Pronunciation

How to pronounce “innovative

“innovative” is pronounced /ˈɪnəˌveɪtɪv/ (I-nuh-vay-tiv) in American English and /ɪnəveɪtɪv/ in British English, and /ˈɪnoʊˌveɪtɪv/ is also accepted — 4 syllables, stressed on “ɪ”.
The sound

Say “innovative” in 4 beats

Say it like this

innovative

/ˈɪnəˌveɪtɪv/

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

4 beats
  1. ɪɪstress
  2. veɪveɪ
  3. tɪvtɪv
IPA (American)
/ˈɪnəˌveɪtɪv/
IPA (British)
/ɪnəveɪtɪv/
Also accepted
/ˈɪnoʊˌveɪtɪv/
Respelling
I-nuh-vay-tiv
Syllables
4 — Ɪ-nə-veɪ-tɪv
Stress
Stress the first syllable: Ɪ-nə-veɪ-tɪv. “ɪ” 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
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˈɪnəˌveɪtɪv/

British

/ɪnəveɪtɪv/

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

Meaning

What “innovative” means

  1. adjective

    ahead of the times

    the advanced teaching methods

  2. adjective

    being or producing something like nothing done or experienced or created before

    stylistically innovative works

Say it in a sentence

Her innovative way of stacking firewood halved the space.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

6 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

innovative”, answered

How do you pronounce “innovative”?

“innovative” is pronounced /ˈɪnəˌveɪtɪv/ (I-nuh-vay-tiv) in American English and /ɪnəveɪtɪv/ in British English, and /ˈɪnoʊˌveɪtɪv/ is also accepted — 4 syllables, stressed on “ɪ”. Build it as Ɪ-nə-veɪ-tɪv, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “innovative” have?

4: ɪ · nə · veɪ · tɪv. The beat lands on the first, “ɪ”.

Is “innovative” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈɪnəˌveɪtɪv/ (I-nuh-vay-tiv); British English says /ɪnəveɪtɪv/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “innovative” mean?

As an adjective: ahead of the times For example: “the advanced teaching methods” It carries 1 other sense as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “innovative”?

Stress the first syllable: Ɪ-nə-veɪ-tɪv. “ɪ” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “innovative” 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.