Pronunciation

How to pronounce “drama

“drama” is pronounced /ˈdɹɑmə/ (DRAH-muh) in American English and /dɹɑːmə/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “dram”.
The sound

Say “drama” in 2 beats

Say it like this

drama

/ˈdɹɑmə/

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

2 beats
  1. dramdɹɑstress
  2. a
IPA (American)
/ˈdɹɑmə/
IPA (British)
/dɹɑːmə/
Respelling
DRAH-muh
Syllables
2 — DRAM-a
Stress
Stress the first syllable: DRAM-a. “dram” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
Part of speech
noun
Difficulty
Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˈdɹɑmə/

British

/dɹɑːmə/

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

Meaning

What “drama” means

  1. noun

    a dramatic work intended for performance by actors on a stage

    he wrote several plays but only one was produced on Broadway

  2. noun

    an episode that is turbulent or highly emotional

  3. noun

    the literary genre of works intended for the theater

Say it in a sentence

The school put on a drama about the closing of the pit.
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

drama”, answered

How do you pronounce “drama”?

“drama” is pronounced /ˈdɹɑmə/ (DRAH-muh) in American English and /dɹɑːmə/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “dram”. Build it as DRAM-a, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “drama” have?

2: dram · a. The beat lands on the first, “dram”.

Is “drama” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈdɹɑmə/ (DRAH-muh); British English says /dɹɑːmə/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “drama” mean?

As a noun: a dramatic work intended for performance by actors on a stage For example: “he wrote several plays but only one was produced on Broadway” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “drama”?

Stress the first syllable: DRAM-a. “dram” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “drama” 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.