How to pronounce “nefarious”
Say “nefarious” in 4 beats
nefarious
/nəˈfɛɹiəs/
The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /nəfeəɹiəs/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.
- nənə
- fɛfɛstress
- ɹiɹi
- əsəs
- IPA (American)
- /nəˈfɛɹiəs/
- IPA (British)
- /nəfeəɹiəs/
- Respelling
- nuh-FE-ree-uhs
- Syllables
- 4 — nə-FƐ-ɹi-əs
- Stress
- Stress the second syllable: nə-FƐ-ɹi-əs. “fɛ” 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
American and British are not the same here
/nəˈfɛɹiəs/
/nəfeəɹiəs/
No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.
What “nefarious” means
- adjective
extremely wicked
“nefarious schemes”
Say it in a sentence
“Nothing nefarious happened; the keys were simply in his coat.”“nefarious”, answered
How do you pronounce “nefarious”?
“nefarious” is pronounced /nəˈfɛɹiəs/ (nuh-FE-ree-uhs) in American English and /nəfeəɹiəs/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “fɛ”. Build it as nə-FƐ-ɹi-əs, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.
How many syllables does “nefarious” have?
4: nə · fɛ · ɹi · əs. The beat lands on the second, “fɛ”.
Is “nefarious” said differently in British English?
Yes. American English says /nəˈfɛɹiəs/ (nuh-FE-ree-uhs); British English says /nəfeəɹiəs/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.
What does “nefarious” mean?
As an adjective: extremely wicked For example: “nefarious schemes”
Where is the stress in “nefarious”?
Stress the second syllable: nə-FƐ-ɹi-əs. “fɛ” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Now say “nefarious” 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.