pronunciation

Meanings

1. 1nouncountable or uncountable

   The way a word or language is spoken, including the sounds, stress and rhythm used.

   Grammar: Countable for a single word's sounding (two pronunciations of tomato); uncountable for general skill (his pronunciation is good).

   Patterns

   • the pronunciation of something
   • correct pronunciation

   The pronunciation of the word colonel surprises many learners.

   Her French pronunciation is so good that people think she is a native speaker.

   The dictionary gives two pronunciations for the word schedule.

2. 2nouncountabletechnical

   The symbols or guide in a dictionary that show how a word is said.

   Grammar: Often listed in the entry for a word: check the pronunciation.

   Patterns

   • look up the pronunciation

   I looked up the pronunciation before reading the name aloud.

   The online dictionary plays an audio pronunciation when you click.

Word forms

Common combinations

correct pronunciation

The teacher helped us practice the correct pronunciation.

poor pronunciation

Poor pronunciation can make a sentence hard to understand.

improve your pronunciation

Reading aloud will improve your pronunciation.

standard pronunciation

The standard pronunciation of the word differs between regions.

pronunciation guide

The menu had a pronunciation guide beside each dish.

American pronunciation

The American pronunciation of water has a softer middle sound.

Synonyms and how they differ

enunciation

Enunciation focuses on how clearly each sound is spoken, while pronunciation refers to whether the word is said the standard way.

diction

Diction is about clarity and style of speech overall and is often used for actors and speakers.

articulation

Articulation stresses the physical production of sounds, so it is used more in speech therapy.

accent

Accent refers to the typical pronunciation of a region or group, not the sounds of one word.

Word family

pronounce verb

to say a word in a particular way

pronounceable adjective

able to be said easily

unpronounceable adjective

too hard to say

mispronounce verb

to say a word incorrectly

mispronunciation noun

an incorrect way of saying a word

Commonly confused: pronunciation or pronounciation?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “pronunciation”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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