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Pronunciation

How to pronounce “decorous”

“decorous” is pronounced /ˈdɛkɚəs/ (DE-kuh-uhs) in American English and /dɛkəɹəs/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “dec”.
The sound

Say “decorous” in 3 beats

Say it like this

decorous

/ˈdɛkɚəs/

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

3 beats
  1. decdɛstress
  2. orkɚ
  3. ousəs
IPA (American)
/ˈdɛkɚəs/
IPA (British)
/dɛkəɹəs/
Respelling
DE-kuh-uhs
Syllables
3 — DEC-or-ous
Stress
Stress the first syllable: DEC-or-ous. “dec” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
adjective
Difficulty
Legend — spelling and sound part company here
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˈdɛkɚəs/

British

/dɛkəɹəs/

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

Meaning

What “decorous” means

  1. adjective

    characterized by propriety and dignity and good taste in manners and conduct

    “the tete-a-tete was decorous in the extreme”

  2. adjective

    according with custom or propriety

    “her becoming modesty”

Say it in a sentence

“The dinner was decorous until somebody mentioned the will.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

5 sounds, in the order you say them
ddɛshort ekkɚschwa×2ss

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

Questions

“decorous”, answered

How do you pronounce “decorous”?

“decorous” is pronounced /ˈdɛkɚəs/ (DE-kuh-uhs) in American English and /dɛkəɹəs/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “dec”. Build it as DEC-or-ous, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “decorous” have?

3: dec · or · ous. The beat lands on the first, “dec”.

Is “decorous” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈdɛkɚəs/ (DE-kuh-uhs); British English says /dɛkəɹəs/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “decorous” mean?

As an adjective: characterized by propriety and dignity and good taste in manners and conduct For example: “the tete-a-tete was decorous in the extreme” It carries 1 other sense as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “decorous”?

Stress the first syllable: DEC-or-ous. “dec” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

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