Toronto, Ontario and most of English Canada
The Canadian accent
Standard Canadian English is remarkably uniform from Ontario to British Columbia. Its two defining features are Canadian Raising — the vowels in “about” and “price” lift before voiceless consonants, so “house” and “houses” differ — and the merger of “cot” and “caught”, which Canada completed long before most of the United States.
Take the quiz and see how close your accent is →
How to recognise a Canadian accent
- Canadian Raising: “out” and “about” raise; “loud” does not.
- “Cot” and “caught” sound the same.
- Rhotic R and T-flapping, as in general American speech.
- Canadian vocabulary: “washroom”, “toque”, “runners”, “eh”.
Also known as Canadian accent, Toronto accent, Ontario accent, Canadian English. Spoken in Toronto, Ontario and most of English Canada, Canada.
The Canadian pronunciation fingerprint
These are the answers the quiz expects from a Canadian speaker on its 14 pronunciation questions. Where a feature varies within the region, more than one answer counts as a match.
“bath” takes the short vowel of “cat” — no trap–bath split
The Trap–Bath Split: Does “Bath” Rhyme With “Cat” or “Father”?
rhotic — the R at the end of “car” is pronounced
“put” and “putt” have different vowels — the foot–strut split
a quick D-like tap in “bottle” — T-flapping
“cot” and “caught” rhyme — the cot–caught merger
The Cot–Caught Merger: Do “Cot” and “Caught” Sound the Same?
“Mary”, “marry” and “merry” all sound the same
the vowel in “day” glides
the vowel in “go” glides
a true TH at the start of “three”
the H in “house” is pronounced
yod-dropping — “tune” sounds like “toon”
“fur” and “fair” stay distinct
“beer” and “bear” stay distinct
“happy” ends on a long “-ee” — happy-tensing
Everyday words in Toronto, Ontario and most of English Canada
| Question | Usual answer |
|---|---|
| What do you usually call a sweet carbonated drink? | Pop |
| What do you call shoes worn for sport or exercise? | Sneakers |
| What do you usually call the main evening meal? | Dinner |
| What do you call a small, round piece of bread for one person? | Roll |
| What do you call thin strips of potato served hot and fried? | Fries |
| What is your general word for small sugary treats? | Candy |
| What do you call the wheeled basket used in a supermarket? | Shopping cart |
| What do you call restaurant food collected to eat elsewhere? | Takeout |
| What do you call a public fixture you drink water from? | Water fountain |
| What do you call a small neighbourhood shop selling everyday items? | Convenience store |
| How do you usually address a group of people informally? | You guys |
| What do you call the household container for unwanted rubbish? | Garbage can |
Speakers with a Canadian accent
Drake
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
A Toronto reference profile; Drake was born and raised in the city.
Accent profiles are anchored to primary-source regional recordings from the International Dialects of English Archive, not to any individual performance.
Is my accent Canadian?
The only way to answer that against real data is to compare your own speech to the profile. The quiz takes about four minutes: answer 26 questions, pin the town where you grew up, and see your closest accent matches ranked by how well they fit — plus where people who answer like you actually live.