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Pronunciation

How to pronounce “obstinate”

“obstinate” is pronounced /ˈɑbstənət/ (AHB-stuh-nuht) in American English and /ɒbstɪnət/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “ɑb”.
The sound

Say “obstinate” in 3 beats

Say it like this

obstinate

/ˈɑbstənət/

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

3 beats
  1. ɑbɑbstress
  2. stəstə
  3. nətnət
IPA (American)
/ˈɑbstənət/
IPA (British)
/ɒbstɪnət/
Respelling
AHB-stuh-nuht
Syllables
3 — ⱭB-stə-nət
Stress
Stress the first syllable: ⱭB-stə-nət. “ɑb” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
verb, adjective
Difficulty
Legend — spelling and sound part company here
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˈɑbstənət/

British

/ɒbstɪnət/

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

Meaning

What “obstinate” means

  1. verb

    persist stubbornly

    “he obstinates himself against all rational arguments”

  2. adjective

    tenaciously unwilling or marked by tenacious unwillingness to yield

  3. adjective

    stubbornly persistent in wrongdoing

Say it in a sentence

“The lid was obstinate until he ran it under hot water.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

6 sounds, in the order you say them
ɑahbbsstt×2əschwa×2nn

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

Questions

“obstinate”, answered

How do you pronounce “obstinate”?

“obstinate” is pronounced /ˈɑbstənət/ (AHB-stuh-nuht) in American English and /ɒbstɪnət/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “ɑb”. Build it as ⱭB-stə-nət, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “obstinate” have?

3: ɑb · stə · nət. The beat lands on the first, “ɑb”.

Is “obstinate” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈɑbstənət/ (AHB-stuh-nuht); British English says /ɒbstɪnət/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “obstinate” mean?

As a verb: persist stubbornly For example: “he obstinates himself against all rational arguments” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “obstinate”?

Stress the first syllable: ⱭB-stə-nət. “ɑb” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

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