Pronunciation

How to pronounce “confound

“confound” is pronounced /kɑnˈfaʊnd/ (kahn-FOWND) in American English and /kənfaʊnd/ in British English, and /kənˈfaʊnd/ is also accepted — 2 syllables, stressed on “found”.
The sound

Say “confound” in 2 beats

Say it like this

confound

/kɑnˈfaʊnd/

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

2 beats
  1. conkɑn
  2. foundfaʊndstress
IPA (American)
/kɑnˈfaʊnd/
IPA (British)
/kənfaʊnd/
Also accepted
/kənˈfaʊnd/
Respelling
kahn-FOWND
Syllables
2 — con-FOUND
Stress
Stress the second syllable: con-FOUND. “found” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
Part of speech
verb
Difficulty
Legend — spelling and sound part company here
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/kɑnˈfaʊnd/

British

/kənfaʊnd/

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

Meaning

What “confound” means

  1. verb

    be confusing or perplexing to; cause to be unable to think clearly

    These questions confuse even the experts

  2. verb

    mistake one thing for another

    you are confusing me with the other candidate

Say it in a sentence

The results continue to confound everyone who studies them.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

6 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

confound”, answered

How do you pronounce “confound”?

“confound” is pronounced /kɑnˈfaʊnd/ (kahn-FOWND) in American English and /kənfaʊnd/ in British English, and /kənˈfaʊnd/ is also accepted — 2 syllables, stressed on “found”. Build it as con-FOUND, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “confound” have?

2: con · found. The beat lands on the second, “found”.

Is “confound” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /kɑnˈfaʊnd/ (kahn-FOWND); British English says /kənfaʊnd/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “confound” mean?

As a verb: be confusing or perplexing to; cause to be unable to think clearly For example: “These questions confuse even the experts” It carries 1 other sense as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “confound”?

Stress the second syllable: con-FOUND. “found” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “confound” 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.