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Pronunciation

How to pronounce “variable”

“variable” is pronounced /ˈvɛɹiəbəl/ (VE-ree-uh-buhl) in American English and /veəɹɪəbəl/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “vɛ”.
The sound

Say “variable” in 4 beats

Say it like this

variable

/ˈvɛɹiəbəl/

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

4 beats
  1. vɛvɛstress
  2. ɹiɹi
  3. əə
  4. bəlbəl
IPA (American)
/ˈvɛɹiəbəl/
IPA (British)
/veəɹɪəbəl/
Respelling
VE-ree-uh-buhl
Syllables
4 — VƐ-ɹi-ə-bəl
Stress
Stress the first syllable: VƐ-ɹi-ə-bəl. “vɛ” 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

/ˈvɛɹiəbəl/

British

/veəɹɪəbəl/

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

Meaning

What “variable” means

  1. noun

    something that is likely to vary; something that is subject to variation

    “the weather is one variable to be considered”

  2. noun

    a quantity that can assume any of a set of values

  3. noun

    a star that varies noticeably in brightness

Say it in a sentence

“Rainfall here is highly variable from year to year.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

7 sounds, in the order you say them
vvɛshort eɹrɪəearbbəschwall

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

Questions

“variable”, answered

How do you pronounce “variable”?

“variable” is pronounced /ˈvɛɹiəbəl/ (VE-ree-uh-buhl) in American English and /veəɹɪəbəl/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “vɛ”. Build it as VƐ-ɹi-ə-bəl, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “variable” have?

4: vɛ · ɹi · ə · bəl. The beat lands on the first, “vɛ”.

Is “variable” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈvɛɹiəbəl/ (VE-ree-uh-buhl); British English says /veəɹɪəbəl/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “variable” mean?

As a noun: something that is likely to vary; something that is subject to variation For example: “the weather is one variable to be considered” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “variable”?

Stress the first syllable: VƐ-ɹi-ə-bəl. “vɛ” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

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