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Pronunciation

How to pronounce “constrain”

“constrain” is pronounced /kənˈstɹeɪn/ (kuhn-STRAYN) in American English and /kənstɹeɪn/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “train”.
The sound

Say “constrain” in 2 beats

Say it like this

constrain

/kənˈstɹeɪn/

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

2 beats
  1. conskən
  2. trainstɹeɪnstress
IPA (American)
/kənˈstɹeɪn/
IPA (British)
/kənstɹeɪn/
Respelling
kuhn-STRAYN
Syllables
2 — cons-TRAIN
Stress
Stress the second syllable: cons-TRAIN. “train” 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

/kənˈstɹeɪn/

British

/kənstɹeɪn/

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

Meaning

What “constrain” means

  1. verb

    hold back

  2. verb

    restrict

    “Tighten the rules”

Say it in a sentence

“A tight budget will constrain what we can order.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

7 sounds, in the order you say them
kkəschwann×2ssttɹreɪlong a

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

Questions

“constrain”, answered

How do you pronounce “constrain”?

“constrain” is pronounced /kənˈstɹeɪn/ (kuhn-STRAYN) in American English and /kənstɹeɪn/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “train”. Build it as cons-TRAIN, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “constrain” have?

2: cons · train. The beat lands on the second, “train”.

Is “constrain” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /kənˈstɹeɪn/ (kuhn-STRAYN); British English says /kənstɹeɪn/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “constrain” mean?

As a verb: hold back For example: “A tight budget will constrain what we can order.” It carries 1 other sense as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “constrain”?

Stress the second syllable: cons-TRAIN. “train” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

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