How to say "I'm very sorry." in Cebuano
Side view / Front view of mouth & tongue animation
The mouth and tongue animation requires a modern browser with SVG support. If it isn't displaying, you can watch the full pronunciation animation as a video instead — it shows the same real-time articulatory movements synchronized with the audio.
Articulatory Animation Breakdown
Articulation: Lips press firmly together, sealing airflow completely. Tongue is neutral and uninvolved. Jaw is nearly closed. Voicing is absent — vocal cords stay apart. Air pressure builds behind the lips, then releases in a brief burst.
Transition: As the lips release, the jaw drops open and the tongue relaxes flat for the /a/ vowel.
Role in phrase: This stop is unstressed and brief — the release is light and completely unaspirated.
Articulation: Lips are unrounded and neutral. Tongue body is low and central, resting flat. Tongue tip rests behind the lower front teeth. Jaw is fully open. Airflow is continuous and voiced.
Transition: The jaw closes slightly as the tongue tip shoots up to contact the alveolar ridge for /s/.
Role in phrase: This syllable is reduced — the tongue doesn't fully reach its target position, and duration is clipped short.
Articulation: Tongue tip raises close to the alveolar ridge, creating a narrow channel. Lips are slightly spread. Jaw is nearly closed. Voicing is absent. Air forced through the narrow gap creates a continuous hiss.
Transition: The tongue tip releases from the alveolar ridge while the tongue body stays high and front for /e/.
Role in phrase: As part of the stressed syllable, this consonant is articulated firmly with a crisp, clear release.
Articulation: Lips are unrounded and slightly spread. Tongue front is raised to a mid-high position toward the hard palate. Jaw is mid-open. Airflow is continuous and voiced.
Transition: The jaw closes slightly as the tongue tip shoots up to contact the alveolar ridge for /n/.
Role in phrase: This syllable carries the primary word stress — the jaw opens slightly wider, duration extends, and the tongue position is more precise and held longer.
Articulation: Tongue tip presses against the alveolar ridge, blocking oral airflow. Lips are neutral. Airflow redirects completely through the nose. Jaw is slightly open. Voicing is continuous.
Transition: The articulators quickly shift position to prepare for the subsequent /s/ sound.
Role in phrase: As part of the stressed syllable, this consonant is articulated firmly with a crisp, clear release.
Articulation: Tongue tip raises close to the alveolar ridge, creating a narrow channel. Lips are slightly spread. Jaw is nearly closed. Voicing is absent. Air forced through the narrow gap creates a continuous hiss.
Transition: The articulators quickly shift position to prepare for the subsequent /j/ sound.
Role in phrase: This stop is unstressed and brief — the release is light and completely unaspirated.
Articulation: Lips are slightly spread. Tongue front pushes high toward the hard palate. Jaw is nearly closed. Voicing is continuous. Air flows smoothly over the tongue.
Transition: The articulators quickly shift position to prepare for the subsequent /a/ sound.
Role in phrase: This stop is unstressed and brief — the release is light and completely unaspirated.
Articulation: Lips are unrounded and neutral. Tongue body is low and central, resting flat. Tongue tip rests behind the lower front teeth. Jaw is fully open. Airflow is continuous and voiced.
Transition: The jaw closes slightly as the tongue tip shoots up to contact the alveolar ridge for /n/.
Role in phrase: This syllable is reduced — the tongue doesn't fully reach its target position, and duration is clipped short.
Articulation: Tongue tip presses against the alveolar ridge, blocking oral airflow. Lips are neutral. Airflow redirects completely through the nose. Jaw is slightly open. Voicing is continuous.
Transition: The tongue tip drops and the jaw opens wide to transition into the open /a/ vowel.
Role in phrase: This stop is unstressed and brief — the release is light and completely unaspirated.
Articulation: Lips are unrounded and neutral. Tongue body is low and central, resting flat. Tongue tip rests behind the lower front teeth. Jaw is fully open. Airflow is continuous and voiced.
Transition: The tongue body pulls back and up against the soft palate to seal the airflow for /k/.
Role in phrase: This syllable is reduced — the tongue doesn't fully reach its target position, and duration is clipped short.
Articulation: Tongue back rises to press against the soft palate (velum), completely blocking airflow. Lips are neutral. Jaw is slightly open. Voicing is absent. Air pressure builds and releases in a burst.
Transition: The tongue back drops completely away from the velum and the jaw opens for /a/.
Role in phrase: This consonant is articulated naturally without extra emphasis, moving quickly into the next sound.
Articulation: Lips are unrounded and neutral. Tongue body is low and central, resting flat. Tongue tip rests behind the lower front teeth. Jaw is fully open. Airflow is continuous and voiced.
Transition: The vocal cords suddenly snap shut, abruptly cutting off the vowel for the glottal stop /ʔ/.
Role in phrase: This vowel is unstressed and brief — it functions as a fast glide into the rest of the word.
Articulation: No lip or tongue movement at all. The vocal cords themselves press together and block airflow at the larynx. There is a moment of complete silence — no air, no vibration — before the next vowel begins.
Transition: The glottal closure releases directly into /a/ — the vocal tract is already in position, so voicing resumes instantly with no transition movement.
Role in phrase: The silence here is deliberate — it creates a hard boundary that makes the following nuclear-accented syllable land with maximum emphasis.
Articulation: Lips are unrounded and neutral. Tongue body is low and central, resting flat. Tongue tip rests behind the lower front teeth. Jaw is fully open. Airflow is continuous and voiced.
Transition: The articulators quickly shift position to prepare for the subsequent /j/ sound.
