Pronunciation

How to pronounce “anomaly

“anomaly” is pronounced /əˈnɑməli/ (uh-NAH-muh-lee) in American English and /ɐnɒməli/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “om”.
The sound

Say “anomaly” in 4 beats

Say it like this

anomaly

/əˈnɑməli/

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

4 beats
  1. anə
  2. omstress
  3. al
  4. yli
IPA (American)
/əˈnɑməli/
IPA (British)
/ɐnɒməli/
Respelling
uh-NAH-muh-lee
Syllables
4 — an-OM-al-y
Stress
Stress the second syllable: an-OM-al-y. “om” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
noun
Difficulty
Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/əˈnɑməli/

British

/ɐnɒməli/

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

Meaning

What “anomaly” means

  1. noun

    deviation from the normal or common order or form or rule

  2. noun

    a person who is unusual

  3. noun

    (astronomy) position of a planet as defined by its angular distance from its perihelion (as observed from the sun)

Say it in a sentence

One warm night in January is an anomaly worth recording.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

6 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

anomaly”, answered

How do you pronounce “anomaly”?

“anomaly” is pronounced /əˈnɑməli/ (uh-NAH-muh-lee) in American English and /ɐnɒməli/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “om”. Build it as an-OM-al-y, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “anomaly” have?

4: an · om · al · y. The beat lands on the second, “om”.

Is “anomaly” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /əˈnɑməli/ (uh-NAH-muh-lee); British English says /ɐnɒməli/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “anomaly” mean?

As a noun: deviation from the normal or common order or form or rule For example: “One warm night in January is an anomaly worth recording.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “anomaly”?

Stress the second syllable: an-OM-al-y. “om” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “anomaly” 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.