ɪf ðə sˈɪkstiːnbˈɪt dˈeɪɾə vˈæljuː stˈɑːɹts æɾ ɐn ˈɑːd ɐdɹˈɛs, ðə pɹˈɑːsɛsɚ mˈeɪ nˈiːd tə pɚfˈɔːɹm tˈuː mˈɛmɚɹi ɹˈiːd sˈaɪkəlz tə lˈoʊd ðə vˈæljuː ˌɪntʊ ɪt, ˈaɪ.ˈiː. wˈʌn fɚðə lˈoʊ ɐdɹˈɛs θɹˈoʊɪŋ ɐwˈeɪ hˈæf ʌv ɪt ænd ðˈɛn ɐ sˈɛkənd ɹˈiːd sˈaɪkəl tə lˈoʊd ðə hˈaɪ ɐdɹˈɛs θɹˈoʊɪŋ ɐwˈeɪ ɐɡˈɛn hˈæf ʌvðə ɹᵻtɹˈiːvd dˈeɪɾə.
If the 16-bit data value starts at an odd address, the processor may need to perform two memory read cycles to load the value into it, i.e. one for the low address (throwing away half of it) and then a second read cycle to load the high address (throwing away again half of the retrieved data).