Pronunciation

How to pronounce “enormous

“enormous” is pronounced /ɪˈnɔɹməs/ (i-NAWR-muhs) in American English and /ɪnɔːməs/ in British English, and /ɪˈnɔɹmɪs/ and /iˈnɔɹməs/ and /iˈnɔɹmɪs/ are also accepted — 3 syllables, stressed on “or”.
The sound

Say “enormous” in 3 beats

Say it like this

enormous

/ɪˈnɔɹməs/

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

3 beats
  1. enɪ
  2. ornɔɹstress
  3. mousməs
IPA (American)
/ɪˈnɔɹməs/
IPA (British)
/ɪnɔːməs/
Also accepted
/ɪˈnɔɹmɪs/
Also accepted
/iˈnɔɹməs/
Also accepted
/iˈnɔɹmɪs/
Respelling
i-NAWR-muhs
Syllables
3 — en-OR-mous
Stress
Stress the second syllable: en-OR-mous. “or” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
adjective
Difficulty
Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ɪˈnɔɹməs/

British

/ɪnɔːməs/

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

Meaning

What “enormous” means

  1. adjective

    extraordinarily large in size or extent or amount or power or degree; ; ; ; - Walter Lippman

    an enormous boulder

Say it in a sentence

An enormous oak came down across the lane last night.
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

enormous”, answered

How do you pronounce “enormous”?

“enormous” is pronounced /ɪˈnɔɹməs/ (i-NAWR-muhs) in American English and /ɪnɔːməs/ in British English, and /ɪˈnɔɹmɪs/ and /iˈnɔɹməs/ and /iˈnɔɹmɪs/ are also accepted — 3 syllables, stressed on “or”. Build it as en-OR-mous, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “enormous” have?

3: en · or · mous. The beat lands on the second, “or”.

Is “enormous” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ɪˈnɔɹməs/ (i-NAWR-muhs); British English says /ɪnɔːməs/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “enormous” mean?

As an adjective: extraordinarily large in size or extent or amount or power or degree; ; ; ; - Walter Lippman For example: “an enormous boulder”

Where is the stress in “enormous”?

Stress the second syllable: en-OR-mous. “or” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “enormous” and see every sound

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