Indianapolis pronunciation
Indianapolis has 6 syllables. The stress is on the fourth syllable, "na". Capital letters in the respelling show where the stress falls.
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Indianapolis syllables
Indianapolis has 6 syllables: ihn-dee-uh-NA-puh-lihs.
- ihnɪn
- deedi
- uhə
- NAnæ
- puhpə
- lihslɪs
In-dee-uh-NAP-uh-lis, six syllables, main stress on "nap". Break it as "Indiana" plus "polis", and keep the final syllable a weak "lis".
The -s ending adds a syllable, pronounced iz, because the base word ends in a hissing sound.
Sounds to watch
The l sound
Touch the tongue tip to the ridge behind your top teeth. At the end of a syllable the l is darker and the back of the tongue rises.
Weak syllables
The unstressed syllables use a short, relaxed uh (schwa). Rushing through them lightly is correct; giving them a full vowel sounds unnatural.
Short i versus ee
The short i (as in sit) is shorter and more relaxed than ee. Many learners stretch it into ee, which changes the word.
The a in cat
Open the jaw wider than for eh and spread the lips slightly. The a in cat is a distinct vowel, not eh or ah.
Indianapolis in a sentence
- Indianapolis hosts the biggest single-day sporting event in the world.
- They drove from Indianapolis to Chicago in under three hours.
Read either sentence into the recorder above. The check judges only the target word, so the rest of the sentence can be rough.
What Speakeroo listens for
These are the pronunciation patterns from Speakeroo’s speech feature catalog that this target tends to expose. The check above reports the ones it hears.
- Final -s ending unclearUse the correct /s/, /z/ or /ɪz/ ending and keep it audible.
- Stress placed on the wrong syllableMake the correct syllable longer, clearer and more prominent.
- Final consonant omittedHold the final mouth position briefly without adding another vowel.
- Schwa not reducedRelax unstressed vowels toward a short neutral sound.
- /ɪ/ and /iː/ confusedMake /iː/ higher, tenser and usually longer than /ɪ/.
Questions
How do you pronounce indianapolis?
Indianapolis is pronounced /ˌɪn.di.ə.ˈnæ.pə.lɪs/, or ihn-dee-uh-NA-puh-lihs in plain letters. It has 6 syllables and the stress falls on the fourth syllable, "na".
How many syllables are in indianapolis?
6: ihn-dee-uh-NA-puh-lihs. The capital letters mark the stressed syllable.
How do you use indianapolis in a sentence?
Indianapolis hosts the biggest single-day sporting event in the world. They drove from Indianapolis to Chicago in under three hours.
How is the ending of indianapolis pronounced?
The -s ending adds a syllable, pronounced iz, because the base word ends in a hissing sound.
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