psychology
noun · the study of the mind and how people behave
- sysaɪ
- KAHkɑː (stressed)
- luhlə
- jeedʒi
- sysaɪ
- KOLkɒl (stressed)
- uhə
- jeedʒi
- US /saɪˈkɑː.lə.dʒi/sy-KAH-luh-jee Recorded voice
- UK /saɪˈkɒl.ə.dʒi/sy-KOL-uh-jee Your device’s voice
How to pronounce psychology
Psychology is pronounced sy-KAH-luh-jee in American English and sy-KOL-uh-jee in British English. It has four syllables with the stress on the second. The p is silent, so it starts with an s.
- 4 syllables
- Stress on KAH
- US and UK IPA
- Checked in Cambridge and Oxford
IPA checked in the Cambridge Dictionary and Oxford Learner’s Dictionaries. The recording is American English.
Psychology, sound by sound
Each sound in the IPA, with a word you already know that has it.
US American English/saɪˈkɑː.lə.dʒi/
sy
- /s/as in see
- /aɪ/as in my
KAHstressed
- /k/as in cat
- /ɑː/as in father
luh
- /l/as in leg
- /ə/as in about
jee
- /dʒ/as in jam
- /i/as in happy
UK British English/saɪˈkɒl.ə.dʒi/
sy
- /s/as in see
- /aɪ/as in my
KOLstressed
- /k/as in cat
- /ɒ/as in hot (UK)
- /l/as in leg
uh
- /ə/as in about
jee
- /dʒ/as in jam
- /i/as in happy
Say psychology yourself
Press the microphone and say it once. Your browser writes down what it hears: if it writes psychology, you were understood. If it writes another word, you see which sound changed.
Tip. The p is silent. Say sy-KAH-luh-jee (US) or sy-KOL-uh-jee (UK), with the stress on KAH or KOL.
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Common psychology pronunciation mistakes
What people often say instead, and how to fix it. Say sy-KAH-luh-jee.
Not
puh-sy-KAH-luh-jeeSaying the p. Start with s.
Not
SY-kah-luh-jeeStressing the first syllable. The stress is on KAH or KOL.
Not
sih-KAH-luh-jeeUsing the short i. The first vowel is the eye sound: sy.
Psychology 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.
She studies psychology at the university.
I read a book on child psychology.
There is a lot of psychology in advertising.
Is the p in psychology silent?
Yes. The p is silent, so the word starts with s: sy-KAH-luh-jee. English words do not begin with the sounds p and s together, so only the s is said.
The p comes from Greek. The word came into English through French and Latin from Greek psyche, meaning soul or mind, plus logia, the study of. The Greek letter psi was written ps. In Greek, people said both sounds; in English they do not.
The same silent p is in psychiatrist, pseudonym, pneumonia and psalm. Learners often say puh-sy-. Start with a clean s, say the eye sound of my, and put the weight on the second syllable.
Words that sound like psychology
Rhymes and words that share its tricky sound. Open any of them in the checker and say it.
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