How to pronounce "significant" in English
sɪɡˈnɪfɪkənt
sig·NIH·fih·kənt
Primary stress: NIH
Hear native speakers say significant in context across real video clips
Linguistic Pronunciation Masterclass: “significant”
Phonetic mechanics, syllable architecture, and conversational cadence
Syllable Architecture & Stress Distribution
sig
Neutral schwa (⁄ə⁄): relaxed jaw, brief unstressed breath.
NIH
Elevated pitch, sustained vowel length, and full acoustic clarity.
fih
Neutral schwa (⁄ə⁄): relaxed jaw, brief unstressed breath.
kənt
Neutral schwa (⁄ə⁄): relaxed jaw, brief unstressed breath.
Primary emphasis falls on the second syllable ("NIH"). Raise your pitch and sustain the vowel length on this syllable while relaxing the surrounding syllables.
Common Pronunciation Traps & Learner Mistakes
The Trap: Avoid pronouncing every vowel with full acoustic weight. Non-native speakers often over-enunciate unstressed vowels.
How Native Speakers Say It: Only give full vowel clarity to the primary stressed syllable. Relax all unstressed vowels into a neutral, low-energy schwa (⁄ə⁄).
Connected Speech & Natural Conversational Flow
When "significant" is followed by a word starting with a vowel, glide the final consonant into the opening vowel (e.g. "significant is" sounds like "significant-iz").
Maintain the stress-timed rhythm of English: compress unstressed syllables rapidly so the beat of "significant" aligns naturally with adjacent words.
Authentic Spoken Quotes from Native Video Context
“significant crop failures in multiple parts of the world, which is maybe even more possible because there's a kind of”— Native SpeakerWatch clip
“significant because a it's on the doorstep.”— Native SpeakerWatch clip
“significant so as we go to more uh everyday situations that most people who work face and Society becomes less”— Native SpeakerWatch clip
“significant social challenge created by new technology it's it's this a sort of new digital divide uh wage inequality is”— Native SpeakerWatch clip
“significant-- and I'm not saying-- people might say, well, you did something significant, Marion, to put yourself on-- Right.”— Native SpeakerWatch clip
“significant individual moments i would say in my career which i'll refer to a little bit later on but”— Native SpeakerWatch clip
Practice Speaking “significant”
Listen to native pronunciation, record yourself repeating the sentence into your microphone, and receive real-time word-by-word accuracy scoring.
significant crop failures in multiple parts of the world, which is maybe even more possible because there's a kind of
Hear it in context: “significant”
36,108 clipsThe English word “significant” is transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) as sɪɡˈnɪfɪkənt (phonetic respelling: sig-NIH-fih-kənt). Phonologically, it consists of 4 syllables (sig · NIH · fih · kənt), with primary lexical stress placed on the 2nd syllable (NIH). Grammatically, “significant” functions as a adjective, noun. SayItVid indexes 36,108 authentic English video clips demonstrating how native speakers articulate “significant” in natural connected speech across American (US: 8 sampled), British (UK), and Australian (AUS) accents.
Spoken Video Transcripts & Contextual Quotes (5 Verified Clips)
- 🇺🇸 USClip #1 · @6:56
“you know, over the next year we see significant crop failures in multiple parts of the world, which is maybe even more possible because there's a kind of parts of the world, which is maybe even”
- 🇺🇸 USClip #2 · @21:56
“big case. But this is really very significant because a it's on the doorstep. These 30 states, 29 states I think it is in fact, include California doorstep. These 30 states, 29 states I”
- 🇺🇸 USClip #3 · @13:46
“performance becomes less and less significant so as we go to more uh everyday situations that most people who work face and Society becomes less everyday situations that most people who”
- 🇺🇸 USClip #4 · @17:41
“can so this is this is a very significant social challenge created by new technology it's it's this a sort of new digital divide uh wage inequality is new technology it's it's this a sort of”
- 🇺🇸 USClip #5 · @34:48
“thinking that in five years, if you don't really do something significant-- and I'm not saying-- people might say, well, you did something significant, Marion, to put yourself on-- Right. you did something significant, Marion, to put yourself on--”
Definition & Meaning: “significant”
- Signifying something; carrying meaning.
- Having a noticeable or major effect.
- That which has significance; a sign; a token; a symbol.
Example Sentences (3)
- “a significant word or sound”
- “That was a significant step in the right direction.”
- “significant crop failures in multiple parts of the world, which is maybe even more possible because there's a kind of”
Common Phrases & Collocations
Pronounce: “significant”
- Pronunciation:
- sig-NIH-fih-kənt
- Syllables:
- sig · NIH · fih · kənt
- Written Hyphenation:
- sig · nif · i · cant
- Primary stress:
- NIH
- IPA:
- sɪɡˈnɪfɪkənt
- Hear it in context
- significant
Synonyms: “significant”
Hear words related in meaning to “significant” in real video clips:
Words that Rhyme with “significant”
-ɪfɪkəntWords that Sound Identical (Homophones)
Unique Sound"significant" (⁄sɪɡˈnɪfɪkənt⁄) has no true homophones in standard English — there are no other words with identical pronunciation. Unlike sound-alike pairs like there / their or peace / piece, "significant" has a completely distinct phonetic identity.
Frequently asked questions about significant
How do you pronounce “significant”?
“significant” is pronounced ⁄sɪɡˈnɪfɪkənt⁄ (sig-NIH-fih-kənt). Listen to the native-speaker clips above to hear it in real conversation.
How many syllables are in “significant”?
“significant” has 4 syllables: sig · NIH · fih · kənt.
Where is the stress in “significant”?
The primary stress in “significant” is on “NIH”. Listen for that stressed syllable in the clips above.
What does “significant” mean?
Signifying something; carrying meaning.
How can I hear “significant” used in real sentences?
This page has 36108 real-world video examples of “significant” with synchronized subtitles. Use Previous / Next (or ← / → keys) to hear each one at the exact moment it is spoken.
What is the most common pronunciation mistake when saying “significant”?
Avoid pronouncing every vowel with full acoustic weight. Non-native speakers often over-enunciate unstressed vowels. Only give full vowel clarity to the primary stressed syllable. Relax all unstressed vowels into a neutral, low-energy schwa (⁄ə⁄).