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Pronunciation

How to pronounce “gradually”

“gradually” is pronounced /ˈɡɹædʒuəli/ (GRA-joo-uh-lee) in American English and /ɡɹadʒuːəli/ in British English, and /ˈɡɹædʒuli/ is also accepted — 4 syllables, stressed on “ɡɹæ”.
The sound

Say “gradually” in 4 beats

Say it like this

gradually

/ˈɡɹædʒuəli/

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

4 beats
  1. ɡɹæɡɹæstress
  2. dʒudʒu
  3. əə
  4. lili
IPA (American)
/ˈɡɹædʒuəli/
IPA (British)
/ɡɹadʒuːəli/
Also accepted
/ˈɡɹædʒuli/
Respelling
GRA-joo-uh-lee
Syllables
4 — ꞬɹÆ-dʒu-ə-li
Stress
Stress the first syllable: ꞬɹÆ-dʒu-ə-li. “ɡɹæ” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
adverb
Difficulty
Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˈɡɹædʒuəli/

British

/ɡɹadʒuːəli/

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

Meaning

What “gradually” means

  1. adverb

    in a gradual manner

    “the snake moved gradually toward its victim”

Say it in a sentence

“The noise gradually faded as the crowd walked away.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

8 sounds, in the order you say them
ɡgɹræshort adʒjulong ooəschwallilong e

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

Questions

“gradually”, answered

How do you pronounce “gradually”?

“gradually” is pronounced /ˈɡɹædʒuəli/ (GRA-joo-uh-lee) in American English and /ɡɹadʒuːəli/ in British English, and /ˈɡɹædʒuli/ is also accepted — 4 syllables, stressed on “ɡɹæ”. Build it as ꞬɹÆ-dʒu-ə-li, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “gradually” have?

4: ɡɹæ · dʒu · ə · li. The beat lands on the first, “ɡɹæ”.

Is “gradually” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈɡɹædʒuəli/ (GRA-joo-uh-lee); British English says /ɡɹadʒuːəli/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “gradually” mean?

As an adverb: in a gradual manner For example: “the snake moved gradually toward its victim”

Where is the stress in “gradually”?

Stress the first syllable: ꞬɹÆ-dʒu-ə-li. “ɡɹæ” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “gradually” and see every sound

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