Pronunciation

How to pronounce “materials”

“materials” is pronounced /məˈtɪɹiəlz/ (muh-TI-ree-uhlz) in American English and /mətiəɹiəlz/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “tɪ”.
The sound

Say “materials” in 4 beats

Say it like this

materials

/məˈtɪɹiəlz/

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

4 beats
  1. məmə
  2. tɪtɪstress
  3. ɹiɹi
  4. əlzəlz
IPA (American)
/məˈtɪɹiəlz/
IPA (British)
/mətiəɹiəlz/
Respelling
muh-TI-ree-uhlz
Syllables
4 — mə-TꞮ-ɹi-əlz
Stress
Stress the second syllable: mə-TꞮ-ɹi-əlz. “tɪ” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
noun
Difficulty
Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/məˈtɪɹiəlz/

British

/mətiəɹiəlz/

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

Meaning

What “materials” means

  1. noun

    the tangible substance that goes into the makeup of a physical object

    “coal is a hard black material”

  2. noun

    information (data or ideas or observations) that can be used or reworked into a finished form

    “the archives provided rich material for a definitive biography”

  3. noun

    artifact made by weaving or felting or knitting or crocheting natural or synthetic fibers

    “the fabric in the curtains was light and semitransparent”

Say it in a sentence

“The workers ordered more materials before starting the roof.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

8 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

“materials”, answered

How do you pronounce “materials”?

“materials” is pronounced /məˈtɪɹiəlz/ (muh-TI-ree-uhlz) in American English and /mətiəɹiəlz/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “tɪ”. Build it as mə-TꞮ-ɹi-əlz, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “materials” have?

4: mə · tɪ · ɹi · əlz. The beat lands on the second, “tɪ”.

Is “materials” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /məˈtɪɹiəlz/ (muh-TI-ree-uhlz); British English says /mətiəɹiəlz/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “materials” mean?

As a noun: the tangible substance that goes into the makeup of a physical object For example: “coal is a hard black material” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “materials”?

Stress the second syllable: mə-TꞮ-ɹi-əlz. “tɪ” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “materials” 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.