How to pronounce “apprehensive”
Say “apprehensive” in 4 beats
apprehensive
/ˌæpɹɪˈhɛnsɪv/
The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /apɹɪhɛnsɪv/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.
- ææ
- pɹɪpɹɪ
- hɛnhɛnstress
- sɪvsɪv
- IPA (American)
- /ˌæpɹɪˈhɛnsɪv/
- IPA (British)
- /apɹɪhɛnsɪv/
- Also accepted
- /ˌæpɹiˈhɛnsɪv/
- Respelling
- a-pri-HEN-siv
- Syllables
- 4 — æ-pɹɪ-HƐN-sɪv
- Stress
- Stress the third syllable: æ-pɹɪ-HƐN-sɪv. “hɛn” 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
/ˌæpɹɪˈhɛnsɪv/
/apɹɪhɛnsɪv/
No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.
What “apprehensive” means
- adjective
quick to understand; - Nathaniel Hawthorne
“a kind and apprehensive friend”
- adjective
mentally upset over possible misfortune or danger etc
“apprehensive about her job”
- adjective
in fear or dread of possible evil or harm
“apprehensive for one's life”
Say it in a sentence
“He felt apprehensive about driving the van through heavy snow.”“apprehensive”, answered
How do you pronounce “apprehensive”?
“apprehensive” is pronounced /ˌæpɹɪˈhɛnsɪv/ (a-pri-HEN-siv) in American English and /apɹɪhɛnsɪv/ in British English, and /ˌæpɹiˈhɛnsɪv/ is also accepted — 4 syllables, stressed on “hɛn”. Build it as æ-pɹɪ-HƐN-sɪv, then run the third syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.
How many syllables does “apprehensive” have?
4: æ · pɹɪ · hɛn · sɪv. The beat lands on the third, “hɛn”.
Is “apprehensive” said differently in British English?
Yes. American English says /ˌæpɹɪˈhɛnsɪv/ (a-pri-HEN-siv); British English says /apɹɪhɛnsɪv/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.
What does “apprehensive” mean?
As an adjective: quick to understand; - Nathaniel Hawthorne For example: “a kind and apprehensive friend” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.
Where is the stress in “apprehensive”?
Stress the third syllable: æ-pɹɪ-HƐN-sɪv. “hɛn” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Now say “apprehensive” 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.