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Pronunciation

How to pronounce “polemical”

“polemical” is pronounced /pəˈlɛməkəl/ (puh-LE-muh-kuhl) in American English and /pɒlɛmɪkəl/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “em”.
The sound

Say “polemical” in 4 beats

Say it like this

polemical

/pəˈlɛməkəl/

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

4 beats
  1. polpə
  2. emlɛstress
  3. icmə
  4. alkəl
IPA (American)
/pəˈlɛməkəl/
IPA (British)
/pɒlɛmɪkəl/
Respelling
puh-LE-muh-kuhl
Syllables
4 — pol-EM-ic-al
Stress
Stress the second syllable: pol-EM-ic-al. “em” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
adjective
Difficulty
Legend — spelling and sound part company here
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/pəˈlɛməkəl/

British

/pɒlɛmɪkəl/

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

Meaning

What “polemical” means

  1. adjective

    of or involving dispute or controversy

Say it in a sentence

“His polemical article annoyed half the parish council.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

6 sounds, in the order you say them
ppəschwa×3ll×2ɛshort emmkk

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

Questions

“polemical”, answered

How do you pronounce “polemical”?

“polemical” is pronounced /pəˈlɛməkəl/ (puh-LE-muh-kuhl) in American English and /pɒlɛmɪkəl/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “em”. Build it as pol-EM-ic-al, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “polemical” have?

4: pol · em · ic · al. The beat lands on the second, “em”.

Is “polemical” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /pəˈlɛməkəl/ (puh-LE-muh-kuhl); British English says /pɒlɛmɪkəl/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “polemical” mean?

As an adjective: of or involving dispute or controversy For example: “His polemical article annoyed half the parish council.”

Where is the stress in “polemical”?

Stress the second syllable: pol-EM-ic-al. “em” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

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