Pronunciation

How to pronounce “muscle

“muscle” is pronounced /ˈmʌsəl/ (MUSS-uhl) — 2 syllables, stressed on “musc”.
The sound

Say “muscle” in 2 beats

Say it like this

muscle

/ˈmʌsəl/

The voice you hear here is American; a British voice is available in the app's settings.

2 beats
  1. muscstress
  2. lesəl
IPA (American)
/ˈmʌsəl/
IPA (British)
/ˈmʌsəl/
Respelling
MUSS-uhl
Syllables
2 — MUSC-le
Stress
Stress the first syllable: MUSC-le. “musc” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
Part of speech
noun, verb
Difficulty
Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
Watch out

Where “muscle” goes wrong

  • Often heard

    MUS-kul

    the c is silent: it sounds exactly like mussel

Meaning

What “muscle” means

  1. noun

    one of the contractile organs of the body

  2. noun

    animal tissue consisting predominantly of contractile cells

  3. noun

    a bully employed as a thug or bodyguard

    the drug lord had his muscleman to protect him

Say it in a sentence

Stretch slowly or you will pull a muscle in your leg.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

5 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

muscle”, answered

How do you pronounce “muscle”?

“muscle” is pronounced /ˈmʌsəl/ (MUSS-uhl) — 2 syllables, stressed on “musc”. Build it as MUSC-le, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “muscle” have?

2: musc · le. The beat lands on the first, “musc”.

What does “muscle” mean?

As a noun: one of the contractile organs of the body For example: “Stretch slowly or you will pull a muscle in your leg.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “muscle”?

Stress the first syllable: MUSC-le. “musc” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “muscle” 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.