Pronunciation

How to pronounce “scenario

“scenario” is pronounced /sɪˈnɛɹioʊ/ (si-NE-ree-oh) in American English and /sənɑːɹiəʊ/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “nɛ”.
The sound

Say “scenario” in 4 beats

Say it like this

scenario

/sɪˈnɛɹioʊ/

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

4 beats
  1. stress
  2. ɹiɹi
IPA (American)
/sɪˈnɛɹioʊ/
IPA (British)
/sənɑːɹiəʊ/
Respelling
si-NE-ree-oh
Syllables
4 — sɪ-NƐ-ɹi-oʊ
Stress
Stress the second syllable: sɪ-NƐ-ɹi-oʊ. “nɛ” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
noun
Difficulty
Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/sɪˈnɛɹioʊ/

British

/sənɑːɹiəʊ/

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

Meaning

What “scenario” means

  1. noun

    an outline or synopsis of a play (or, by extension, of a literary work)

  2. noun

    a setting for a work of art or literature

    the scenario is France during the Reign of Terror

  3. noun

    a postulated sequence of possible events

    planners developed several scenarios in case of an attack

Say it in a sentence

In the worst scenario we lose a day and start again.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

7 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

scenario”, answered

How do you pronounce “scenario”?

“scenario” is pronounced /sɪˈnɛɹioʊ/ (si-NE-ree-oh) in American English and /sənɑːɹiəʊ/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “nɛ”. Build it as sɪ-NƐ-ɹi-oʊ, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “scenario” have?

4: sɪ · nɛ · ɹi · oʊ. The beat lands on the second, “nɛ”.

Is “scenario” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /sɪˈnɛɹioʊ/ (si-NE-ree-oh); British English says /sənɑːɹiəʊ/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “scenario” mean?

As a noun: an outline or synopsis of a play (or, by extension, of a literary work) For example: “In the worst scenario we lose a day and start again.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “scenario”?

Stress the second syllable: sɪ-NƐ-ɹi-oʊ. “nɛ” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “scenario” and see every sound

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