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Pronunciation

How to pronounce “demur”

“demur” is pronounced /dɪˈmɝ/ (di-MUR) in American English and /dɪmɜː/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “ur”.
The sound

Say “demur” in 2 beats

Say it like this

demur

/dɪˈmɝ/

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

2 beats
  1. demdɪ
  2. urmɝstress
IPA (American)
/dɪˈmɝ/
IPA (British)
/dɪmɜː/
Respelling
di-MUR
Syllables
2 — dem-UR
Stress
Stress the second syllable: dem-UR. “ur” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
Part of speech
noun, verb
Difficulty
Legend — spelling and sound part company here
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/dɪˈmɝ/

British

/dɪmɜː/

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

Meaning

What “demur” means

  1. noun

    (law) a formal objection to an opponent's pleadings

  2. verb

    take exception to

    “he demurred at my suggestion to work on Saturday”

  3. verb

    enter a demurrer

Say it in a sentence

“Her demur was entered before the hearing had even begun.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

4 sounds, in the order you say them
ddɪshort immɝer

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

Questions

“demur”, answered

How do you pronounce “demur”?

“demur” is pronounced /dɪˈmɝ/ (di-MUR) in American English and /dɪmɜː/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “ur”. Build it as dem-UR, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “demur” have?

2: dem · ur. The beat lands on the second, “ur”.

Is “demur” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /dɪˈmɝ/ (di-MUR); British English says /dɪmɜː/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “demur” mean?

As a noun: (law) a formal objection to an opponent's pleadings For example: “Her demur was entered before the hearing had even begun.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “demur”?

Stress the second syllable: dem-UR. “ur” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

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