sayitsayit
Pronunciation

How to pronounce “impassive”

“impassive” is pronounced /ˌɪmˈpæsɪv/ (im-PA-siv) in American English and /ɪmpasɪv/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “pæ”.
The sound

Say “impassive” in 3 beats

Say it like this

impassive

/ˌɪmˈpæsɪv/

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

3 beats
  1. ɪmɪm
  2. pæpæstress
  3. sɪvsɪv
IPA (American)
/ˌɪmˈpæsɪv/
IPA (British)
/ɪmpasɪv/
Respelling
im-PA-siv
Syllables
3 — ɪm-PÆ-sɪv
Stress
Stress the second syllable: ɪm-PÆ-sɪv. “pæ” 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

/ˌɪmˈpæsɪv/

British

/ɪmpasɪv/

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

Meaning

What “impassive” means

  1. adjective

    having or revealing little emotion or sensibility; not easily aroused or excited; ; - Nordhoff & Hall; -Virginia Woolf

    “her impassive remoteness”

  2. adjective

    deliberately impassive in manner

    “deadpan humor”

Say it in a sentence

“His face stayed impassive while the verdict was read out.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

6 sounds, in the order you say them
ɪshort i×2mmppæshort assvv

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

Questions

“impassive”, answered

How do you pronounce “impassive”?

“impassive” is pronounced /ˌɪmˈpæsɪv/ (im-PA-siv) in American English and /ɪmpasɪv/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “pæ”. Build it as ɪm-PÆ-sɪv, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “impassive” have?

3: ɪm · pæ · sɪv. The beat lands on the second, “pæ”.

Is “impassive” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˌɪmˈpæsɪv/ (im-PA-siv); British English says /ɪmpasɪv/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “impassive” mean?

As an adjective: having or revealing little emotion or sensibility; not easily aroused or excited; ; - Nordhoff & Hall; -Virginia Woolf For example: “her impassive remoteness” It carries 1 other sense as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “impassive”?

Stress the second syllable: ɪm-PÆ-sɪv. “pæ” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “impassive” 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.

Practise this word freeMore words with I