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How to pronounce psychiatrist

Psychiatrist is pronounced sy-KY-uh-trist, with four syllables and the stress on the second, KY. The p is silent. American and British English say it the same way.

Say it yourself
  • 4 syllables
  • Stress on KY
  • US and UK IPA
  • Checked in Cambridge and Oxford

psychiatrist

Four syllables, stress on the second

noun · a doctor who treats mental health problems

  1. sysaɪ
  2. KYkaɪ (stressed)
  3. uhə
  4. tristtrɪst
  • US /saɪˈkaɪ.ə.trɪst/sy-KY-uh-trist Recorded voice
  • UK /saɪˈkaɪ.ə.trɪst/sy-KY-uh-trist Your device’s voice

IPA checked in the Cambridge Dictionary and Oxford Learner’s Dictionaries. The recording is American English.

Psychiatrist, sound by sound

Each sound in the IPA, with a word you already know that has it.

USUK American and British English/saɪˈkaɪ.ə.trɪst/

  1. sy

    • /s/as in see
    • /aɪ/as in my

  2. KYstressed

    • /k/as in cat
    • /aɪ/as in my

  3. uh

    • /ə/as in about

  4. trist

    • /t/as in tea
    • /r/as in red
    • /ɪ/as in sit
    • /s/as in see
    • /t/as in tea

Say psychiatrist yourself

Press the microphone and say it once. Your browser writes down what it hears: if it writes psychiatrist, you were understood. If it writes another word, you see which sound changed.

Tip. The p is silent. Say sy-KY-uh-trist, with the stress on the second syllable, KY.

Record yourself and play it next to our recording: the quickest way to hear a difference.

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psychiatrist

    Common psychiatrist pronunciation mistakes

    What people often say instead, and how to fix it. Say sy-KY-uh-trist.

    • Notpuh-sy-KY-uh-trist

      Saying the p. Start with s.

    • Notsy-KEE-uh-trist

      Reading the ia as ee-uh. In this word it is the eye sound: KY-uh.

    • NotSY-ky-uh-trist

      Stressing the first syllable. The stress is on the second: KY.

    Psychiatrist in a sentence

    Hear each one, slow it down, then say it. Words change a little when they join others, so practise them in sentences too.

    • My sister is training to be a psychiatrist.

    • The psychiatrist listened to him for an hour.

    • You need to see a psychiatrist about this.

    How do you say psychiatrist?

    The p is silent, so the word begins with s. Then comes the eye sound of my twice: sy at the start and KY in the stressed syllable. The ending is a weak uh-trist.

    The word is built from psychiatry plus the ending -ist. Psychiatry comes from Greek psyche, the mind or soul, and iatros, a doctor. English kept the Greek ps spelling but says only the s.

    A psychiatrist is a medical doctor who can prescribe medicine. A psychologist (sy-KAH-luh-jist in the US) studies the mind and usually does not prescribe. They sound alike, so learners often mix up the stress. Put it on KY every time.

    Words that sound like psychiatrist

    Rhymes and words that share its tricky sound. Open any of them in the checker and say it.

    More words with silent letters

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