4 syllables: Chlor, pro, ma, zine. Stress on pro.
klawr-PROH-muh-zeen
/klɔɹˈproʊməziːn/
Chlorpromazine is pronounced klawr-PROH-muh-zeen (/klɔɹˈproʊməziːn/). It has four syllables (Chlor-pro-ma-zine), with the stress on "pro". Chlorpromazine is a phenothiazine antipsychotic medication used to treat schizophrenia and manic states, among other psychotic disorders. It binds dopamine receptors and dampens neurotransmission, helping reduce severe agitation and psychotic symptoms. The term refers both to the drug and its class, and it is typically discussed in medical contexts and pharmacology.
nounChlorpromazine is a phenothiazine antipsychotic medication used to treat schizophrenia and manic states, among other psychotic disorders. It binds dopamine receptors and dampens neurotransmission, helping reduce severe agitation and psychotic symptoms. The term refers both to the drug and its class, and it is typically discussed in medical contexts and pharmacology.
- Misplacing stress: many speakers stress the wrong syllable (e.g., /ˈklɔrproʊˈmeɪzɪn/). Target: /ˌklɔːr.proʊˈmeɪ.ziːn/ and keep the final long /iːn/. - Shortening the ending: avoid saying /ˈmeɪzɪn/; the correct is /ˈmeɪ.ziːn/ with a long /iːn/. - Vowel quality: ensure /ɔː/ is broad as in 'more' and /proʊ/ uses the native long o; avoid /oʊ/ unrounded mismatches. - Clustering: practice with slow, separate syllables to avoid running /lɔːrpro/ together incorrectly. Use mouth-position cues for each segment.
How to Pronounce Chlorpromazine
"The patient was started on chlorpromazine to manage agitation during an acute psychotic episode."
"In pharmacology texts, chlorpromazine is described as one of the first-generation antipsychotics."
"The nurse explained the potential side effects of chlorpromazine before administration."
Break it as /ˌklɔːr.proʊˈmeɪ.ziːn/ (US). The stress falls on the third syllable: clohr-PROH-mah-zeen. Start with a soft 'cl' followed by 'or' like 'or', then 'pro' with a long o, 'ma' as 'meh', and end with 'zeen'. Tip: link the middle syllables smoothly for a native flow. Listen to clinical pronunciations to confirm the /ˈmeɪ/ vs /ˈmeɪziːn/ cadence.
Common errors: misplacing the stress on the second or fourth syllable, saying /ˈklɔr.proʊˈmæzɪn/ instead of /ˌklɔːr.proʊˈmeɪ.ziːn/. Another pitfall is shortening the final '-zine' to a hard 'zine' without the long 'a' in /ˈmeɪ/. Another mistake is blending syllables too tightly, producing /ˌklɔr.proˈmeɪ.zin/ without the final long /iːn/. Correction tips: practice with pauses between morphemes, emphasize /ˈmeɪ/ and /ziːn/, and use minimal pairs to lock the rhythm.
US: /ˌklɔːr.proʊˈmeɪ.ziːn/ with rhotic r and clear /ˈmeɪ/ vowel. UK: /ˌklɔː(r).prəˈmeɪ.ziːn/ may use a slightly schwa in the second syllable and less rhoticity in some speakers. AU: /ˌklɔː(r).prəˈmeɪ.ziːn/ similar to UK, but vowels may be more centralized and faster in casual speech. Across all, the key is the /ˈmeɪ.ziːn/ ending; keep the long 'a' in the stressed syllable and avoid truncating the final 'zine'.
It combines a long multisyllabic polyphoneme with a stressed diphthong cluster: /klɔːr.proʊˈmeɪ.ziːn/. The challenge is maintaining the long /ɔː/ before a strong /r/ and the mid-to-high front vowel /eɪ/ in /ˈmeɪ/. The final /ziːn/ is also tricky because the nucleus is a high front vowel that requires a tense, lingering /iː/. Practicing with slow, deliberate articulation and syllable-by-syllable pacing helps.
The word contains a three-syllable stress pattern with a secondary feel in the middle: the secondary stress often sits on the /pro/ syllable in careful speech, but standard pronunciation emphasizes /meɪ/ in chlor-pro-MA-zine. The consonant cluster /klɔːr/ is also tricky, with Americans often giving a postvocalic /r/ influence before the velar /k/ transition. Remember the ending /zeːn/ as a long vowel, not a short /zɪn/.
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- US: rhotic /r/ after /ɔː/; keep /proʊ/ distinct, then /ˈmeɪ.ziːn/. IPA: /ˌklɔːr.prəˈmeɪ.ziːn/; but many say /ˌklɔː(pr)əˈmeɪ.ziːn/ depending on dialect. - UK: possibly weaker rhoticity; /klɔː(r).prəˈmeɪ.ziːn/ with schwa in the second syllable and a crisper final /ziːn/. - AU: similar to UK, but vowels may be more centralized; aim for /ˌklɔː(r).prəˈmeɪ.ziːn/. - Common reference: model with IPA and sensation: lips rounded for /proʊ/, tongue high for /eɪ/; keep jaw relatively relaxed between syllables.
Chlorpromazine derives from chemical naming conventions: chlor- indicates chlorine substitution, -promaz- comes from the phenothiazine core (promazine is a specific member), and -ine is a typical suffix for amine-containing compounds. The compound was developed in the 1950s as part of the phenothiazine class; it is widely attributed to developments by Paul Charpentier and collaborators, with structures that enabled dopamine receptor antagonism. The word appears in medical literature as chlorpromazine, often in contrast to later antipsychotics. First known use in pharmacology traces to the mid-20th century, with clinical adoption expanding shortly after its synthesis, establishing a paradigm for first-generation antipsychotics.
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Words that rhyme with "Chlorpromazine"
-ine sounds
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