How to Pronounce Worcestershire
How do you say Worcestershire?
US WUUS-ter-sher
UK WUUS-tuh-shuh
- IPA (US)
- /ˈwʊstərʃər/
- IPA (UK)
- /ˈwʊstəʃə/
wuus·ter·sher
3 syllables, stress on the first.
Is it wor-CHESS-ter-shire or WUUS-ter-sher?
- ✗ Not standard wor-CHESS-ter-shire: Much of the spelling is silent. 'Worce' collapses to 'wuus' (the 'oo' of 'wood'), and the 'ce' is not pronounced at all.
- ✗ Not standard WOR-sess-ter-SHY-er: In English county names, '-shire' is unstressed: 'sher' or 'shuh', never 'shire' as in the word on its own.
Worcestershire pronunciation in British vs American English
American English: WUUS-ter-sher, with every R pronounced. WUUS-ter-sheer is also common.
British English: WUUS-tuh-shuh, with no R sounds. In everyday British speech the sauce is often just called 'Worcester sauce' (WUUS-tuh).
Australian English: Like British English: WUUS-tuh-shuh, with no R sounds.
What does Worcestershire mean?
A tangy fermented sauce made with vinegar, molasses, anchovies, tamarind and spices. It is named after Worcestershire, a county in England.
Where does Worcestershire come from?
Named after the English county of Worcestershire. Chemists John Wheeley Lea and William Henry Perrins began selling the sauce in the city of Worcester in 1837. The spelling preserves the old place name (Old English Weogorna ceaster, 'Roman fort of the Weogora people'), but centuries of speech wore the sound down: 'Worcester' became WUUS-ter and the unstressed '-shire' became 'sher'. Gloucester and Leicester shrank the same way.
Worcestershire in a sentence
- Add a dash of Worcestershire sauce to the Bloody Mary.
- Shepherd's pie tastes richer with a splash of Worcestershire.
- Worcestershire County Cricket Club plays its home games at New Road in Worcester.