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How to pronounce specific

Specific is pronounced spuh-SIF-ik, with three syllables and the stress on the second. It starts with sp, so do not drop the s: puh-SIF-ik is the ocean, Pacific. American and British English say it the same way.

Say it yourself
  • 3 syllables
  • Stress on SIF
  • US and UK IPA
  • Checked in Cambridge and Oxford

specific

Three syllables, stress on the second

adjective · exact and clear; belonging to one particular thing or person

  1. spuhspə
  2. SIFsɪf (stressed)
  3. ikɪk
  • US /spəˈsɪf.ɪk/spuh-SIF-ik Recorded voice
  • UK /spəˈsɪf.ɪk/spuh-SIF-ik Your device’s voice

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

Specific, sound by sound

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

USUK American and British English/spəˈsɪf.ɪk/

  1. spuh

    • /s/as in see
    • /p/as in pen
    • /ə/as in about

  2. SIFstressed

    • /s/as in see
    • /ɪ/as in sit
    • /f/as in fall

  3. ik

    • /ɪ/as in sit
    • /k/as in cat

Say specific yourself

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

Tip. Start with sp, with no vowel before it. Specific begins spuh; Pacific begins puh.

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

Say it

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specific

    Common specific pronunciation mistakes

    What people often say instead, and how to fix it. Say spuh-SIF-ik.

    • Notpuh-SIF-ik

      Dropping the s, so it sounds like Pacific. Start with a clear s: spuh-SIF-ik.

    • Notes-puh-SIF-ik

      Adding a vowel before sp, as Spanish speakers often do. Start straight on the s.

    • NotSPES-ih-fik

      Stressing the first syllable, as in specify. In specific the beat is on SIF.

    Specific 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.

    • Can you give me a specific example?

    • We need to arrive at a specific time.

    • The rules are specific to each school.

    Why do people say pacific instead of specific?

    Specific and Pacific sound almost the same: spuh-SIF-ik and puh-SIF-ik. The only difference is the s at the start. When the sp cluster is said fast or carelessly, the s can disappear, and specific turns into pacific.

    Specific comes from the Late Latin specificus, from species, a kind or type. Something specific belongs to one kind of thing. Pacific has a different root: the Latin pacificus, peaceful, from pax, peace.

    The stress moves around this word family: species is SPEE-sheez, specify is SPES-ih-fy, specific is spuh-SIF-ik and specifically is spuh-SIF-ik-lee. In specific, the first syllable is always weak.

    Words that sound like specific

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

    More everyday words people get wrong

    All 170 difficult words

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