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"She achieved her dream of becoming a scientist after years of study."
"The team achieved a record-breaking score in the final match."
"He achieved fluency through daily practice and immersion."
"Their project achieved all its milestones ahead of schedule."
Achieved comes from the verb achieve, which traces to the Middle English acheiven, borrowed from Old French achever, which in turn derives from the Vulgar Latin affèvĕre, a form related to the Latin ad- + facere meaning to do or to make. The root idea centers on completing, finishing, or reaching a goal. The current form emerged in Early Modern English with the standard '-ed' suffix signaling past tense or past participle. Over time, the pronunciation stabilized with the final -ed pronounced as /t/ after voiceless consonants (as in achieved), and later, as speakers adopted a more relaxed coda cluster, the /tʃ/ sequence in 'achieve' influences the vowel preceding the /d/. The evolution reflects a shift from a more explicit consonant cluster to a smoother, settled past tense in standard varieties. First known usages appear in 14th–15th centuries in legal and narrative texts describing completed actions or goals reached through effort. The semantic load expanded into broader contexts of success, attainment, and realization, while spelling preserved the root 'achieve' with the common English past tense -ed ending. The word’s journey mirrors general English grammar development where “achieve” fused with Latin-based root semantics into a high-frequency verb in both written and spoken registers.
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "achieved" and can often be used interchangeably.
🔄 These words have opposite meanings to "achieved" and show contrast in usage.
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Words that rhyme with "achieved"
-ved sounds
Practice with these rhyming pairs to improve your pronunciation consistency:
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Achieved is pronounced /əˈtʃiːvd/ (US/UK/AU). The syllable breakdown is a-CHIEVED, with primary stress on the second syllable. Begin with a soft schwa in the first syllable, then form /tʃ/ as in 'cheese' followed by a long /iː/ vowel before the /vd/ ending. Ensure the /d/ is released clearly after the /v/. Practice by saying ‘uh- CHEEV-d’ in a smooth, connected flow. You can listen to a model pronunciation on Pronounce or Forvo for comparison.
Common errors include misplacing stress (saying a-CHIEV'd as if stressed on the first syllable), omitting the /d/ sound, or turning /tʃiːv/ into a simpler /ɕ/ or /tʃ/ without voicing. Another frequent slip is shortening the /iː/ to a short /ɪ/ before /v/, or failing to voice the final /d/ after /v/. To fix: keep secondary stress on the second syllable, ensure the /tʃ/ blends with the /iː/ to form /tʃiː/, and finish with a clear /vd/ release (voiced /v/ followed by a full /d/).
In US/UK/AU, the core is /əˈtʃiːvd/ with primary stress on the second syllable. Rhotic influence is minimal in this word; the /r/ is not present. Australia may exhibit a slightly less rounded /iː/ and a faster coarticulation, but the final /vd/ remains voiced. Non-rhotic varieties may reduce linking in rapid speech, so you might hear a subtler /əˈtʃiːv̬d/ with a released /d/. Overall, differences are mainly in vowel quality and tempo rather than a different phoneme inventory.
The difficulty comes from the /tʃ/ + /iː/ sequence followed by a voiced /vd/ cluster. The tongue must transition from the palato-alveolar affricate /tʃ/ to a high front vowel /iː/ and then into a voiced labiodental /v/ before the final /d/. This requires precise voicing, lip shaping, and a clean release of /d/. Many learners struggle with keeping the /v/ voiced while continuing into /d/, especially in connected speech or faster rates.
A unique aspect is the long /iː/ vowel in the second syllable and the close consonant cluster at the end /vd/. This makes a single-syllable word feel longer and more deliberate in careful speech, unlike many past-tense forms ending in /t/ or /d/ after voiceless consonants. Emphasize the /iː/ length and ensure the /v/ is clearly voiced before the final /d/.
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