Pronunciation

How to pronounce “outline

“outline” is pronounced /ˈaʊtˌlaɪn/ (OWT-lyn) in American English and /aʊtlaɪn/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “aʊt”.
The sound

Say “outline” in 2 beats

Say it like this

outline

/ˈaʊtˌlaɪn/

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

2 beats
  1. aʊtaʊtstress
  2. laɪnlaɪn
IPA (American)
/ˈaʊtˌlaɪn/
IPA (British)
/aʊtlaɪn/
Respelling
OWT-lyn
Syllables
2 — AƱT-laɪn
Stress
Stress the first syllable: AƱT-laɪn. “aʊt” 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
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˈaʊtˌlaɪn/

British

/aʊtlaɪn/

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

Meaning

What “outline” means

  1. noun

    the line that appears to bound an object

  2. noun

    a sketchy summary of the main points of an argument or theory

  3. noun

    a schematic or preliminary plan

Say it in a sentence

Write an outline first and the essay writes itself.
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

outline”, answered

How do you pronounce “outline”?

“outline” is pronounced /ˈaʊtˌlaɪn/ (OWT-lyn) in American English and /aʊtlaɪn/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “aʊt”. Build it as AƱT-laɪn, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “outline” have?

2: aʊt · laɪn. The beat lands on the first, “aʊt”.

Is “outline” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈaʊtˌlaɪn/ (OWT-lyn); British English says /aʊtlaɪn/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “outline” mean?

As a noun: the line that appears to bound an object For example: “Write an outline first and the essay writes itself.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “outline”?

Stress the first syllable: AƱT-laɪn. “aʊt” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “outline” 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.