How to pronounce “arbitrary”
Say “arbitrary” in 4 beats
arbitrary
/ˈɑɹbəˌtɹɛɹi/
The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /ɑːbɪtɹəɹi/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.
- arɑɹstress
- bitbə
- rartɹɛ
- yɹi
- IPA (American)
- /ˈɑɹbəˌtɹɛɹi/
- IPA (British)
- /ɑːbɪtɹəɹi/
- Also accepted
- /ˈɑɹbɪˌtɹɛɹi/
- Respelling
- AHR-buh-tre-ree
- Syllables
- 4 — AR-bit-rar-y
- Stress
- Stress the first syllable: AR-bit-rar-y. “ar” 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
/ˈɑɹbəˌtɹɛɹi/
/ɑːbɪtɹəɹi/
No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.
What “arbitrary” means
- adjective
based on or subject to individual discretion or preference or sometimes impulse or caprice
“an arbitrary decision”
Say it in a sentence
“The deadline felt arbitrary, since nothing happened after it anyway.”“arbitrary”, answered
How do you pronounce “arbitrary”?
“arbitrary” is pronounced /ˈɑɹbəˌtɹɛɹi/ (AHR-buh-tre-ree) in American English and /ɑːbɪtɹəɹi/ in British English, and /ˈɑɹbɪˌtɹɛɹi/ is also accepted — 4 syllables, stressed on “ar”. Build it as AR-bit-rar-y, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.
How many syllables does “arbitrary” have?
4: ar · bit · rar · y. The beat lands on the first, “ar”.
Is “arbitrary” said differently in British English?
Yes. American English says /ˈɑɹbəˌtɹɛɹi/ (AHR-buh-tre-ree); British English says /ɑːbɪtɹəɹi/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.
What does “arbitrary” mean?
As an adjective: based on or subject to individual discretion or preference or sometimes impulse or caprice For example: “an arbitrary decision”
Where is the stress in “arbitrary”?
Stress the first syllable: AR-bit-rar-y. “ar” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Now say “arbitrary” 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.