3 syllables: ca, ta, racts. Stress on ca.
/ˈkætəɹæks/
Say it backCataracts are a medical condition where the eye's natural lens becomes cloudy, leading to blurred vision and light sensitivity. The term also refers to the cloudy areas themselves. Used in medical, ophthalmology, and everyday contexts, it can describe the condition or the surgical treatment to remove it.
"The optometrist detected early cataracts and recommended monitoring for now."
"Cataracts can cause glare at night, making driving difficult."
"She chose cataract surgery to restore clear vision in her dominant eye."
You say /ˈkæ.tə.ræks/ in US and UK English, three syllables with primary stress on the first: CAT-uh-racks. In careful speech you may hear a slightly reduced middle syllable as /ˈkæ.tə.ræks/. Mouth positions: start with a open front unrounded vowel /æ/ in CAT, then a relaxed schwa or /ə/ in the second syllable, and end with /ræks/ where the /æ/ is similar to 'cat' and final /ks/ is a crisp k-s blend.
Common errors: flattening the second syllable so it becomes /kæˈtæræks/ or misplacing stress as CAT-a-RACKS. Some speakers insert an extra syllable making it /ˈkæ.təˌræks/ or mispronounce the final cluster as /tæ-racks/. Correction: keep three distinct syllables with primary stress on the first: /ˈkæ.tə.ræks/. Practice by isolating each syllable: CAT – uh – RACKS; then blend at a natural tempo.
US and UK share /ˈkæ.tə.ræks/ with rhotic R in US, non-rhotic-ish in some varieties but not typically here. Australian English also uses /ˈkæ.tə.ræks/ but with more centralized vowel qualities and a slightly less released /t/ in the middle. The final /ks/ cluster is consistently crisp across regions. The main variance is vowel height and rhoticity, not syllable count or stress.
Because of the three-syllable structure with a short, unstressed middle vowel and the /t/ followed by an /ə/ or /æ/ sequence transitioning to a final /ks/ cluster. Speakers often shorten /ə/ to a schwa or misplace the /t/ to a flap, producing /ˈkæ.tə.ræks/ or /ˈkæ tɚ æks/. Proper articulation requires light tongue position shifts and precise timing between syllables; keep the middle vowel clear and the final /ks/ crisp.
Yes: anchor the first syllable with an open /æ/ as in cat, then avoid tensing the middle vowel; practice a clean transition into /ræks/ without a perceived extra syllable. Visualize CAT-uh-racks and then practice with a slow tempo, gradually increasing speed while maintaining the three distinct syllables and the final /ks/ blend.
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Cataract derives from the Latin cataracta, meaning a waterfall or any downpour, from the Greek katarraktēs meaning 'a waterfall' or 'a rushing down.' In medical usage, cataract originally described the opacification that seems to roll or flow across the lens, as if clouding over like a cataract of water. The word entered English via Latin in the late medieval period, influenced by Greek medical texts. Historically, cataracts were thought to be the lens clouding due to aging or injury, and early descriptions often framed it within corneal or vitreous pathologies. By the 18th and 19th centuries, ophthalmology formalized the concept as a lens opacity; modern medicine treats cataracts primarily as a lens change with surgical removal offering restoration of clear vision. The term has maintained its core metaphor of obstruction to light, evolving into precise clinical terminology while retaining its evocative image of a cloudy barrier within the eye.
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Words that rhyme with "cataracts"
-cts sounds
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