{"id":214,"date":"2025-11-28T15:41:34","date_gmt":"2025-11-28T15:41:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ttsmaker.com\/blog\/?p=214"},"modified":"2025-11-28T15:50:00","modified_gmt":"2025-11-28T15:50:00","slug":"how-to-customize-pronunciation-with-ipa-in-ttsmaker","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ttsmaker.com\/blog\/how-to-customize-pronunciation-with-ipa-in-ttsmaker\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Customize Pronunciation with IPA in TTSMaker"},"content":{"rendered":"

When generating speech with text-to-speech (TTS) tools, you may sometimes notice that certain words are mispronounced or incorrectly stressed. This can affect clarity, tone, and even meaning. To solve this, TTSMaker supports the <phoneme><\/code> tag, which allows you to define precise IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) pronunciations for any word in any language.<\/p>\n

With IPA customization, you can correct default pronunciations, insert foreign-language words, or fine-tune how names and technical terms are spoken.<\/p>\n

English Example: Different Pronunciations of \u201ctomato\u201d<\/h2>\n

In English, the word "tomato" has different pronunciations in American and British accents. Here\u2019s how you can use the <phoneme><\/code> tag to specify each:<\/p>\n

American English:<\/strong><\/p>\n

<phoneme alphabet="ipa" ph="t\u0259.\u02c8me\u026a.to\u028a">tomato<\/phoneme><\/code><\/pre>\n
British English:<\/strong><\/p>\n
<phoneme alphabet="ipa" ph="t\u0259.\u02c8m\u0251\u02d0.t\u0259\u028a">tomato<\/phoneme><\/code><\/pre>\n
This ensures the system speaks \u201ctomato\u201d exactly the way you intend, without relying on the voice model\u2019s automatic guess.<\/p>\n
Spanish Example: Same Spelling, Different Meaning<\/h2>\n
Some words have multiple valid pronunciations depending on grammar or stress. A good example is the Spanish word \u201cesta\u201d, which can either be a demonstrative adjective or a verb form:<\/p>\n
<phoneme alphabet="ipa" ph="\u02c8es.ta">esta<\/phoneme>   <!-- Demonstrative: "this" -->\n<phoneme alphabet="ipa" ph="es.\u02c8ta">est\u00e1<\/phoneme>   <!-- Verb: "is" --><\/code><\/pre>\n
Without IPA tags, the system may guess incorrectly. By using <phoneme><\/code>, you can directly control stress and avoid misinterpretation.<\/p>\n
Multilingual Example: Foreign Word in an English Sentence<\/h2>\n
One of the greatest advantages of IPA is that it\u2019s language-agnostic \u2014 it works across languages. You can insert a foreign-language word into an English sentence, and have it pronounced correctly:<\/p>\n
The local guide smiled and said <phoneme alphabet="ipa" ph="\u02c8ki\u02d0tos">kiitos<\/phoneme> for our support.<\/code><\/pre>\n
In this example, the main narration uses an English voice, but the Finnish word "kiitos" ("thank you") is correctly pronounced using IPA, even though it's from a different language.<\/p>\n
Why Use IPA?<\/h2>\n
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a global standard used in linguistics, education, and speech synthesis. It offers powerful advantages:<\/p>\n