Pronunciation

How to pronounce “hospitable

“hospitable” is pronounced /ˈhɑspɪtəbəl/ (HOSS-pit-uh-buhl) in American English and /hɒˈspɪtəbəl/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “hos”.
The sound

Say “hospitable” in 4 beats

Say it like this

hospitable

/ˈhɑspɪtəbəl/

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

4 beats
  1. hosstress
  2. pitspɪ
  3. ab
  4. lebəl
IPA (American)
/ˈhɑspɪtəbəl/
IPA (British)
/hɒˈspɪtəbəl/
Respelling
HOSS-pit-uh-buhl
Syllables
4 — HOS-pit-ab-le
Stress
Stress the first syllable: HOS-pit-ab-le. “hos” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
adjective
Difficulty
Legend — spelling and sound part company here
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˈhɑspɪtəbəl/

British

/hɒˈspɪtəbəl/

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

Watch out

Where “hospitable” goes wrong

  • Often heard

    hoss-PIT-uh-bul

    both are used, but the traditional stress is on the first syllable

Meaning

What “hospitable” means

  1. adjective

    favorable to life and growth

    soil sufficiently hospitable for forest growth

  2. adjective

    disposed to treat guests and strangers with cordiality and generosity

    a good-natured and hospitable man

  3. adjective

    having an open mind

    hospitable to new ideas

Say it in a sentence

Our hosts were hospitable and refused to let us pay for anything.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

9 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

hospitable”, answered

How do you pronounce “hospitable”?

“hospitable” is pronounced /ˈhɑspɪtəbəl/ (HOSS-pit-uh-buhl) in American English and /hɒˈspɪtəbəl/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “hos”. Build it as HOS-pit-ab-le, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “hospitable” have?

4: hos · pit · ab · le. The beat lands on the first, “hos”.

Is “hospitable” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈhɑspɪtəbəl/ (HOSS-pit-uh-buhl); British English says /hɒˈspɪtəbəl/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “hospitable” mean?

As an adjective: favorable to life and growth For example: “soil sufficiently hospitable for forest growth” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “hospitable”?

Stress the first syllable: HOS-pit-ab-le. “hos” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “hospitable” 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.