Pronunciation

How to pronounce “affordable

“affordable” is pronounced /əˈfɔɹdəbəl/ (uh-FAWR-duh-buhl) in American English and /ɐfɔːdəbəl/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “for”.
The sound

Say “affordable” in 4 beats

Say it like this

affordable

/əˈfɔɹdəbəl/

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

4 beats
  1. afə
  2. forfɔɹstress
  3. dab
  4. lebəl
IPA (American)
/əˈfɔɹdəbəl/
IPA (British)
/ɐfɔːdəbəl/
Respelling
uh-FAWR-duh-buhl
Syllables
4 — af-FOR-dab-le
Stress
Stress the second syllable: af-FOR-dab-le. “for” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
adjective
Difficulty
Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/əˈfɔɹdəbəl/

British

/ɐfɔːdəbəl/

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

Meaning

What “affordable” means

  1. adjective

    that you have the financial means for

    low-cost housing

Say it in a sentence

Affordable housing is scarce anywhere near the city centre.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

7 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

affordable”, answered

How do you pronounce “affordable”?

“affordable” is pronounced /əˈfɔɹdəbəl/ (uh-FAWR-duh-buhl) in American English and /ɐfɔːdəbəl/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “for”. Build it as af-FOR-dab-le, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “affordable” have?

4: af · for · dab · le. The beat lands on the second, “for”.

Is “affordable” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /əˈfɔɹdəbəl/ (uh-FAWR-duh-buhl); British English says /ɐfɔːdəbəl/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “affordable” mean?

As an adjective: that you have the financial means for For example: “low-cost housing”

Where is the stress in “affordable”?

Stress the second syllable: af-FOR-dab-le. “for” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “affordable” and see every sound

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