How to pronounce “critical”
Say “critical” in 3 beats
critical
/ˈkɹɪtɪkəl/
The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /kɹɪtɪkəl/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.
- critkɹɪstress
- ictɪ
- alkəl
- IPA (American)
- /ˈkɹɪtɪkəl/
- IPA (British)
- /kɹɪtɪkəl/
- Respelling
- KRI-ti-kuhl
- Syllables
- 3 — CRIT-ic-al
- Stress
- Stress the first syllable: CRIT-ic-al. “crit” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
- Part of speech
- adjective
- Difficulty
- Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
American and British are not the same here
/ˈkɹɪtɪkəl/
/kɹɪtɪkəl/
No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.
What “critical” means
- adjective
marked by a tendency to find and call attention to errors and flaws
“a critical attitude”
- adjective
at or of a point at which a property or phenomenon suffers an abrupt change especially having enough mass to sustain a chain reaction
“a critical temperature of water is 100 degrees C--its boiling point at standard atmospheric pressure”
- adjective
characterized by careful evaluation and judgment
“a critical reading”
Say it in a sentence
“The mechanic said the brake repair was absolutely critical.”“critical”, answered
How do you pronounce “critical”?
“critical” is pronounced /ˈkɹɪtɪkəl/ (KRI-ti-kuhl) in American English and /kɹɪtɪkəl/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “crit”. Build it as CRIT-ic-al, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.
How many syllables does “critical” have?
3: crit · ic · al. The beat lands on the first, “crit”.
Is “critical” said differently in British English?
Yes. American English says /ˈkɹɪtɪkəl/ (KRI-ti-kuhl); British English says /kɹɪtɪkəl/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.
What does “critical” mean?
As an adjective: marked by a tendency to find and call attention to errors and flaws For example: “a critical attitude” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.
Where is the stress in “critical”?
Stress the first syllable: CRIT-ic-al. “crit” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Now say “critical” 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.