Pronunciation

How to pronounce “subsidiary

“subsidiary” is pronounced /səbˈsɪdiˌɛɹi/ (suhb-SID-ee-air-ee) in American English and /səbˈsɪdɪəri/ in British English — 5 syllables, stressed on “sɪ”.
The sound

Say “subsidiary” in 5 beats

Say it like this

subsidiary

/səbˈsɪdiˌɛɹi/

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

5 beats
  1. səbsəb
  2. stress
  3. didi
  4. ɛɛ
  5. ɹiɹi
IPA (American)
/səbˈsɪdiˌɛɹi/
IPA (British)
/səbˈsɪdɪəri/
Respelling
suhb-SID-ee-air-ee
Syllables
5 — səb-SꞮ-di-ɛ-ɹi
Stress
Stress the second syllable: səb-SꞮ-di-ɛ-ɹi. “sɪ” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
noun, adjective
Difficulty
Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/səbˈsɪdiˌɛɹi/

British

/səbˈsɪdɪəri/

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

Watch out

Where “subsidiary” goes wrong

  • Often heard

    sub-SIDE-ee-ary

    the i in SID is short, as in sit

Meaning

What “subsidiary” means

  1. noun

    an assistant subject to the authority or control of another

  2. noun

    a company that is completely controlled by another company

  3. adjective

    functioning in a supporting capacity

    the main library and its auxiliary branches

Say it in a sentence

The German subsidiary employs about forty people.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

8 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

subsidiary”, answered

How do you pronounce “subsidiary”?

“subsidiary” is pronounced /səbˈsɪdiˌɛɹi/ (suhb-SID-ee-air-ee) in American English and /səbˈsɪdɪəri/ in British English — 5 syllables, stressed on “sɪ”. Build it as səb-SꞮ-di-ɛ-ɹi, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “subsidiary” have?

5: səb · sɪ · di · ɛ · ɹi. The beat lands on the second, “sɪ”.

Is “subsidiary” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /səbˈsɪdiˌɛɹi/ (suhb-SID-ee-air-ee); British English says /səbˈsɪdɪəri/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “subsidiary” mean?

As a noun: an assistant subject to the authority or control of another For example: “The German subsidiary employs about forty people.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “subsidiary”?

Stress the second syllable: səb-SꞮ-di-ɛ-ɹi. “sɪ” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “subsidiary” 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.