Farsi · Pronunciation Guide

How do you pronounce "شیر" in Farsi?

Q: How do you pronounce شیر in Farsi?

شیر is pronounced with the stress described below. In IPA it is written [ʃiːr]. It means “lion.” Say 'sheer' — exactly like the English word 'sheer', with a light tapped 'r' at the end instead of the American r.

Say 'sheer' — exactly like the English word 'sheer', with a light tapped 'r' at the end instead of the American r.

شیر [ʃiːr]

shir

A one-syllable word; the long 'i' vowel is held clearly, and context alone tells listeners whether it means 'lion' or 'milk'.

Listen: شیر

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Sound it out

شی Pronounced 'shi' — an English 'sh' plus a long 'ee' as in 'see'.

ر Pronounced 'r' — a light tap of the tongue, not the American r; think of the 'r' in Spanish 'pero'.

Hear it in a sentence

شیر پادشاه جنگل است.

Shir pādeshāh-e jangal ast.

The lion is the king of the jungle.

Listen: شیر پادشاه جنگل است.

Free browser voice. Hear it read by a real native speaker inside the LingoDrop app.

Shir pādeshāh-e jangal ast. — 'The lion is the king of the jungle.' Pādeshāh-e jangal uses the ezāfe -e to link pādeshāh ('king') and jangal ('jungle/forest'), giving 'king of the jungle'; note that شیر is one of Persian's classic homonyms (it also means 'milk'), so context — here, jangal — is what tells a listener which meaning is intended.

Where English speakers slip

Learners often carry over the American 'r' sound from English 'sheer', which makes the word sound noticeably foreign. Tap the r lightly with the tip of the tongue instead of curling it back, and don't confuse this word's context-dependent second meaning of 'milk'.