How to pronounce “formidable”
Say “formidable” in 4 beats
formidable
/ˈfɔɹmɪdəbəl/
The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /fɔːˈmɪdəbəl/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.
- forfɔɹstress
- midmɪ
- abdə
- lebəl
- IPA (American)
- /ˈfɔɹmɪdəbəl/
- IPA (British)
- /fɔːˈmɪdəbəl/
- Respelling
- FOR-mid-uh-buhl
- Syllables
- 4 — FOR-mid-ab-le
- Stress
- Stress the first syllable: FOR-mid-ab-le. “for” 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
American and British are not the same here
/ˈfɔɹmɪdəbəl/
/fɔːˈmɪdəbəl/
No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.
Where “formidable” goes wrong
- Often heard
“for-MID-uh-bul”
both are standard, but the traditional stress is on FOR
What “formidable” means
- adjective
extremely impressive in strength or excellence
“a formidable opponent”
- adjective
inspiring fear; ; - G.H.Johnston
“the formidable prospect of major surgery”
Say it in a sentence
“She is a formidable opponent in any kind of debate.”“formidable”, answered
How do you pronounce “formidable”?
“formidable” is pronounced /ˈfɔɹmɪdəbəl/ (FOR-mid-uh-buhl) in American English and /fɔːˈmɪdəbəl/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “for”. Build it as FOR-mid-ab-le, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.
How many syllables does “formidable” have?
4: for · mid · ab · le. The beat lands on the first, “for”.
Is “formidable” said differently in British English?
Yes. American English says /ˈfɔɹmɪdəbəl/ (FOR-mid-uh-buhl); British English says /fɔːˈmɪdəbəl/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.
What does “formidable” mean?
As an adjective: extremely impressive in strength or excellence For example: “a formidable opponent” It carries 1 other sense as well — all of them said the same way.
Where is the stress in “formidable”?
Stress the first syllable: FOR-mid-ab-le. “for” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Now say “formidable” 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.