English spellings/Catalogs/I
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Use in English | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Alphabetical word list | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Retroalphabetical list | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Common misspellings |
This page lists pronunciations of English words that begin with I. To see a different letter navigate with the table above. The apostrophe is treated as the last letter of the alphabet, after Z.
For a pronunciation key, click on the blue "Catalogs" link below the article title.[e]
Î letter, me = eŷe sight = aŷe yes
Ìan person, cf. îron, silent r (the cricketer Ìan Bôtham - *Bôatəm - was known in some parts, accidentally, as 'Iron Bottom')
îceberg one word
Îceland -lənd
Icelándic
îcon
idêa *îdêə, cf. monosyllables pêa, têa, where the a is not sounded separately
ídeogram
idêólogy - î or í
idiosýncrasy
îdle lazy = îdol god = AmE îdyll idyllic
Idomenèo
ídyll BrE; AmE îdyll = îdle = îdol
ígnorance
ignŏre
illegálity
illícit illegal = elícit get
Íllinŏis *Íllinŏi
íll-thŏught-òut
illûsion, íl-, cf. allûsion, əl-
illûsive illusory = elûsive elude
ímage -íj
imaginâtion
imágíne
imbróglio *imbrólyo
immêdìately
imménse cf. eménd
ímmigrate cf. émigrate
ímpact noun, affect
impáct fix, wedge
impâle
impàla
ímpásse can be pronounced, French-style, *ámpásse
impêach
impéccable
impêrial
impéril
ímpetus
impŏrtance, impŏrtant
ímpotence, ímpotent
impresàrio - one hissing s
ímpress noun
impréss verb
improprîety
ímprovîse
improvisâtion BrE -əvî-, AmE -óví-
ímpudent -yû-
impûte ascribe cf. ínput put in *ímpùt
ín abséntia
inadvërtent
inbetwêen can be two words
íncense smoke
incénse anger
ínches *ínchíz
inchôâte ínk-
íncident
incidéntal
incidéntally
incîsor
incrédible
incúmbent cf. encúmber
indepéndent cf. depéndent adjective, depéndant noun
ín-dépth adjective
Índian - can be spelt without a capital when referring to American indians
Indiána
índicês, plural of índex
indîct *indîte, cf. éxtradîte
indígenous
indispénsable
índustry
indústrial
inévitable
infállible
ínfamous cf. fâmous
infátuâtion
inflámmatory -mm-
ín frònt of three words
ingênious, cf. gênius
ingénûous
Ingushétia *Ingushéttia: as yet too rare in English to have palatalised to -shêesha
inhérent or inhêrent
inhérit
inítial *iníshəl
inítiative *iníshətíve
ínjure cf. endûre
ínland adjective
inlánd adverb
ínn pub = ín preposition
inóculate
ínpùt put in *ímpùt, cf. impûte ascribe
inquîre, inquîry or enquîre, enquîry; AmE ínquiry = enquiry
ínroads
insâtiable
insístent
ín sítu
insoûciance
ín spîte óf three words
inståll (some AmE: instål)
instålment BrE; AmE instållment
instéad one word
insůre insurance = ensůre verify; BrE *inshåw, AmE *inshûr
insürgent cf. sürge
intáct one word, cf. ín fáct
intégral
íntegrate
intélligent
interáction
intercêde
intercéssor
interfêre
interfêrence
interlócutor
intërment burial cf. intërnment prison (minimal pair)
intërnal
internátional -áshnəl, cf. nâtion
internêcîne
ínternet
intërpret
intërpreter
ínterview
intestînal or intéstinal
íntimate adjective -ət
íntimâte verb
ínto *íntû or *íntə: one word - but ón to is still two
íntricacy
íntrìgue noun *íntrêeg
intrìgue verb *ín-trêeg
introspéction
inválid valid
ínvalid ill
invèigle
invént
ínventory *ínvəntry, cf. ínfantry
in-yer-fâce
îón electron cf. îron metal, *îən, silent r
Iôna *Î-ôna
îPód ® showing a trend towards internal capitalisation also seen in EastÉnders
Irān *Í-rân, cf. îron metal, silent r
Irânian or Irànian: Hillary Clinton used both pronunciations in her speech after the 2009 Iranian election, but probably the former is more common in BrE, the latter in AmE
Irāq *Í-rāk
Irāqi -kì
irâte = Î râte
Îreland BrE *Îələnd, cf. îsland *îlənd
Irênê or silent final e
iridéscent *írridéssant
îron metal BrE *îyən, cf. îón electron, Ìan person, Iràn country
irónic
îrony *îrənỳ
irresístible
irréverent
irrévocable
írrigate cf. erádicate
Îsaac *Îzək
Ísabél, -z-, like Márian, has an o variant, Ísobél
îsland *îlənd, cf. Îreland
Íslám Íz-
Islámic
Îslay *Îlə
îsle island *île = aîsle theatre
Îsle of Wîght *Île of Wîte
îsobar -ss-, cf. Ísobél = Ísabél, -z-
Ísrâel *Ísreâl
Isrâeli
íssue *íshû sounds less affected: *íssyû is a spelling pronunciation
Istanbùl or to please the Turks Istánbul cf. old spelling in Graham Greene’s novel title Stamboul Train
ísthmus
íts belonging to it = ít’s it is: ít’s for íts is probably the most common mistake of all, and an understandable one, as nouns in the genitive have 's: the dóg's tâil, but íts tâil. Compare the less notorious but similar whose of whom and who's who is, the latter similarly incorrectly used for the former
Îvan
Îvor
îvory
îvy plant = Îvy person