How to pronounce “eccentric”
Say “eccentric” in 3 beats
eccentric
/ɪkˈsɛntɹɪk/
The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /ɛksɛntɹɪk/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.
- ecɪk
- centsɛnstress
- rictɹɪk
- IPA (American)
- /ɪkˈsɛntɹɪk/
- IPA (British)
- /ɛksɛntɹɪk/
- Also accepted
- /ˌɛkˈsɛntɹɪk/
- Respelling
- ik-SEN-trik
- Syllables
- 3 — ec-CENT-ric
- Stress
- Stress the second syllable: ec-CENT-ric. “cent” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
- Part of speech
- noun, adjective
- Difficulty
- Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
American and British are not the same here
/ɪkˈsɛntɹɪk/
/ɛksɛntɹɪk/
No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.
What “eccentric” means
- noun
a person with an unusual or odd personality
- noun
a person of a specified kind (usually with many eccentricities)
“a real character”
- adjective
conspicuously or grossly unconventional or unusual
“restaurants of bizarre design--one like a hat, another like a rabbit”
Say it in a sentence
“Our neighbour is a harmless eccentric who paints his fence weekly.”“eccentric”, answered
How do you pronounce “eccentric”?
“eccentric” is pronounced /ɪkˈsɛntɹɪk/ (ik-SEN-trik) in American English and /ɛksɛntɹɪk/ in British English, and /ˌɛkˈsɛntɹɪk/ is also accepted — 3 syllables, stressed on “cent”. Build it as ec-CENT-ric, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.
How many syllables does “eccentric” have?
3: ec · cent · ric. The beat lands on the second, “cent”.
Is “eccentric” said differently in British English?
Yes. American English says /ɪkˈsɛntɹɪk/ (ik-SEN-trik); British English says /ɛksɛntɹɪk/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.
What does “eccentric” mean?
As a noun: a person with an unusual or odd personality For example: “Our neighbour is a harmless eccentric who paints his fence weekly.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.
Where is the stress in “eccentric”?
Stress the second syllable: ec-CENT-ric. “cent” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Now say “eccentric” 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.