How to pronounce “peculiar”
Peculiar is pronounced /pəˈkjuːljər/. It has 3 syllables, and the beat falls on the second one — kjuː. Below: the syllable split, native audio in both accents, the mistake people actually make with this word, and every individual sound in it explained.
Syllables and stress
Split it into 3 beats. The highlighted syllable is the strong one: say it louder, longer and a touch higher in pitch, and let the others fall away. English is a stress-timed language, so getting kjuː in the right place matters more to a listener than getting every vowel perfect.
Stress pattern oOo — capital letters mark the stressed beats.
“peculiar” sound by sound
“peculiar” is built out of 8 sounds. Say each one on its own first, slowly, then run them together at speed. Every sound links to a full guide with mouth position, the mistake learners make with it, and other words that use it.
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pPress both lips together, build up air behind them, then release with a puff of air (aspiration) when the sound starts a stressed syllable.
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əDo almost nothing: leave the tongue in its neutral resting position, mouth slightly open, and make the shortest, weakest possible vowel.
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kRaise the back of the tongue to touch the soft palate, seal the air, then release it with a puff.
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jRaise the front of the tongue high toward the hard palate as if starting /iː/, then glide straight into the following vowel.
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uːPush the tongue high and back and round the lips into a tight, forward circle; hold it tense and long.
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lTouch the tongue tip to the ridge behind the upper teeth and let the voiced air flow around the sides of the tongue.
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jRaise the front of the tongue high toward the hard palate as if starting /iː/, then glide straight into the following vowel.
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ərThe same r-coloured tongue shape as /ɜːr/ but weak, short and unstressed — the ending of "teacher", "doctor", "sugar".
Questions people ask about “peculiar”
- How do you pronounce “peculiar”?
- “peculiar” is pronounced /pəˈkjuːljər/, with the stress on the second syllable (kjuː). Press the US or UK button above to hear it spoken.
- How many syllables are in “peculiar”?
- “peculiar” has 3 syllables: pə · kjuː · ljər. The stress pattern is oOo.
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