How to pronounce “ambiguous”
Say “ambiguous” in 4 beats
ambiguous
/æmˈbɪɡjuəs/
The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /ambɪɡjuːəs/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.
- æmæm
- bɪɡbɪɡstress
- juju
- əsəs
- IPA (American)
- /æmˈbɪɡjuəs/
- IPA (British)
- /ambɪɡjuːəs/
- Respelling
- am-BIG-yoo-uhs
- Syllables
- 4 — æm-BꞮꞬ-ju-əs
- Stress
- Stress the second syllable: æm-BꞮꞬ-ju-əs. “bɪɡ” 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
American and British are not the same here
/æmˈbɪɡjuəs/
/ambɪɡjuːəs/
No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.
What “ambiguous” means
- adjective
open to two or more interpretations; or of uncertain nature or significance; or (often) intended to mislead
“an equivocal statement”
- adjective
having more than one possible meaning
“ambiguous words”
- adjective
having no intrinsic or objective meaning; not organized in conventional patterns
“an ambiguous situation with no frame of reference”
Say it in a sentence
“Her reply was ambiguous, so nobody knew whether to book tickets.”“ambiguous”, answered
How do you pronounce “ambiguous”?
“ambiguous” is pronounced /æmˈbɪɡjuəs/ (am-BIG-yoo-uhs) in American English and /ambɪɡjuːəs/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “bɪɡ”. Build it as æm-BꞮꞬ-ju-əs, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.
How many syllables does “ambiguous” have?
4: æm · bɪɡ · ju · əs. The beat lands on the second, “bɪɡ”.
Is “ambiguous” said differently in British English?
Yes. American English says /æmˈbɪɡjuəs/ (am-BIG-yoo-uhs); British English says /ambɪɡjuːəs/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.
What does “ambiguous” mean?
As an adjective: open to two or more interpretations; or of uncertain nature or significance; or (often) intended to mislead For example: “an equivocal statement” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.
Where is the stress in “ambiguous”?
Stress the second syllable: æm-BꞮꞬ-ju-əs. “bɪɡ” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Now say “ambiguous” 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.