Pronunciation

How to pronounce “forestall

“forestall” is pronounced /fɔɹˈstɔl/ (fawr-STAWL) in American English and /fɔːstɔːl/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “stɔl”.
The sound

Say “forestall” in 2 beats

Say it like this

forestall

/fɔɹˈstɔl/

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

2 beats
  1. fɔɹfɔɹ
  2. stɔlstɔlstress
IPA (American)
/fɔɹˈstɔl/
IPA (British)
/fɔːstɔːl/
Respelling
fawr-STAWL
Syllables
2 — fɔɹ-STƆL
Stress
Stress the second syllable: fɔɹ-STƆL. “stɔl” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
Part of speech
verb
Difficulty
Legend — spelling and sound part company here
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/fɔɹˈstɔl/

British

/fɔːstɔːl/

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

Meaning

What “forestall” means

  1. verb

    keep from happening or arising; make impossible

    My sense of tact forbids an honest answer

  2. verb

    act in advance of; deal with ahead of time

Say it in a sentence

Locking the gate should forestall any more midnight visitors.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

6 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

forestall”, answered

How do you pronounce “forestall”?

“forestall” is pronounced /fɔɹˈstɔl/ (fawr-STAWL) in American English and /fɔːstɔːl/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “stɔl”. Build it as fɔɹ-STƆL, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “forestall” have?

2: fɔɹ · stɔl. The beat lands on the second, “stɔl”.

Is “forestall” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /fɔɹˈstɔl/ (fawr-STAWL); British English says /fɔːstɔːl/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “forestall” mean?

As a verb: keep from happening or arising; make impossible For example: “My sense of tact forbids an honest answer” It carries 1 other sense as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “forestall”?

Stress the second syllable: fɔɹ-STƆL. “stɔl” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “forestall” and see every sound

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