Pronunciation

How to pronounce “devote

“devote” is pronounced /dɪˈvoʊt/ (di-VOHT) in American English and /dɪvəʊt/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “voʊt”.
The sound

Say “devote” in 2 beats

Say it like this

devote

/dɪˈvoʊt/

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

2 beats
  1. voʊtvoʊtstress
IPA (American)
/dɪˈvoʊt/
IPA (British)
/dɪvəʊt/
Respelling
di-VOHT
Syllables
2 — dɪ-VOƱT
Stress
Stress the second syllable: dɪ-VOƱT. “voʊt” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
Part of speech
verb
Difficulty
Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/dɪˈvoʊt/

British

/dɪvəʊt/

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

Meaning

What “devote” means

  1. verb

    give entirely to a specific person, activity, or cause

    She committed herself to the work of God

  2. verb

    dedicate

    give thought to

  3. verb

    set aside or apart for a specific purpose or use

    this land was devoted to mining

Say it in a sentence

She plans to devote her Saturdays to the allotment again.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

5 sounds, in the order you say them

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

Questions

devote”, answered

How do you pronounce “devote”?

“devote” is pronounced /dɪˈvoʊt/ (di-VOHT) in American English and /dɪvəʊt/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “voʊt”. Build it as dɪ-VOƱT, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “devote” have?

2: dɪ · voʊt. The beat lands on the second, “voʊt”.

Is “devote” said differently in British English?

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

What does “devote” mean?

As a verb: give entirely to a specific person, activity, or cause For example: “She committed herself to the work of God” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “devote”?

Stress the second syllable: dɪ-VOƱT. “voʊt” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “devote” 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.