how to pronounce twelve

/twɛlv/

audio example by a male speaker

audio example by a female speaker

the above transcription of twelve is a detailed (narrow) transcription according to the rules of the International Phonetic Association; you can find a description of each symbol by clicking the phoneme buttons in the secction below.

twelve is pronounced in one syllable

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1. example pitch curve for pronunciation of twelve

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video examples of twelve pronunciation

An example use of twelve in a speech by a native speaker of british english:

“… just like he was twelve years ago mr …”

meanings of twelve

noun:

Police; law enforcement, especially a narcotics officer.
A jury (normally composed of twelve persons).
A twelve-bore gun.
A group of twelve items.

numeral:

The cardinal number occurring after eleven and before thirteen, represented in Arabic numerals as 12 and in Roman numerals as XII.
Law enforcement; the police.

twelve frequency in english - B1 level of CEFR

the word twelve occurs in english on average 65.8 times per one million words; this frequency warrants it to be in the study list for B1 level of language mastery according to CEFR, the Common European Framework of Reference.