How to pronounce “approximately”
Say “approximately” in 5 beats
approximately
/əˈpɹɑksəmətli/
The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /ɐpɹɒksɪmətli/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.
- əə
- pɹɑkpɹɑkstress
- səsə
- mətmət
- lili
- IPA (American)
- /əˈpɹɑksəmətli/
- IPA (British)
- /ɐpɹɒksɪmətli/
- Respelling
- uh-PRAHK-suh-muht-lee
- Syllables
- 5 — ə-PɹⱭK-sə-mət-li
- Stress
- Stress the second syllable: ə-PɹⱭK-sə-mət-li. “pɹɑk” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
- Part of speech
- adverb
- Difficulty
- Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
American and British are not the same here
/əˈpɹɑksəmətli/
/ɐpɹɒksɪmətli/
No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.
What “approximately” means
- adverb
(of quantities) imprecise but fairly close to correct
“lasted approximately an hour”
Say it in a sentence
“The walk takes approximately three hours at an easy pace.”“approximately”, answered
How do you pronounce “approximately”?
“approximately” is pronounced /əˈpɹɑksəmətli/ (uh-PRAHK-suh-muht-lee) in American English and /ɐpɹɒksɪmətli/ in British English — 5 syllables, stressed on “pɹɑk”. Build it as ə-PɹⱭK-sə-mət-li, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.
How many syllables does “approximately” have?
5: ə · pɹɑk · sə · mət · li. The beat lands on the second, “pɹɑk”.
Is “approximately” said differently in British English?
Yes. American English says /əˈpɹɑksəmətli/ (uh-PRAHK-suh-muht-lee); British English says /ɐpɹɒksɪmətli/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.
What does “approximately” mean?
As an adverb: (of quantities) imprecise but fairly close to correct For example: “lasted approximately an hour”
Where is the stress in “approximately”?
Stress the second syllable: ə-PɹⱭK-sə-mət-li. “pɹɑk” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Now say “approximately” 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.