Pronunciation

How to pronounce “dilettante

“dilettante” is pronounced /ˌdɪləˈtɑnt/ (dil-uh-TAHNT (UK dil-uh-TAN-tee)) in American English and /ˌdɪlɪˈtanti/ in British English, and /ˌdɪləˈtɑnti/ is also accepted — 3 syllables, stressed on “tɑnt”.
The sound

Say “dilettante” in 3 beats

Say it like this

dilettante

/ˌdɪləˈtɑnt/

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

3 beats
  1. tɑnttɑntstress
IPA (American)
/ˌdɪləˈtɑnt/
IPA (British)
/ˌdɪlɪˈtanti/
Also accepted
/ˌdɪləˈtɑnti/
Respelling
dil-uh-TAHNT (UK dil-uh-TAN-tee)
Syllables
3 — dɪ-lə-TⱭNT
Stress
Stress the third syllable: dɪ-lə-TⱭNT. “tɑnt” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
noun, adjective
Difficulty
Legend — spelling and sound part company here
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˌdɪləˈtɑnt/

British

/ˌdɪlɪˈtanti/

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

Also accepted

/ˌdɪləˈtɑnti/
Watch out

Where “dilettante” goes wrong

  • Often heard

    DY-luh-tant

    the first vowel is the short i of dill, and the stress is on TAHNT

Meaning

What “dilettante” means

  1. noun

    an amateur who engages in an activity without serious intentions and who pretends to have knowledge

  2. adjective

    showing frivolous or superficial interest; amateurish

    his dilettantish efforts at painting

Say it in a sentence

He called himself a dilettante, but the work was serious.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

7 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

dilettante”, answered

How do you pronounce “dilettante”?

“dilettante” is pronounced /ˌdɪləˈtɑnt/ (dil-uh-TAHNT (UK dil-uh-TAN-tee)) in American English and /ˌdɪlɪˈtanti/ in British English, and /ˌdɪləˈtɑnti/ is also accepted — 3 syllables, stressed on “tɑnt”. Build it as dɪ-lə-TⱭNT, then run the third syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “dilettante” have?

3: dɪ · lə · tɑnt. The beat lands on the third, “tɑnt”.

Is “dilettante” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˌdɪləˈtɑnt/ (dil-uh-TAHNT (UK dil-uh-TAN-tee)); British English says /ˌdɪlɪˈtanti/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “dilettante” mean?

As a noun: an amateur who engages in an activity without serious intentions and who pretends to have knowledge For example: “He called himself a dilettante, but the work was serious.” It carries 1 other sense as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “dilettante”?

Stress the third syllable: dɪ-lə-TⱭNT. “tɑnt” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “dilettante” and see every sound

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