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Pronunciation

How to pronounce “supportive”

“supportive” is pronounced /səˈpɔɹtɪv/ (suh-PAWR-tiv) in American English and /səpɔːtɪv/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “pɔɹ”.
The sound

Say “supportive” in 3 beats

Say it like this

supportive

/səˈpɔɹtɪv/

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

3 beats
  1. səsə
  2. pɔɹpɔɹstress
  3. tɪvtɪv
IPA (American)
/səˈpɔɹtɪv/
IPA (British)
/səpɔːtɪv/
Respelling
suh-PAWR-tiv
Syllables
3 — sə-PƆɹ-tɪv
Stress
Stress the second syllable: sə-PƆɹ-tɪv. “pɔɹ” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
adjective
Difficulty
Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/səˈpɔɹtɪv/

British

/səpɔːtɪv/

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

Meaning

What “supportive” means

  1. adjective

    furnishing support or assistance

    “a supportive family network”

Say it in a sentence

“Her family was supportive throughout the whole long process.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

8 sounds, in the order you say them
ssəschwappɔawɹrttɪshort ivv

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

Questions

“supportive”, answered

How do you pronounce “supportive”?

“supportive” is pronounced /səˈpɔɹtɪv/ (suh-PAWR-tiv) in American English and /səpɔːtɪv/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “pɔɹ”. Build it as sə-PƆɹ-tɪv, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “supportive” have?

3: sə · pɔɹ · tɪv. The beat lands on the second, “pɔɹ”.

Is “supportive” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /səˈpɔɹtɪv/ (suh-PAWR-tiv); British English says /səpɔːtɪv/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “supportive” mean?

As an adjective: furnishing support or assistance For example: “a supportive family network”

Where is the stress in “supportive”?

Stress the second syllable: sə-PƆɹ-tɪv. “pɔɹ” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “supportive” and see every sound

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