Sometimes a voice mispronounces a word—especially a name, brand term, or piece of technical vocabulary. Respellings give you a direct way to fix that by writing out exactly how a word should sound.

What are respellings?

A respelling is a phonetic representation of a word that guides how the voice pronounces it.

Respellings are commonly used for:

• Proper names
• Brand terms
• Technical vocabulary
• Acronyms
• Words the voice mispronounces

Respellings let you adjust pronunciation while keeping the written text intact.

How respellings work

A respelling describes:

• How the word should be broken into syllables
• Which syllable(s) should be emphasized

If you need to replace text that isn't phonetic—such as numbers, abbreviations, IDs, or phrases—use Replacements instead.

Using pronunciation suggestions

Before creating a custom respelling, check the Smart Toolbar for pronunciation suggestions. WellSaid provides two types:

Oxford Suggestions

Oxford Suggestions are based on pronunciation data from the Oxford dictionary. They cover over 251,000 words in British and American English—including industry-specific, uncommon, and complex terms—and often resolve ~90% of pronunciation issues quickly.

Smart Suggestions

Smart Suggestions are AI-generated pronunciation recommendations that help with words not commonly found in the dictionary:

• Uncommon names
• Brand terms
• Specialized vocabulary
• Words not covered by dictionary suggestions

Recommended workflow

When a word is mispronounced, follow these steps:

1. Highlight or double-click the word in the script.
2. Check the Smart Toolbar for Oxford or Smart pronunciation suggestions.
3. If no suggestions work, create a custom respelling. See Creating a respelling below.

Creating a respelling

To create a respelling using the Replacements panel:

1. Highlight or double-click the word in the editor.
2. In the Smart Toolbar, click + New replacement.
3. The Replacements panel opens in the right sidebar with the original word already filled in.
4. Enter the phonetic spelling in the Replacement field.
5. Turn on Phonetic Respelling.
6. Save the entry to your Pronunciation Library.

Saving respellings allows them to be reused across projects and ensures consistent pronunciation.

Respelling rules

When creating a respelling, you define:

• Syllable breaks — how the word should be divided
• Stress — which syllable should be emphasized

Syllable breaks: Use hyphens (-) to separate syllables.

Example:

mis-sis-SIP-ee

Stress: Use capital letters to indicate the emphasized syllable.

Example:

sask-ACH-oo-when

Most English words have at least one stressed syllable. Acronyms or brand names may have multiple.

Respelling Reference Charts

If you're unsure how to represent a sound, use the Respelling Reference Charts. They provide examples of common phonetic sounds and syllable patterns, and are especially helpful for:

• Unfamiliar names
• Specialized terminology
• Uncommon vowel or consonant sounds

See the Respellings Reference Charts for a full list of phonetic pronunciations.

Respellings vs. Replacements

Respellings and Replacements both affect how text is spoken, but they solve different problems.

Respellings

Respellings control how a word is pronounced using phonetic spelling. Use them when a word is spelled correctly but pronounced incorrectly.

Example:

Saskatchewan → sask-ACH-oo-when

Replacements

Replacements substitute one piece of text with another when the voice reads it. Use them when the written text does not match what should be spoken.

Example:

Original text: 1099-MISC
Spoken output: ten ninety-nine misc

Replacements are commonly used for:

• Numbers
• IDs or codes
• Abbreviations
• Phrases
• Words that should always be spoken a certain way

How they work together

Respellings are created within the Replacements system. A Replacement rule can either substitute text with different spoken words, or apply a phonetic respelling that controls pronunciation.

Turning on Phonetic Respelling converts the replacement rule into a pronunciation rule instead of a text substitution.

Use a Respelling when:

• A word is pronounced incorrectly
• You want phonetic control over pronunciation
• The word is a name, brand, or uncommon term

Use a Replacement when:

• The written text should be spoken differently
• You are working with numbers, codes, abbreviations, or phrases
• You want a pronunciation rule to apply consistently

For more information, see the Guide to Replacements.

Troubleshooting respelling errors

If a respelling doesn't work or a take fails to render, the issue is usually related to formatting or how the respelling was created.

To troubleshoot using the Replacements panel:

1. Highlight or double-click the word in the editor.
2. Click + New replacement in the Smart Toolbar.
3. Enter the phonetic spelling.
4. Turn on the Phonetic Respelling toggle.
5. Preview the pronunciation.
6. Save the entry to your Pronunciation Library.

If you're unsure how to represent a sound, refer to the Respellings Reference Charts.

Still getting an error?

If you previously added respellings to your Pronunciation Library that contain diacritics or special characters, pronunciation may fail. Try:

• Removing the special characters
• Updating the respelling in the Pronunciation Library page

FAQs

Q: What's the difference between a respelling and a replacement?
A: A respelling controls how a word is pronounced using phonetic spelling. A replacement swaps the written text with different spoken words. Both are created through the Replacements panel—enabling the Phonetic Respelling toggle converts a replacement into a pronunciation rule.

Q: Can I reuse a respelling across multiple projects?
A: Yes. Save the respelling to your Pronunciation Library, and it will apply consistently wherever that word appears across your projects.

Q: Why can't I use the letters Q or X in a respelling?
A: The respelling system uses phonetic sound mappings, and those sounds are represented by other characters. Refer to the Respellings Reference Charts to find the correct equivalent.

Q: What should I do if a pronunciation suggestion doesn't fix the issue?
A: If neither Oxford nor Smart Suggestions resolves the mispronunciation, create a custom respelling using the Replacements panel. Use the Respellings Reference Charts to help construct the phonetic spelling.