Emphasize

How to spell emphasize

9 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce emphasize

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does emphasize mean?

1. verbTo give special importance, force, or prominence to something in speaking or writing.

Emphasize in a sentence

• The manager wanted to emphasize the importance of meeting the deadline.

• Good teachers emphasize the points that students most often forget.

Where does emphasize come from?

Language of origin: Greek

This word traces back to the Greek emphasis, which combined en, meaning 'in', with phainein, the verb 'to show' or 'to make appear'. In classical Greek and Latin rhetoric an emphasis was a way of showing more meaning than the words literally stated, a kind of implied stress. English took the noun 'emphasis' in the late 1500s, and the verb 'emphasize' was built from it around the early 1800s by adding the active -ize ending. The -ize spelling reflects the Greek-derived suffix -izein, which is why dictionaries on both sides of the Atlantic accept it, although British writers also use 'emphasise'. The shared phain root still glows inside relatives such as 'phenomenon' (a thing that shows itself) and 'fantasy', which can help anchor the otherwise silent-feeling middle of the word.

How the word is built

• em- (in, into)
• phas (from Greek phainein: to show)
• -ize (verb-forming suffix)

British and American spelling

Emphasize is the American spelling. British English spells it emphasise.