TTS Input Tips | Respeecher API Documentation

How you format the text in a TTS request affects pronunciation and pacing. If a word comes out wrong or the output audio doesn’t sound natural, try the tips below.

Tip	Applies to
Spell words phonetically	All models
Write acronyms in capitals	All models
Write out numbers	All models
Use punctuation for pauses	All models
Break up long sentences	All models except Ukrainian
Avoid special symbols	All models
Mark stresses	Ukrainian

Spell words phonetically

If a word is mispronounced, replace it with a phonetic spelling that guides the model toward the right sound.

Instead of	Try
`Aoife`	`ee-fah`

Write acronyms in capitals

If an acronym isn’t read correctly, write it in capital letters, separate the letters with periods, or both.

Instead of	Try
`brb`	`BRB` or `B.R.B.`

Write out numbers

Write numbers in words rather than numerals. This gives more stable results.

Instead of	Try
My dad’s yacht cost $1,000,000.	My dad’s yacht cost one million dollars.

Use punctuation for pauses

Commas, dashes and ellipses change the rhythm and add natural pauses.

I get where you're coming from, but I... um... don't know what to say.

Break up long sentences

Long or complex sentences are harder to read clearly. Split them into shorter ones.

Instead of	Try
He arrived late because the train was delayed and stuck outside the station for over an hour.	He arrived late because the train was delayed. It was stuck outside the station for over an hour.

Avoid special symbols

Replace special symbols like ( ), @, #, ", $, etc., with words, or rephrase the sentence without them.

Instead of	Try
He works (as does his brother) at the bank.	He works at the bank. His brother works there too.
Our #1 priority is safety.	Our number one priority is safety.

Mark stresses

With the Ukrainian model, stress marks let you control where the stress falls in a word. This is useful for homographs or names where the model might otherwise guess wrong.

A stress mark is placed immediately before the vowel that should be stressed. You can mark stress in any of three equivalent ways:

Stress token — insert a <stress> token before the vowel, e.g. йог<stress>урт.
Plus sign — insert a + before the vowel, inside the word, e.g. йог+урт.
Unicode combining accent — place a combining acute accent (U+0301) after the vowel, e.g. йогу́рт.

If a single mark doesn’t take effect, you can repeat it to push the model harder toward placing the stress, e.g. йог<stress><stress>урт or йог++урт.

Repeated marks only increase how strongly the stress is enforced — they do not add a second or secondary stress. Start with a single mark and only add more if it isn’t honored. More than three repeats is not recommended.