pronounce

American  

[pruh-nouns] / prəˈnaʊns /

verb (used with object)

pronounced, pronouncing

1. to enunciate or articulate (sounds, words, sentences, etc.).

2. to utter or sound in a particular manner in speaking.

   He pronounces his words indistinctly.

3. to utter or articulate in the accepted or correct manner.

   I can't pronounce this word.

4. to declare (a person or thing) to be as specified.

   She pronounced it the best salmon she had ever tasted.

5. to utter or deliver formally or solemnly.

   to pronounce sentence.

6. to announce authoritatively or officially.

   The judge pronounced the defendant guilty.

7. to indicate the pronunciation of (words) by providing a phonetic transcription.

   This dictionary pronounces most of the words entered.

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verb (used without object)

pronounced, pronouncing

1. to pronounce words, phrases, etc.

2. to make a statement or assertion, especially an authoritative statement (often followed byon ).

   He was required to pronounce on the findings of his research.

3. to give an opinion or decision (usually followed byon ).

   to pronounce on an important matter.

4. to indicate the pronunciation of words.

   a spelling book that pronounces.

pronounce British  

/ prəˈnaʊns /

verb

1. to utter or articulate (a sound or sequence of sounds)

2. (tr) to utter or articulate (sounds or words) in the correct way

3. (tr; may take a clause as object) to proclaim officially and solemnly

   I now pronounce you man and wife

4. (when tr, may take a clause as object) to declare as one's judgment

   to pronounce the death sentence upon someone

5. (tr) to make a phonetic transcription of (sounds or words)

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Other Word Forms

• prepronounce
  verb (used with object)
• pronounceable
  adjective
• pronounceableness
  noun
• pronouncer
  noun
• unpronounceable
  adjective
• unpronouncing
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of pronounce

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English pronouncen, from Middle French prononcier, from Latin prōnūntiāre “to proclaim, announce, recite, utter”; see pro- ¹, announce

Explanation

If you have a teacher who asks the class to call him "Mr. B," it's probably because his name is really hard to pronounce. When you pronounce a word, you sound it out. When you say something in a particular way, you pronounce it. The verb pronounce has another meaning, too — "to declare formally." It's not too different from announcing something, but it implies something more official and solemn — just think of the phrase "I now pronounce you husband and wife."

Example Sentences

As a Canadian author, she won that nation’s prestigious Giller Prize in 2020 for her short-story collection “How to Pronounce Knife.”

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 1, 2025

You have one poem, "I Now Pronounce You Dead," that deals directly with capital punishment, but also the effect of memory, which is so often haunting.

From Salon • Mar. 31, 2021

The Don’t Pronounce the “T” in “Often” Society.

From Washington Post • Jan. 2, 2020

Four years ago, he was perhaps the most consistent comedian in terms of box office performance, fielding hits like "I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry," "Grown Ups," and "Just Go With It."

From Reuters • Jul. 26, 2015

Soon as the sun has shown his light Pronounce the prayer to bless the rite, And then be all the Bráhmans called And in their ordered seats installed.

From The Rámáyan of Válmíki, translated into English verse by Griffith, Ralph T. H. (Ralph Thomas Hotchkin)

Related Words

• assert
• deliver
• proclaim