Role in phrase: This syllable carries the nuclear accent (the strongest stress in the phrase) — the jaw opens wider, duration extends significantly, and the tongue position is held longer with maximal precision.
Articulation: Lips are slightly spread. Tongue front pushes high toward the hard palate. Jaw is nearly closed. Voicing is continuous. Air flows smoothly over the tongue.
Transition: The articulators quickly shift position to prepare for the subsequent /o/ sound.
Role in phrase: This consonant is articulated naturally without extra emphasis, moving quickly into the next sound.
Articulation: Lips round and protrude slightly forward. Tongue body pulls back and rises toward the soft palate (velum), without touching it. Tongue tip rests low, away from the teeth. Jaw is mid-open. Airflow is continuous and voiced.
Transition: The vocal tract relaxes as voicing ends, returning to a neutral resting position.
Role in phrase: This vowel is unstressed and brief — it functions as a fast glide into the rest of the word.
Articulation descriptions are based on established phonetic properties of each IPA segment, cross-referenced against native Cebuano speaker recordings. Tongue position, jaw height, lip rounding, and airflow direction reflect standard phonetic descriptions for these sounds as they appear in Cebuano speech.
IPA & Pronunciation of "Pasensya na kaayo."
This audio was produced using professional-grade speech synthesis calibrated to Cebuano phonology. Pronunciation accuracy — including stress placement, vowel quality, and natural rhythm — was reviewed against native Cebuano (Bisaya) speaker recordings. Playback at 0.5× speed is recommended for detailed study.
Acoustic Speech Visualization
Glottal stops (ʔ) appear 1 time in this phrase. It appears at ~0.93 sec in the word "kaayo.", before /a/. In the waveform, it is visible as sharp dips to near-zero amplitude lasting 30–50ms. In practice: let the previous syllable finish, close your throat for a half-beat, then open directly into the vowel. Skipping the glottal stop makes the phrase sound like words run together rather than distinct words.
| Syllable / Phoneme | Timing | Notes |
|---|---|---|
//pa/·/sen/·/sja// | 0.00–0.56s | 3 syllables, 8 phonemes |
/p/ | 0.00–0.08s | Voiceless consonant — bilabial plosive — unstressed syllable /pa/ produced at ~65 dB |
/a/ | 0.08–0.16s | Voiced vowel — wide open mouth with tongue in the center and relaxed lips — unstressed /pa/ with an intensity of ~71 dB and pitch of ~107 Hz |
/s/ | 0.16–0.24s | Voiceless consonant — alveolar fricative — stronger acoustic attack and reinforced closure timing (0.08 s) inside stressed syllable /sen/ |
/en/ | 0.24–0.40s | Voiced sequence — partially closed mouth with tongue at the front and relaxed lips, alveolar nasal — marked as stressed by its longer duration (~240 ms vs ~160 ms for the unstressed /sja/) |
/s/ | 0.40–0.48s | Voiceless consonant — alveolar fricative — unstressed syllable /sja/ recorded at ~67 dB |
/ja/ | 0.48–0.56s | Voiced sequence — palatal approximant, wide open mouth with tongue in the center and relaxed lips — unstressed syllable /sja/ with an acoustic profile of ~78 dB and ~151 Hz |
//na// | 0.61–0.72s | 1 syllable, 2 phonemes |
/na/ | 0.61–0.72s | Voiced sequence — reduced intensity (~78 dB) across the cluster with a compact amplitude envelope; pitch remains flat at ~131 Hz on the vowel, consistent with unstressed /·na/ |
//ka/·/ʔa/·/jo// | 0.80–1.44s | 3 syllables, 6 phonemes |
/k/ | 0.80–0.88s | Voiceless consonant — velar plosive — unstressed syllable /ka/ with an intensity of ~70 dB |
/a/ | 0.88–0.93s | Voiced vowel — wide open mouth with tongue in the center and relaxed lips — unstressed syllable /ka/ with ~76 dB intensity and ~148 Hz pitch |
/ʔ/ | 0.93–0.96s | First glottal stop — vocal energy is momentarily choked off to minimal levels (often < 20 dB) before /a/ |
/a/ | 0.96–1.06s | Voiced vowel — wide open mouth with tongue in the center and relaxed lips — this syllable is stressed |
/jo/ | 1.06–1.28s | Voiced sequence — palatal approximant, partially closed mouth with tongue at the back and round lips — unstressed syllable /jo/ recorded at ~74 dB and ~94 Hz |
Syllable boundary positions and segment widths in this visualization are derived from durational measurements taken from native Cebuano speaker recordings, not estimated. Timing ratios reflect actual phonetic data. Learn how we build our acoustic pronunciation visualizations →
Syllabic Stress Visualization
Syllable stress pattern and pitch contour derived from acoustic measurements of native Cebuano speech. Dot size reflects relative duration and prominence; the curve shows how fundamental frequency (F0) moves across syllables in natural Bisaya pronunciation.
Native Speakers Pronounce: Pasensya na kaayo.
The video above features a native Cebuano (Bisaya) speaker for real-world pronunciation reference. Comparing your production against a native speaker is one of the most effective ways to refine accuracy in stress, vowel quality, and natural speech rhythm. Video sourced from the @luna_speakcebuano.bisaya YouTube channel.
Editorial Notes
How this pronunciation entry was made
- Pronunciation audio generated via professional speech synthesis, then calibrated against native Cebuano speaker recordings.
- IPA transcription derived from acoustic/phonetic analysis, not transliteration
- Articulatory descriptions cross-checked against Cebuano phonology documentation
- Reviewed by a language learning advisor before publishing
Produced by
Reviewed by
Native speaker reference
