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Pronunciation

How to pronounce “protean”

“protean” is pronounced /pɹoʊˈtiən/ (proh-TEE-uhn) in American English and /pɹəʊtiən/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “ti”.
The sound

Say “protean” in 3 beats

Say it like this

protean

/pɹoʊˈtiən/

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

3 beats
  1. pɹoʊpɹoʊ
  2. titistress
  3. ənən
IPA (American)
/pɹoʊˈtiən/
IPA (British)
/pɹəʊtiən/
Respelling
proh-TEE-uhn
Syllables
3 — pɹoʊ-TI-ən
Stress
Stress the second syllable: pɹoʊ-TI-ən. “ti” 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

/pɹoʊˈtiən/

British

/pɹəʊtiən/

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

Meaning

What “protean” means

  1. adjective

    taking on different forms

    “eyes...of that baffling protean grey which is never twice the same”

Say it in a sentence

“Her protean talent moved from pottery to printmaking effortlessly.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

6 sounds, in the order you say them
ppɹroʊlong ottɪəearnn

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

Questions

“protean”, answered

How do you pronounce “protean”?

“protean” is pronounced /pɹoʊˈtiən/ (proh-TEE-uhn) in American English and /pɹəʊtiən/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “ti”. Build it as pɹoʊ-TI-ən, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “protean” have?

3: pɹoʊ · ti · ən. The beat lands on the second, “ti”.

Is “protean” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /pɹoʊˈtiən/ (proh-TEE-uhn); British English says /pɹəʊtiən/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “protean” mean?

As an adjective: taking on different forms For example: “eyes...of that baffling protean grey which is never twice the same”

Where is the stress in “protean”?

Stress the second syllable: pɹoʊ-TI-ən. “ti” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

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