How to pronounce “conflict”
“conflict” is said two ways
/ˈkɑnflɪkt/
KAHN-flikt
The dispute or the war. Beat on KAHN.
/kənˈflɪkt/
kuhn-FLIKT
To clash with something. Beat on FLIKT.
Listen for the beat, not the letters
One syllable gets longer, louder and a step higher, and the other one collapses towards a schwa. Say the whole sentence rather than the word on its own and let the grammar pull the beat where it belongs.Both forms live in one sentence here: “The two accounts conflict, and that conflict is now the story.”Each button plays a short phrase rather than the bare word: the model voice takes its stress from the words around it, so asking it for “conflict” on its own would play one reading twice instead of the noun and the verb. Read the transcription as you listen.
Say “conflict” in 2 beats
conflict
/ˈkɑnflɪkt/
Everything in this card describes the noun form. As a verb it is /kənˈflɪkt/.
The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /ˈkɒnflɪkt/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.
- confkɑnstress
- lictflɪkt
- IPA (American)
- /ˈkɑnflɪkt/
- IPA (British)
- /ˈkɒnflɪkt/
- Respelling
- KAHN-flikt (noun) · kuhn-FLIKT (verb)
- Syllables
- 2 — CONF-lict
- Stress
- Stress the first syllable: CONF-lict. “conf” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
- Part of speech
- noun, verb
- Difficulty
- Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
American and British are not the same here
This is the noun form in two accents — a separate question from the two pronunciations above, which are the same accent saying two different words.
/ˈkɑnflɪkt/
/ˈkɒnflɪkt/
No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.
Where “conflict” goes wrong
- Often heard
“the dates KAHN-flikt”
clashing is kuhn-FLIKT; KAHN-flikt is the dispute
What “conflict” means
- noun
an open clash between two opposing groups (or individuals); --Thomas Paine
“the harder the conflict the more glorious the triumph”
- noun
opposition between two simultaneous but incompatible feelings
“he was immobilized by conflict and indecision”
- noun
a hostile meeting of opposing military forces in the course of a war
“Grant won a decisive victory in the battle of Chickamauga”
Say it in a sentence
“The two accounts conflict, and that conflict is now the story.”“conflict”, answered
How do you pronounce “conflict”?
“conflict” has two pronunciations: /ˈkɑnflɪkt/ as a noun and /kənˈflɪkt/ as a verb — the part of speech decides which. The spelling never changes; the beat does, and the vowels reshape around wherever it lands. The transcription and syllable breakdown below describe the noun form. Build it as CONF-lict, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.
How many syllables does “conflict” have?
2: conf · lict. The beat lands on the first, “conf”.
Which pronunciation of “conflict” is correct?
Both are. /ˈkɑnflɪkt/ (KAHN-flikt) as a noun; /kənˈflɪkt/ (kuhn-FLIKT) as a verb. Nothing about the spelling tells you which — the sentence does. Move the beat and the word changes its job mid-sentence, which is why both are worth drilling. Both appear here: “The two accounts conflict, and that conflict is now the story.”
Is “conflict” said differently in British English?
Yes. American English says /ˈkɑnflɪkt/ (KAHN-flikt); British English says /ˈkɒnflɪkt/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.
What does “conflict” mean?
As a noun: an open clash between two opposing groups (or individuals); --Thomas Paine For example: “the harder the conflict the more glorious the triumph” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.
Where is the stress in “conflict”?
Stress the first syllable: CONF-lict. “conf” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
Now say “conflict” 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.