Pronouncing is a lightweight Python library providing a simple interface to the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. It allows users to programmatically access phonetic pronunciations, find rhyming words, count syllables, and search for words based on phonetic patterns. The current version is 0.2.0, with releases historically being infrequent, the last major update in 2018.
pip install pronouncingVerified import paths — ran on the pinned version, not inferred.
This quickstart demonstrates how to find rhymes, retrieve phonetic pronunciations in ARPAbet, and count syllables for a given word using the `pronouncing` library.
Ensure `cmudict` is installed alongside `pronouncing`. `pip install pronouncing` should handle this, but manual intervention might be needed for older environments or direct source installations. `pip install cmudict`
Applications using `phones_for_word()` should implement their own criteria for selecting the appropriate pronunciation from the returned list, based on their specific use case (e.g., always taking the first, or applying a custom ranking).
Be aware of the library's maintenance status. For projects requiring active development, frequent updates, or new linguistic features, consider alternatives or be prepared to fork and maintain the library yourself.
Install the package using pip: `pip install pronouncing`
Always check if the list returned by 'pronouncing' functions is not empty before trying to access its elements. For example: `pronunciations = pronouncing.phones_for_word('nonexistent'); if pronunciations: print(pronunciations[0])`Ensure all text inputs and file operations explicitly specify the correct encoding that matches the data (e.g., 'latin-1', 'cp1252', or the actual encoding of your source text). When reading files, use `open('filename', encoding='correct_encoding')`.