Pronunciation

How to pronounce “abandon

“abandon” is pronounced /əˈbændən/ (uh-BAN-duhn) in American English and /ɐbandən/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “an”.
The sound

Say “abandon” in 3 beats

Say it like this

abandon

/əˈbændən/

The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /ɐbandən/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.

3 beats
  1. abə
  2. anbænstress
  3. dondən
IPA (American)
/əˈbændən/
IPA (British)
/ɐbandən/
Respelling
uh-BAN-duhn
Syllables
3 — ab-AN-don
Stress
Stress the second syllable: ab-AN-don. “an” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
noun, verb
Difficulty
Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/əˈbændən/

British

/ɐbandən/

No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.

Meaning

What “abandon” means

  1. noun

    the trait of lacking restraint or control; reckless freedom from inhibition or worry

    she danced with abandon

  2. noun

    a feeling of extreme emotional intensity

    the wildness of his anger

  3. verb

    forsake, leave behind

    We abandoned the old car in the empty parking lot

Say it in a sentence

She danced with complete abandon once the last guests had left.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

5 sounds, in the order you say them

Each sound has its own page: where the tongue goes, what it is usually confused with, and words to drill it on.

Questions

abandon”, answered

How do you pronounce “abandon”?

“abandon” is pronounced /əˈbændən/ (uh-BAN-duhn) in American English and /ɐbandən/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “an”. Build it as ab-AN-don, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “abandon” have?

3: ab · an · don. The beat lands on the second, “an”.

Is “abandon” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /əˈbændən/ (uh-BAN-duhn); British English says /ɐbandən/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “abandon” mean?

As a noun: the trait of lacking restraint or control; reckless freedom from inhibition or worry For example: “she danced with abandon” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “abandon”?

Stress the second syllable: ab-AN-don. “an” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “abandon” and see every sound

Record it once and sayit lines your audio up against the target sound by sound — what landed, what slipped, and what it sounded like instead.