How to Pronounce “ingenious”

American (US)

/ɪnˈd͡ʒiːnjəs/

British (UK)

/ɪnˈd͡ʒiːnjəs/

adjective — Of a person, displaying genius, ingenuity or brilliance; inventive.

Example: This fellow is ingenious; he fixed a problem I didn’t even know I had.

Where the stress falls. “ingenious” has 3 syllables, and the transcription /ɪnˈd͡ʒiːnjəs/ puts the primary stress mark (ˈ) before the second one — so the second syllable is the longest and loudest. The others are said quickly and lightly.

An unstressed vowel reduces to schwa. /ɪnˈd͡ʒiːnjəs/ contains a schwa /ə/ — the short, neutral “uh” that English unstressed syllables collapse into. Saying /ə/ there, instead of the vowel the spelling suggests, is most of what makes the word sound native.

What does "ingenious" mean?

ingenious (adjective): Of a person, displaying genius, ingenuity or brilliance; inventive. For example — This fellow is ingenious; he fixed a problem I didn’t even know I had.

How do you pronounce "ingenious" in American vs British English?

Both accents use the same sequence of phonemes for "ingenious", /ɪnˈd͡ʒiːnjəs/, so the difference you hear is in how the vowels are coloured rather than in which sounds are used. Play both on this page to compare.

What is the IPA transcription of "ingenious"?

/ɪnˈd͡ʒiːnjəs/ in American English, /ɪnˈd͡ʒiːnjəs/ in British English.

Which syllable is stressed in "ingenious"?

“ingenious” has 3 syllables, and the transcription /ɪnˈd͡ʒiːnjəs/ puts the primary stress mark (ˈ) before the second one — so the second syllable is the longest and loudest. The others are said quickly and lightly.