Pronounce

How to spell pronounce

9 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce pronounce

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does pronounce mean?

1. verbTo make the sound of a word or letter in a particular way when speaking.
2. verbTo declare or announce something formally and with authority.

Pronounce in a sentence

• Many learners struggle to pronounce the silent letters in English words.

• The doctors were ready to pronounce the patient stable after surgery.

• The coach asked everyone to pronounce the foreign client's surname correctly before the meeting.

• The judge will pronounce sentence once the jury reaches a verdict.

Where does pronounce come from?

Language of origin: Latin

Pronounce comes from the Latin verb pronuntiare, which meant 'to proclaim' or 'to declare publicly', formed from the prefix pro-, meaning 'forth' or 'out', and nuntiare, meaning 'to announce or report'. That second part is built on nuntius, a 'messenger', the same root that sits inside 'announce', 'denounce', and 'renounce'. English took the word in during the 1300s through Old French pronuncier, at first with the sense of formally declaring something, such as a judge delivering a verdict. The narrower modern meaning, 'to say words aloud in a particular way', grew naturally out of that idea of speaking something out for others to hear. The spelling trap is the 'ou' in the middle, inherited from the French form, even though the related noun 'pronunciation' quietly drops it, which is why writers so often muddle the two.

How the word is built

• pro- (forth, out)
• nounce (from Latin nuntiare: to announce, report)