Pronunciation

How to pronounce “circumvent

“circumvent” is pronounced /ˌsɝkəmˈvɛnt/ (sur-kuhm-VENT) in American English and /sɜːkəmvɛnt/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “vent”.
The sound

Say “circumvent” in 3 beats

Say it like this

circumvent

/ˌsɝkəmˈvɛnt/

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

3 beats
  1. cir
  2. cumkəm
  3. ventvɛntstress
IPA (American)
/ˌsɝkəmˈvɛnt/
IPA (British)
/sɜːkəmvɛnt/
Respelling
sur-kuhm-VENT
Syllables
3 — cir-cum-VENT
Stress
Stress the third syllable: cir-cum-VENT. “vent” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
verb
Difficulty
Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˌsɝkəmˈvɛnt/

British

/sɜːkəmvɛnt/

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

Meaning

What “circumvent” means

  1. verb

    surround so as to force to give up

    The Turks besieged Vienna

  2. verb

    beat through cleverness and wit

    I beat the traffic

  3. verb

    avoid or try to avoid fulfilling, answering, or performing (duties, questions, or issues)

    He dodged the issue

Say it in a sentence

He found a footpath to circumvent the flooded road.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

9 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

circumvent”, answered

How do you pronounce “circumvent”?

“circumvent” is pronounced /ˌsɝkəmˈvɛnt/ (sur-kuhm-VENT) in American English and /sɜːkəmvɛnt/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “vent”. Build it as cir-cum-VENT, then run the third syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “circumvent” have?

3: cir · cum · vent. The beat lands on the third, “vent”.

Is “circumvent” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˌsɝkəmˈvɛnt/ (sur-kuhm-VENT); British English says /sɜːkəmvɛnt/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “circumvent” mean?

As a verb: surround so as to force to give up For example: “The Turks besieged Vienna” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “circumvent”?

Stress the third syllable: cir-cum-VENT. “vent” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “circumvent” and see every sound

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