in Adelaide, where it is a takeaway staple.
What does gyro mean?
A Greek dish of meat, usually pork or chicken, roasted on a vertical rotisserie, shaved thin and wrapped in pita with tomato, onion and tzatziki.
Where does gyro come from?
From Greek γύρος (gyros), 'turn' or 'circle', after the rotating spit. In Greek, gyros is singular; English speakers took the -s for a plural and dropped it, giving 'gyro'. Greek γ before an 'i' sound is a soft, y-like sound, which is why YEER-oh is closer to the original than the hard J of 'gyroscope'. The dish is a cousin of Turkish döner ('turning') and shawarma, whose name comes from Turkish çevirme, also 'turning'.
Gyro in a sentence
- We grabbed a chicken gyro from the food truck.
- Ask for extra tzatziki on your gyro.
- The cook sliced the gyro meat straight off the spit.