Pronunciation guide

How to pronounce pharaoh

FAIR-oh - two syllables, stress on the 1st

US/ˈfæɹ.oʊ/

fæɹoʊ

UK/ˈfɛː.ɹəʊ/

fɛːɹəʊ

New to IPA symbols? Read the IPA guide.

Common mistake

It is two syllables - 'FAIR-oh', not 'fuh-RAY-oh' or 'FAR-ay-oh'.

What “pharaoh” means

A king of ancient Egypt.

(archaic) The card game faro.

In a sentence

  • Tutankhamen was a famous pharaoh who ruled ancient Egypt.
  • In the 19th-century novel, the pharaohs are depicted as powerful figures who controlled vast empires.

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Definitions and examples are derived from Wiktionary, used under CC BY-SA 4.0, then edited by QuickPronounce. Pronunciation data draws on CMUdict.