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Pronunciation

How to pronounce “complaint”

“complaint” is pronounced /kəmˈpleɪnt/ (kuhm-PLAYNT) in American English and /kəmpleɪnt/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “laint”.
The sound

Say “complaint” in 2 beats

Say it like this

complaint

/kəmˈpleɪnt/

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

2 beats
  1. compkəm
  2. laintpleɪntstress
IPA (American)
/kəmˈpleɪnt/
IPA (British)
/kəmpleɪnt/
Respelling
kuhm-PLAYNT
Syllables
2 — comp-LAINT
Stress
Stress the second syllable: comp-LAINT. “laint” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls 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

/kəmˈpleɪnt/

British

/kəmpleɪnt/

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

Meaning

What “complaint” means

  1. noun

    an often persistent bodily disorder or disease; a cause for complaining

  2. noun

    (formerly) a loud cry (or repeated cries) of pain or rage or sorrow

  3. noun

    an expression of grievance or resentment

Say it in a sentence

“Her only complaint was a stiff knee in cold weather.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

8 sounds, in the order you say them
kkəschwammpplleɪlong anntt

Each sound has its own page: where the tongue goes, what it is usually confused with, and words to drill it on.

Questions

“complaint”, answered

How do you pronounce “complaint”?

“complaint” is pronounced /kəmˈpleɪnt/ (kuhm-PLAYNT) in American English and /kəmpleɪnt/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “laint”. Build it as comp-LAINT, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “complaint” have?

2: comp · laint. The beat lands on the second, “laint”.

Is “complaint” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /kəmˈpleɪnt/ (kuhm-PLAYNT); British English says /kəmpleɪnt/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “complaint” mean?

As a noun: an often persistent bodily disorder or disease; a cause for complaining For example: “Her only complaint was a stiff knee in cold weather.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “complaint”?

Stress the second syllable: comp-LAINT. “laint” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

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