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Readwave

Pronunciations

Some words never sound right out of the box — acronyms, brand names, people's names, technical terms. The Pronunciations screen lets you teach Readwave how to say them. Once added, a pronunciation applies to every read, everywhere — the hotkey, the Queue, all of it.

How it works

A pronunciation is a simple rule: "when you see this word, say it like this." Readwave applies your rules to the text before it's spoken, so the fix is consistent no matter where the word shows up or which voice you use.

Open the Pronunciations screen

Click Pronunciations in the sidebar.

Add a pronunciation

  1. On the Pronunciations screen, choose Add (or the add/plus control).
  2. Fill in:
    • Word / phrase — the text as it appears in what you read (for example, SQL).
    • Say it as — how you want it pronounced, spelled the way it should sound (for example, sequel).
  3. Save.

The new rule takes effect immediately and is used the next time that word appears in anything you read.

Edit or remove a pronunciation

  • Edit — open an existing entry, change the "say it as" spelling, and save.
  • Remove — delete an entry you no longer want. The word goes back to its default pronunciation.

Examples

Word / phrase Say it as Why
SQL sequel Spell out the common spoken form of the acronym.
GIF jif Force your preferred pronunciation.
kubectl cube control Make a CLI tool name readable.
Niamh neev A name that isn't pronounced as it's spelled.
Readwave read for me Product and brand names.
i.e. that is Expand an abbreviation into words.
≈ or other symbols approximately Turn a symbol into a spoken word.

Tip: The "say it as" value is just text that Readwave will read with normal pronunciation rules. So if a word should sound like "sequel," type sequel — you don't need phonetic symbols.

Good things to add

  • Acronyms you want spoken as words (or spelled out letter by letter).
  • Names of people, places, and products that aren't spelled phonetically.
  • Technical terms and command-line tools.
  • Abbreviations you'd rather hear expanded.

Where pronunciations apply

Everywhere Readwave speaks:

  • Text read via the global hotkey.
  • Items played from the Queue.
  • Previews of your own text.

Your pronunciations persist across restarts, so you build up your personal dictionary once and keep it.

  • Voices — pronunciations work with every voice.
  • Settings — control what text Readwave reads in the first place.