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Pronunciation

How to pronounce “liberal”

“liberal” is pronounced /ˈlɪˌbɝəl/ (LI-bur-uhl) in American English and /lɪbəɹəl/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “lib”.
The sound

Say “liberal” in 3 beats

Say it like this

liberal

/ˈlɪˌbɝəl/

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

3 beats
  1. liblɪstress
  2. erbɝ
  3. aləl
IPA (American)
/ˈlɪˌbɝəl/
IPA (British)
/lɪbəɹəl/
Respelling
LI-bur-uhl
Syllables
3 — LIB-er-al
Stress
Stress the first syllable: LIB-er-al. “lib” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
noun, adjective
Difficulty
Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˈlɪˌbɝəl/

British

/lɪbəɹəl/

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

Meaning

What “liberal” means

  1. noun

    a person who favors a political philosophy of progress and reform and the protection of civil liberties

  2. noun

    a person who favors an economic theory of laissez-faire and self-regulating markets

  3. adjective

    showing or characterized by broad-mindedness

    “a broad political stance”

Say it in a sentence

“She was liberal with the butter and the cream.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

5 sounds, in the order you say them
ll×2ɪshort ibbɝerəschwa

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

Questions

“liberal”, answered

How do you pronounce “liberal”?

“liberal” is pronounced /ˈlɪˌbɝəl/ (LI-bur-uhl) in American English and /lɪbəɹəl/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “lib”. Build it as LIB-er-al, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “liberal” have?

3: lib · er · al. The beat lands on the first, “lib”.

Is “liberal” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈlɪˌbɝəl/ (LI-bur-uhl); British English says /lɪbəɹəl/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “liberal” mean?

As a noun: a person who favors a political philosophy of progress and reform and the protection of civil liberties For example: “She was liberal with the butter and the cream.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “liberal”?

Stress the first syllable: LIB-er-al. “lib” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

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