sayitsayit
Pronunciation

How to pronounce “zealot”

“zealot” is pronounced /ˈzɛlət/ (ZE-luht) in American English and /zɛlət/ in British English, and /ˈzilət/ is also accepted — 2 syllables, stressed on “zeal”.
The sound

Say “zealot” in 2 beats

Say it like this

zealot

/ˈzɛlət/

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

2 beats
  1. zealzɛstress
  2. otlət
IPA (American)
/ˈzɛlət/
IPA (British)
/zɛlət/
Also accepted
/ˈzilət/
Respelling
ZE-luht
Syllables
2 — ZEAL-ot
Stress
Stress the first syllable: ZEAL-ot. “zeal” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
Part of speech
noun
Difficulty
Legend — spelling and sound part company here
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˈzɛlət/

British

/zɛlət/

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

Meaning

What “zealot” means

  1. noun

    a member of an ancient Jewish sect in Judea in the first century who fought to the death against the Romans and who killed or persecuted Jews who collaborated with the Romans

  2. noun

    a fervent and even militant proponent of something

Say it in a sentence

“He is no zealot, just a very careful gardener.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

5 sounds, in the order you say them
zzɛshort elləschwatt

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

Questions

“zealot”, answered

How do you pronounce “zealot”?

“zealot” is pronounced /ˈzɛlət/ (ZE-luht) in American English and /zɛlət/ in British English, and /ˈzilət/ is also accepted — 2 syllables, stressed on “zeal”. Build it as ZEAL-ot, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “zealot” have?

2: zeal · ot. The beat lands on the first, “zeal”.

Is “zealot” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈzɛlət/ (ZE-luht); British English says /zɛlət/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “zealot” mean?

As a noun: a member of an ancient Jewish sect in Judea in the first century who fought to the death against the Romans and who killed or persecuted Jews who collaborated with the Romans For example: “He is no zealot, just a very careful gardener.” It carries 1 other sense as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “zealot”?

Stress the first syllable: ZEAL-ot. “zeal” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “zealot” 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.

Practise this word freeMore words with Z