Apple’s Siri virtual assistant certainly makes using an iPhone a lot easier, but just like us humans Siri has a few quirks.
One Siri quirk that drives me up the wall is how she tends to mis-pronounce some names on the Contacts List. For some reason it just grates on my nerves.
The good news is you can train Siri to pronounce difficult names correctly, using one of the two methods listed below:Note: If one method gives less than desirable results, give the other one a try.
Method 1: Speak the name to Siri and have her mimic it.
1 – Alert Siri by saying the words “Hey Siri“.
2 – Speak the name you want to teach Siri to pronounce. Siri should respond by displaying the name on the screen.
3 – After the name appears, tell Siri “You’re pronouncing it wrong“.
Siri will respond by asking you to speak the correct pronunciation of the contact’s first name. Go ahead and speak the name as clearly as you can, using the correct pronunciation.
4 – Siri will respond by listing several possible pronunciations of her own, based upon her interpretation of the way you pronounced it yourself. Select the pronunciation that sounds the best.
5 – If none of Siri’s suggested pronunciations are adequate you can start the process over by tapping Tell Siri again.
6 – After Siri has “learned” the correct pronunciation of the contact’s first name, repeat the steps above for the middle and last names (if they are included in the Contact info).
Method 2: Add the phonetic pronunciation of a name in the options for the contact.
1 – Open the Contact Card for the contact that Siri is having trouble pronouncing.
2 – Tap the Edit button.
3 – Scroll down and tap the add field button.
4 – Tap Phonetic First Name and enter the phonetic spelling of the contact’s first name (as best you can).
5 – If the contact has a last name listed as well, tap Phonetic Last Name and enter its phonetic spelling.
6 – Tap Done.
7 – Check to see if Siri now pronounces this contact’s name correctly. If not, repeat the steps above and try a slightly different phonetic spelling.
That’s all there is to it. Now you know how to teach Siri how to correctly pronounce all of your contacts’ names.