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Pronunciation

How to pronounce “unemployment”

“unemployment” is pronounced /ˌʌnɪmˈplɔɪmənt/ (u-nim-PLOY-muhnt) in American English and /ʌnɛmplɔɪmənt/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “loym”.
The sound

Say “unemployment” in 4 beats

Say it like this

unemployment

/ˌʌnɪmˈplɔɪmənt/

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

4 beats
  1. unʌ
  2. empnɪm
  3. loymplɔɪstress
  4. entmənt
IPA (American)
/ˌʌnɪmˈplɔɪmənt/
IPA (British)
/ʌnɛmplɔɪmənt/
Respelling
u-nim-PLOY-muhnt
Syllables
4 — un-emp-LOYM-ent
Stress
Stress the third syllable: un-emp-LOYM-ent. “loym” 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

/ˌʌnɪmˈplɔɪmənt/

British

/ʌnɛmplɔɪmənt/

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

Meaning

What “unemployment” means

  1. noun

    the state of being unemployed or not having a job

    “unemployment is a serious social evil”

Say it in a sentence

“Unemployment in the region fell for the fourth month running.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

9 sounds, in the order you say them
ʌshort unn×2ɪshort imm×2ppllɔɪoyəschwatt

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

Questions

“unemployment”, answered

How do you pronounce “unemployment”?

“unemployment” is pronounced /ˌʌnɪmˈplɔɪmənt/ (u-nim-PLOY-muhnt) in American English and /ʌnɛmplɔɪmənt/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “loym”. Build it as un-emp-LOYM-ent, then run the third syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “unemployment” have?

4: un · emp · loym · ent. The beat lands on the third, “loym”.

Is “unemployment” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˌʌnɪmˈplɔɪmənt/ (u-nim-PLOY-muhnt); British English says /ʌnɛmplɔɪmənt/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “unemployment” mean?

As a noun: the state of being unemployed or not having a job For example: “unemployment is a serious social evil”

Where is the stress in “unemployment”?

Stress the third syllable: un-emp-LOYM-ent. “loym” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

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