5 syllables: Al, li, ter, a, tion. Stress on li.
uh-LIT-ur-ay-shuhn
/əˈlɪtɚˌeɪʃən/
Alliteration is pronounced uh-LIT-ur-ay-shuhn (/əˈlɪtɚˌeɪʃən/). It has five syllables (Al-li-ter-a-tion), with the stress on "li". Alliteration is a stylistic device in which the initial consonant sounds of successive or closely connected words are repeated. It often creates rhythm, emphasis, and a musical quality in prose or poetry. The term emphasizes sound over meaning, guiding listener experience through deliberate phonetic repetition.
nounAlliteration is a stylistic device in which the initial consonant sounds of successive or closely connected words are repeated. It often creates rhythm, emphasis, and a musical quality in prose or poetry. The term emphasizes sound over meaning, guiding listener experience through deliberate phonetic repetition.
How to Pronounce Alliteration
"The silky sea whispered secrets with soft alliteration."
"She sells seashells by the seashore, a classic tongue-twister of alliteration."
"Bright bells brought brisk, bold bustle to the market."
Alliteration is pronounced /ˌælɪtɪˈreɪʃən/ (US) or /ˌælɪtɪˈreɪʃən/ (UK). The primary stress falls on the third syllable: al-li-TER-a-tion, with the vowel in the second syllable as a short 'i' and the 'reɪ' as a long a. Start with a light schwa in the final syllable. Place the tongue high and front for the initial 'al' and then relax the jaw as you release /t/ and /r/ together in 'ter-'. Practice saying it slowly, then accelerate while maintaining crisp initial consonants.
Common errors include misplacing stress (saying al-li-TER-a-tion with wrong emphasis), merging the second syllable into the first (al-li-) and mispronouncing the 't' to a softer flap or stop. Another frequent issue is misarticulating /r/ in American pronunciation before a vowel; keep a clear rhotic /ɹ/ or non-rhotic variant depending on accent. Ensure the sequence /æ l ɪ t ɪ ˈ reɪ ʃən/ has distinct consonant separations, especially between /t/ and /r/ in the 'ter' segment.
In US English, /ˌælɪtəˈreɪʃən/ features a rhotic /ɹ/ and a clear /ræ/ in the stressed syllable, with a more pronounced /t/ before /r/. UK English keeps non-rhoticity in many accents, yielding /ˌæləˌtɪˈreɪʃən/ or /ˌælɪtəˈreɪʃən/ with a lighter /ɹ/ or silent /r/ and possibly a slightly shorter /æ/ in first syllable. Australian English typically mirrors UK vowel quality but with more American-like rhoticization in casual speech; the /ɹ/ is often approximated in connected speech. Overall, the key differences are rhoticity, vowel reduction, and stress timing subtlety.
The difficulty centers on rapid sequencing of multiple consonants with minimal vowel separation, especially the /l/ and /t/ transition into /r/ in 'ter' and the final /ʃən/ cluster in /ˈreɪʃən/. Non-native speakers may struggle with sustaining the strong /æ/ initial sound, the voiceless /t/ release before /r/, and the subsequent reduction to /ən/ in fast speech. Slow, deliberate enunciation helps; practice the sequence in isolation, then in connected phrases to build fluency.
The main stress falls on the third syllable, near 'ter' (al-li-TER-a-tion). Some speakers place secondary stress on 'li' depending on emphasis and rhythm. When practicing, ensure the 'ter' syllable carries the strongest beat, with crisp /t/ release followed by the /ɹ/ or /ʃ/ onset of the next syllable in rhythm. Visualize the beat: weak-strong-weak-weak. This helps maintain natural cadence in speaking and in poetry or prose.
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Alliteration originates from the Latin phrase littera alliteratio, literally 'letter repetition.' In English, the term emerged in the early modern period to describe repeated initial consonants in close succession, especially in poetry and script. The root all- comes from Latin ali- meaning 'other' and lat- from latescere meaning 'to hide' or more directly from allittere ‘to letter’ or ‘to tie with letters.’ The modern usage coalesced in 16th–17th centuries, influenced by earlier rhetorical terms like consonance and homoioteleuton. Its popularity surged with the rise of English poetry and oratory, where repeated sounds add mnemonic and melodic effects. Early examples appear in ballads and religious verse, with formal discussions in rhetoric and literary criticism highlighting alliteration as a tool for emphasis, pace, and decorative language. Over centuries, alliteration has remained a versatile device across genres—from Shakespearean verse to modern slogans—yet the conceptual core stays an intentional repetition of initial phonemes to shape auditory texture and cadence in a line or passage.
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Words that rhyme with "Alliteration"
-ter sounds
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