sayitsayit
Pronunciation

How to pronounce “definitely”

“definitely” is pronounced /ˈdɛfənətli/ (DE-fuh-nuht-lee) in American English and /dɛfɪnətli/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “dɛ”.
The sound

Say “definitely” in 4 beats

Say it like this

definitely

/ˈdɛfənətli/

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

4 beats
  1. dɛdɛstress
  2. fəfə
  3. nətnət
  4. lili
IPA (American)
/ˈdɛfənətli/
IPA (British)
/dɛfɪnətli/
Respelling
DE-fuh-nuht-lee
Syllables
4 — DƐ-fə-nət-li
Stress
Stress the first syllable: DƐ-fə-nət-li. “dɛ” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
adverb
Difficulty
Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˈdɛfənətli/

British

/dɛfɪnətli/

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

Meaning

What “definitely” means

  1. adverb

    without question and beyond doubt

    “it was decidedly too expensive”

Say it in a sentence

“She definitely deserves a break after such a busy month.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

8 sounds, in the order you say them
ddɛshort effəschwa×2nnttllilong e

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

Questions

“definitely”, answered

How do you pronounce “definitely”?

“definitely” is pronounced /ˈdɛfənətli/ (DE-fuh-nuht-lee) in American English and /dɛfɪnətli/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “dɛ”. Build it as DƐ-fə-nət-li, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “definitely” have?

4: dɛ · fə · nət · li. The beat lands on the first, “dɛ”.

Is “definitely” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈdɛfənətli/ (DE-fuh-nuht-lee); British English says /dɛfɪnətli/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “definitely” mean?

As an adverb: without question and beyond doubt For example: “it was decidedly too expensive”

Where is the stress in “definitely”?

Stress the first syllable: DƐ-fə-nət-li. “dɛ” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “definitely” 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.

Practise this word freeMore words with D