Synonyms

enunciate

American

[ih-nuhn-see-eyt] / ɪˈnʌn siˌeɪt /

verb (used with object)

to utter or pronounce (words, sentences, etc.), especially in an articulate or a particular manner.

He enunciates his words distinctly.
to state or declare definitely, as a theory.
to announce or proclaim.

to enunciate one's intentions.

verb (used without object)

to pronounce words, especially in an articulate or a particular manner.

enunciate British

/ ɪˈnʌnsɪˌeɪt /

verb

to articulate or pronounce (words), esp clearly and distinctly
(tr) to state precisely or formally

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Inflected Forms

Participles

Conjugated Forms

Present

Past

Future

Etymology

Origin of enunciate

First recorded in 1615–25; from Latin ēnūntiātus (past participle of ēnūntiāre ), equivalent to ē- “from, out of” ( see e- ¹) + nūnti(us) “messenger, message” + -ātus suffix ( see -ate ¹)

Explanation

Can't get your point across? Maybe you just need to speak more clearly or articulate your thoughts better — in short, enunciate. Good enunciation is similar to pronunciation, but describes more specifically how clearly someone expresses themselves. The word enunciate is related to the Latin words for both "announce" and "messenger." So most likely those ancient Romans who created the word wanted a messenger who could announce things without mumbling, grumbling, and rambling.

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Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

enunciate enunciates enunciated enunciating

Compassionate means you care about people and the policies you enunciate help people .

From Salon ● Jun. 28, 2026

And I don’t enunciate and I can’t say half the words in the English language to this day.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 16, 2024

The coordinator, too, wants Howell to “over-communicate” and enunciate clearly so that teammates don’t miss a word, Howell says.

From Washington Times ● May 31, 2023

He doesn't think screen acting has changed much over the decades but he does have a grumble about "mumbling" - actors who fail to enunciate their lines.

From BBC ● Mar. 17, 2023

He made sure to enunciate and face Leo the entire time.

From "When Dimple Met Rishi" by Sandhya Menon

Chandrasekhar admitted he was no Jacques Bailly, the University of Vermont classics professor who has been the competition’s official pronouncer since 2003 and enunciates each word with a vaguely Midwestern intonation.

From Washington Post ● Jun. 2, 2022

“It is a famine of beauty,” Mr. Talley enunciates with an air of great tragedy.

From New York Times ● Jan. 23, 2022

On my favorite part of “Exactly How I Feel,” featuring Gucci Mane, in which Lizzo idiosyncratically enunciates the title phrase while a high whistle rises in the background, unless that’s just a boiling kettle.

From Slate ● Apr. 22, 2019

He enunciates like a dressed-up Dylan on "Mother of Pearl," and cranks up the exaggeration on the Brechtian, funk-smeared proto-post-punk of "She Sells."

From Salon ● Oct. 13, 2018

"Love," Yo enunciates, letting the full force of the word loose in her mouth.

From "How the García Girls Lost Their Accents" by Julia Alvarez

With free shipping! — but if Prime Video hasn’t yet enunciated as clear a brand identity as competitors like Disney+, it remains part of an attractive package deal.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 12, 2023

The piece progresses as a conversation in the language of piano — each key enunciated as its vibrations pan soulfully to distribute the sound.

From New York Times ● Mar. 1, 2023

“Jamie Lee Curtis,” producer DeVon Franklin enunciated loudly into the mic.

From Seattle Times ● Feb. 13, 2023

Gone are the days of the Friedman Doctrine, enunciated in 1970 by the influential laissez-faire economist Milton Friedman.

From Washington Post ● Mar. 11, 2022

Her tongue had thinned and the words rolled off well enunciated.

From "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" by Maya Angelou

She would sit with me for hours on the couch, pointing to words in books and magazines, and patiently enunciating them, bantering with me in an inexhaustible volley of puns, spoonerisms and goofy double entendres.

From Scientific American ● Jul. 12, 2023

She’s enunciating really well, she’s got a lot of vibrato and she might even have an accent or something.

From New York Times ● May 24, 2023

With a more slurred diction and less emphasis on enunciating each syllable, Taiwan Mandarin sounds “quite sweet and soft,” said Cecilia Chen, a Mandarin instructor in Taiwan who produced a video showing the differences.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 5, 2023

An LDS church spokesman later said the organization was not endorsing specific legislation but rather Mr. Bednar was enunciating “guiding principles” on the matter.

From Washington Times ● May 26, 2022

“Somos hombres de maiz,” he said, enunciating clearly for my benefit.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023