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Pronunciation

How to pronounce “consensus”

“consensus” is pronounced /kənˈsɛnsəs/ (kuhn-SEN-suhs) in American English and /kənsɛnsəs/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “sen”.
The sound

Say “consensus” in 3 beats

Say it like this

consensus

/kənˈsɛnsəs/

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

3 beats
  1. conkən
  2. sensɛnstress
  3. sussəs
IPA (American)
/kənˈsɛnsəs/
IPA (British)
/kənsɛnsəs/
Respelling
kuhn-SEN-suhs
Syllables
3 — con-SEN-sus
Stress
Stress the second syllable: con-SEN-sus. “sen” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall 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

/kənˈsɛnsəs/

British

/kənsɛnsəs/

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

Meaning

What “consensus” means

  1. noun

    agreement in the judgment or opinion reached by a group as a whole

    “the lack of consensus reflected differences in theoretical positions”

Say it in a sentence

“There was no consensus, so the vote was postponed.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

5 sounds, in the order you say them
kkəschwa×2nn×2ss×3ɛshort e

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

Questions

“consensus”, answered

How do you pronounce “consensus”?

“consensus” is pronounced /kənˈsɛnsəs/ (kuhn-SEN-suhs) in American English and /kənsɛnsəs/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “sen”. Build it as con-SEN-sus, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “consensus” have?

3: con · sen · sus. The beat lands on the second, “sen”.

Is “consensus” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /kənˈsɛnsəs/ (kuhn-SEN-suhs); British English says /kənsɛnsəs/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “consensus” mean?

As a noun: agreement in the judgment or opinion reached by a group as a whole For example: “the lack of consensus reflected differences in theoretical positions”

Where is the stress in “consensus”?

Stress the second syllable: con-SEN-sus. “sen” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

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