Pronunciation

How to pronounce “recalcitrant

“recalcitrant” is pronounced /ɹɪˈkælsɪtɹənt/ (ri-KAL-si-truhnt) in American English and /ɹɪkalsɪtɹənt/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “al”.
The sound

Say “recalcitrant” in 4 beats

Say it like this

recalcitrant

/ɹɪˈkælsɪtɹənt/

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

4 beats
  1. recɹɪ
  2. alkælstress
  3. cit
  4. ranttɹənt
IPA (American)
/ɹɪˈkælsɪtɹənt/
IPA (British)
/ɹɪkalsɪtɹənt/
Respelling
ri-KAL-si-truhnt
Syllables
4 — rec-AL-cit-rant
Stress
Stress the second syllable: rec-AL-cit-rant. “al” 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

/ɹɪˈkælsɪtɹənt/

British

/ɹɪkalsɪtɹənt/

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

Meaning

What “recalcitrant” means

  1. adjective

    stubbornly resistant to authority or control

    a fractious animal that would not submit to the harness

  2. adjective

    marked by stubborn resistance to authority

    the University suspended the most recalcitrant demonstrators

Say it in a sentence

The recalcitrant gate has to be lifted and then shoved.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

9 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

recalcitrant”, answered

How do you pronounce “recalcitrant”?

“recalcitrant” is pronounced /ɹɪˈkælsɪtɹənt/ (ri-KAL-si-truhnt) in American English and /ɹɪkalsɪtɹənt/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “al”. Build it as rec-AL-cit-rant, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “recalcitrant” have?

4: rec · al · cit · rant. The beat lands on the second, “al”.

Is “recalcitrant” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ɹɪˈkælsɪtɹənt/ (ri-KAL-si-truhnt); British English says /ɹɪkalsɪtɹənt/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “recalcitrant” mean?

As an adjective: stubbornly resistant to authority or control For example: “a fractious animal that would not submit to the harness” It carries 1 other sense as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “recalcitrant”?

Stress the second syllable: rec-AL-cit-rant. “al” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “recalcitrant” 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.