Alexa devices are common fixtures in many homes, capable of doing a wide variety of tasks using only your voice as input.
Ever since the original release of the Amazon Echo, both the variety of devices and the variety of features they have has expanded exponentially.
One of these features is the ability for Alexa to not only recognize you by your voice, but also identify you by name when it hears you. But how does this work? And how do you make Alexa pronounce your name correctly?
Alexa devices can usually do pretty well with recognizing how to properly pronounce your name, but it may run into complications if the spelling of your name is unusual, or if the name is less common. One way to make Alexa pronounce your name correctly is to spell the name in your Alexa profile the way you want it to be pronounced. So, for instance, if your name is Mai, but Alexa decides to pronounce it as ‘May’ instead, you could consider spelling the name as ‘My’ in your profile to make it pronounce it the correct way.
But are there any other ways to make it remember how to pronounce it right? And if not, will there be?
How to Make Alexa Pronounce My Name Correctly
If you are having trouble making your Alexa device pronounce your name correctly, one of the best ways to fix this is to simply open the Alexa app to change the name on your profile.
Once you have opened it, tap on the Communication icon near the bottom of the screen. From here, tap on the icon in the top-right part of the screen to access your profile information. Underneath your name will be an option called ‘My Communication Settings’.
Tap on that, and then tap on the ‘Edit’ option in the top-right corner of the screen. From here, you can switch your name to something else.
Whether this is changing the name completely or changing it so that Alexa will pronounce your name more accurately. Select the ‘Save’ option, and you should be good to go.
To make sure that this actually worked, and that Alexa is going to pronounce it correctly, ask Alexa what your name is. If it worked, she should reply with “I’m talking to [your updated name].
This is [account owner]’s account.” One thing to consider when changing the name, however, is that other people who you communicate with via an Alexa device may not recognize who this is. As such, be sure to either choose a name they will recognize, or let them know that you changed your name beforehand.
Why doesn’t Alexa know how to pronounce my name correctly?
The most common reasons why Alexa does not know how to pronounce your name correctly usually involve either the name being an uncommon one, the pronunciation being uncommon, or the spelling of the name being uncommon. Thus, from just your profile name, it may pronounce your name incorrectly. You can use the above-mentioned steps to change your name to a more phonetic spelling of what your name might be (such as spelling your name ‘My’ instead of ‘Mai’ in order for it to not call you ‘May’). However, that is not the only way you can fix this issue.
How to get Alexa to recognize my voice
If you have multiple users on the same account, you may have noticed that one user is being referred to by their name just from hearing their voice, while you cannot.
This is because they trained Alexa to be able to recognize their voice, and teach her to tie that voice to a certain name. To do this, you need to open the Alexa app and look for the ‘More’ icon, where you will find the Settings option. Navigate through your Settings by first going to ‘Account Settings’ and then ‘Recognized Voices’ to begin the process of creating a voice profile for yourself.
Before you start, make sure that you are signed in and not someone else. Otherwise, you may cause their profile to recognize your voice, but not their own. You can do this by going to the ‘Your Profile’ option in Settings.
If you are the one who is signed in, you will see your name. In the ‘Recognized Voices’ section, continue with the ‘Teach Alexa your voice’ screen, and then push Continue. Alexa will present you with a variety of common phrases for you to repeat. Speak the phrase, and Alexa will then move on to another phrase. Keep doing this until Alexa tells you that your voice profile has been created, and then press ‘Done’.
If you want Alexa to continue improving her voice recognition, you can enable Automatic Voice Recognition, which allows Alexa to generate more personalized experiences.
Whichever way you set up your voice profile, Alexa will recognize you by your voice, and make efforts to provide an experience that it believes best suits your needs instead of the needs of someone else in the household.
Does Alexa have difficulties pronouncing certain other words?
Beyond getting your name wrong, Alexa can also struggle with properly pronouncing certain words. This is usually not going to be an issue, though if a mispronunciation is bad enough, it may make it difficult for you to understand what she is conveying.
This may more commonly occur where language and dialect are concerned, as certain words may have different pronunciations in other areas that make Alexa’s pronunciation make no sense. You can check to see what Alexa said on the Alexa app, which will show you text records of what you and Alexa said.
Where can I access the Alexa app?
While the Alexa app is typically used on mobile devices like a phone or tablet, it is possible to use it in other places as well. For example, if you want to use your Alexa app on the computer, that is entirely doable. The app can be downloaded from the Microsoft Store.
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