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Pronunciation

How to pronounce “futile”

“futile” is pronounced /ˈfjutəl/ (FYOO-tuhl) in American English and /fjuːtaɪl/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “fju”.
The sound

Say “futile” in 2 beats

Say it like this

futile

/ˈfjutəl/

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

2 beats
  1. fjufjustress
  2. təltəl
IPA (American)
/ˈfjutəl/
IPA (British)
/fjuːtaɪl/
Respelling
FYOO-tuhl
Syllables
2 — FJU-təl
Stress
Stress the first syllable: FJU-təl. “fju” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls 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

/ˈfjutəl/

British

/fjuːtaɪl/

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

Meaning

What “futile” means

  1. adjective

    producing no result or effect

    “a futile effort”

  2. adjective

    unproductive of success

    “a fruitless search”

Say it in a sentence

“Arguing with the ticket machine was completely futile.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

6 sounds, in the order you say them
ffjyulong oottəschwall

Each sound has its own page: where the tongue goes, what it is usually confused with, and words to drill it on.

Questions

“futile”, answered

How do you pronounce “futile”?

“futile” is pronounced /ˈfjutəl/ (FYOO-tuhl) in American English and /fjuːtaɪl/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “fju”. Build it as FJU-təl, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “futile” have?

2: fju · təl. The beat lands on the first, “fju”.

Is “futile” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈfjutəl/ (FYOO-tuhl); British English says /fjuːtaɪl/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “futile” mean?

As an adjective: producing no result or effect For example: “a futile effort” It carries 1 other sense as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “futile”?

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

Practise this word

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