Pronunciation

How to pronounce “perilous

“perilous” is pronounced /ˈpɛɹələs/ (PE-ruh-luhs) in American English and /pɛɹɪləs/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “per”.
The sound

Say “perilous” in 3 beats

Say it like this

perilous

/ˈpɛɹələs/

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

3 beats
  1. perstress
  2. ilɹə
  3. ousləs
IPA (American)
/ˈpɛɹələs/
IPA (British)
/pɛɹɪləs/
Respelling
PE-ruh-luhs
Syllables
3 — PER-il-ous
Stress
Stress the first syllable: PER-il-ous. “per” 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
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˈpɛɹələs/

British

/pɛɹɪləs/

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

Meaning

What “perilous” means

  1. adjective

    fraught with danger

    dangerous waters

Say it in a sentence

The path along the cliff is perilous in wet weather.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

6 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

perilous”, answered

How do you pronounce “perilous”?

“perilous” is pronounced /ˈpɛɹələs/ (PE-ruh-luhs) in American English and /pɛɹɪləs/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “per”. Build it as PER-il-ous, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “perilous” have?

3: per · il · ous. The beat lands on the first, “per”.

Is “perilous” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈpɛɹələs/ (PE-ruh-luhs); British English says /pɛɹɪləs/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “perilous” mean?

As an adjective: fraught with danger For example: “dangerous waters”

Where is the stress in “perilous”?

Stress the first syllable: PER-il-ous. “per” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “perilous” 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.