fair · fare
Homophones — both pronounced /fɛr/. Same sound, different spelling, different meaning.
fair and fare are homophones — they sound completely identical: /fɛr/. The spelling changes, but the pronunciation does not. Only context tells you which meaning is intended.
adjective / noun — just, equal / a carnival — 'That's not fair!' · 'county fair'
mouth shape
starts at /ɛ/ (short e), then glides into an r-coloured vowel — like 'bear' or 'care'
fair
/fɛr/
vowel length
noun — the cost of transport — 'the train fare is £12'
mouth shape
identical pronunciation to fair — same /ɛr/ sound — context tells you the meaning
fare
/fɛr/
vowel length
Key difference
No pronunciation difference — both are /fɛr/. The challenge is spelling and meaning: fair (just / a carnival) vs fare(transport cost / food). Use context: “Is that fair?” vs “What is the bus fare?”
Example sentences
fair:“It’s not fair that she got a bigger piece.”
fair:“We went to the summer fair at the village green.”
fare:“The taxi fare was much higher than expected.”
fare:“How did you fare in the exam? (= how did you do?)”
Hear it in a sentence
“She was known for making fair decisions even in difficult situations.”
“The taxi fare from the airport to the city centre was higher than expected.”
Hear it in the wild
Real speech from native speakers — the most reliable way to check a pronunciation, since automated audio can vary by device and browser.
fair
Hear native speakers say “fair” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
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fare
Hear native speakers say “fare” in real sentences — news, lectures, and podcasts.
Opens YouTube-sourced clips in a new tab.
How teachers explain this
Approved tips from the community, sorted by helpfulness
Word families
fair family ▸
fare family ▸
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