How to pronounce “democracy”
Say “democracy” in 4 beats
democracy
/dɪˈmɑkɹəsi/
The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /dɪmɒkɹəsi/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.
- demdɪ
- ocmɑstress
- rackɹə
- ysi
- IPA (American)
- /dɪˈmɑkɹəsi/
- IPA (British)
- /dɪmɒkɹəsi/
- Respelling
- di-MAH-kruh-see
- Syllables
- 4 — dem-OC-rac-y
- Stress
- Stress the second syllable: dem-OC-rac-y. “oc” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
- Part of speech
- noun
- Difficulty
- Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
American and British are not the same here
/dɪˈmɑkɹəsi/
/dɪmɒkɹəsi/
No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.
What “democracy” means
- noun
the political orientation of those who favor government by the people or by their elected representatives
- noun
a political system in which the supreme power lies in a body of citizens who can elect people to represent them
- noun
the doctrine that the numerical majority of an organized group can make decisions binding on the whole group
Say it in a sentence
“A healthy democracy depends on people actually turning out to vote.”“democracy”, answered
How do you pronounce “democracy”?
“democracy” is pronounced /dɪˈmɑkɹəsi/ (di-MAH-kruh-see) in American English and /dɪmɒkɹəsi/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “oc”. Build it as dem-OC-rac-y, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.
How many syllables does “democracy” have?
4: dem · oc · rac · y. The beat lands on the second, “oc”.
Is “democracy” said differently in British English?
Yes. American English says /dɪˈmɑkɹəsi/ (di-MAH-kruh-see); British English says /dɪmɒkɹəsi/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.
What does “democracy” mean?
As a noun: the political orientation of those who favor government by the people or by their elected representatives For example: “A healthy democracy depends on people actually turning out to vote.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.
Where is the stress in “democracy”?
Stress the second syllable: dem-OC-rac-y. “oc” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Now say “democracy” 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.