4 syllables: al, co, hol, ic. Stress on hol.
al-kuh-HAH-lik
/ˌælkəˈhɑlɪk/
alcoholic is pronounced al-kuh-HAH-lik (/ˌælkəˈhɑlɪk/). It has four syllables (al-co-hol-ic), with the stress on "hol". Al alcoholic is an adjective and noun describing someone who is dependent on or addicted to alcohol. It can also refer to things relating to alcohol. Used in medical, social, and informal contexts, it often carries pejorative or clinical connotations depending on tone. The word's pronunciation is unstressed in some syllables, demanding careful attention to vowel quality and syllable rhythm.
Al alcoholic is an adjective and noun describing someone who is dependent on or addicted to alcohol. It can also refer to things relating to alcohol. Used in medical, social, and informal contexts, it often carries pejorative or clinical connotations depending on tone. The word's pronunciation is unstressed in some syllables, demanding careful attention to vowel quality and syllable rhythm.
"- He entered rehab after admitting he was an alcoholic."
"- The bar carried an array of alcoholic beverages, from beer to whiskey."
"- Some studies explore the effects of alcoholic consumption on health."
Pronunciation: /ˌæl.kəˈhɒl.ɪk/ (US) or /ˌæl.kəˈhɒl.ɪk/ (UK). Primary stress on the third syllable ‘hol’, with secondary stress on the first syllable? Actually, standard is ˌæl.kəˈhɒl.ɪk, with main stress on the third syllable. Break: al – co – HOL – ic. Start with a light /æ/ in 'al', a schwa in 'co', then the stressed /ˈhɒl/ as the core, and a final /ɪk/. Lip rounding before /ɒ/ and a clear /l/ before the /ɪk/ ending. Practice slowly: al-kə-HOL-ik, then faster: ˌæl.kəˈhɒl.ɪk.
Common errors include misplacing the stress (stressing the first or last syllable rather than HOL), mispronouncing the /ɒ/ as /ɔː/ or /ɑː/, and turning the final /ɪk/ into /ɪkɚ/ or omitting the final /k/. Correct by practicing the three-part stress: al- (unstressed) — co- (unstressed) — HOL (primary) — ic (secondary). Ensure /l/ is clear before the final /ɪk/.
US: /ˌæl.kəˈhɔː.lɪk/, with a tense /ɔː/ in ‘hol’ and a rhotic nucleus in most speakers. UK: /ˌæl.kəˈhɒl.ɪk/, shorter /ɒ/ rounded vowel, non-rhotic typically; AU: /ˌæl.kəˈhɒl.ɪk/ with slightly more diphthongal 'ə' and a pronounced 'r' or not depending on speaker, but generally non-rhotic. The difference centers on vowel quality of /ɒ/ vs /ɔː/ and rhoticity. Practice listening for ‘HOL’ emphasis and the final /ɪk/ cluster across accents.
It’s a multi-syllabic word with a stress shift and a medial /k/ cluster that can blur in rapid speech. The tricky part is the /ˌæl.kəˈhɒl.ɪk/ sequence: two short vowels, a clear stressed syllable, and a final consonant cluster /lɪk/. The /ɒ/ vowel in ‘hol’ can be unfamiliar to non-native speakers, and the /l/ before /ɪk/ requires precise tongue posture to avoid a nasalized or dental approximation. IPA guidance and slow practice help solidify the rhythm.
While both begin with /æl/ in many accents, the following vowel sound and the stressed syllable separate them. In 'alcoholic', the second syllable is unstressed /kə/ leading to the stress on /ˈhɒl/. In 'album', the first syllable also uses /ˈæl/ with a shorter /ə/ in the second syllable. The key is to keep the /æl/ onset consistent, then move to the mid-central /kə/ before the stressed /hɒl/. This helps avoid conflating similar starting sounds while maintaining distinct syllable patterns.
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- US: emphasize /ˌæl.kəˈhɔː.lɪk/ with a broad /ɔː/ and clear /lɪk/. Non-rhotic tendencies may blur r sounds. - UK: /ˌæl.kəˈhɒl.ɪk/ with shorter /ɒ/ and more clipped /l/. - AU: /ˌæl.kəˈhɒl.ɪk/ leaning toward non-rhotic but with slightly broader vowel quality; watch the /ɒ/ as more open and rounded. Reference IPA transcriptions to guide mouth shape: show front vowels /æ/ and /ə/ and the back /ɒ/. - Key tips: keep the /l/ clear before /ɒ/ or /ɔː/, use light vowel between first two syllables, train with minimal pairs like AL-cohol vs AL-holic to lock the rhythm.
Alcoholic derives from the word alcohol, which itself comes from the Arabic al-kuḥl (the kohl or distilled essence) via Medieval Latin alcoholis and Old French alcool. The root al- is the Arabic definite article. Kuḥl originally referred to a powdered cosmetic but by extension came to name distilled substances. In the 18th century, the term alcoholic began appearing in medical literature to describe substances related to alcohol and later to describe people whose behavior or physiology was influenced by alcohol. By the 19th and 20th centuries, “alcoholic” entered common usage to label individuals with alcohol dependence, often in clinical or social contexts, while also appearing in literature and everyday speech with varying intensity of judgment depending on tone. The word’s meaning evolved from describing chemical relation to intoxication and dependence, to a clinically loaded descriptor for a person with alcohol-use disorder, and in casual speech, it can be used, controversially, as a rough shorthand for someone who drinks heavily. First known use in English appears in the late 18th century in pharmacological and chemical contexts, expanding to psychological and social senses in the 19th century and beyond.
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "alcoholic" and can often be used interchangeably.
🔄 These words have opposite meanings to "alcoholic" and show contrast in usage.
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Words that rhyme with "alcoholic"
-nic sounds
Practice with these rhyming pairs to improve your pronunciation consistency:
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