3 syllables: con, tin, ued. Stress on tin.
kuhn-TIN-yood
/kəˈntɪnjud/
continued is pronounced kuhn-TIN-yood (/kəˈntɪnjud/). It has three syllables (con-tin-ued), with the stress on "tin". Continued is an adjective or verb form meaning ongoing or prolonged without interruption. It describes something that persists or proceeds without stopping, often used to indicate a continuation of a previous action or state. In usage, it can modify nouns (the continued success) or appear as part of verb phrases (the project continued).
Continued is an adjective or verb form meaning ongoing or prolonged without interruption. It describes something that persists or proceeds without stopping, often used to indicate a continuation of a previous action or state. In usage, it can modify nouns (the continued success) or appear as part of verb phrases (the project continued).
"The continued failure of the system prompted a review."
"She spoke with continued determination throughout the presentation."
"The meeting continued after a short break to address questions."
Pronounce it as /kənˈtɪn.juːd/. The first syllable is unstressed /kən/ (like 'con'), the second syllable carries primary stress /ˈtɪn/, followed by a /juː/ glide, and ends with a voiced /d/. In careful speech, the /t/ is clear before the /ɪn/; in rapid speech, it can soften toward a flap, yielding /kənˈtɪn.juːd/ with a quicker transition. Audio resources: Pronounce, Cambridge, Oxford, and Forvo offer native clips you can imitate, focusing on the /ˈtɪn/ stressed syllable and the /juːd/ ending.
Common errors include misplacing stress (saying /kənˈtɪn jʊd/ with the stress on the first syllable) and mispronouncing the final /juːd/ as /juː/ or /jd/; some learners flatten the /t/ into a d-like sound (/ˈkɒnduːd/). Corrective tips: keep the primary stress on the second syllable, articulate /t/ clearly before /ɪn/, round the lips for /juː/ without creating a separate /j/ sound, and finish with a crisp /d/. Practice with minimal pairs and emphasize the glide sequence /juːd/.
In US, UK, and AU, the main variation is vowel quality and rhoticity rather than core consonants. US and AU tend to have rhotic /r/ retention in related words, but 'continued' does not include /r/. The /ɪ/ in /tɪn/ is slightly more relaxed in US; UK may have tighter /ɪ/ and clearer distribution of /t/ before /ɪ/. AU generally aligns with UK for non-rhotic tendencies in formal speech, but casual speech softens some consonants. Overall, the stress pattern /kənˈtɪn.juːd/ remains consistent.
Because it blends a weak syllable /kən/ with a stressed /tɪn/ and a multi-phoneme final /juːd/. The /t/ before /ɪ/ can be swallowed or released differently in rapid speech, and the /juː/ glide can be shortened in casual speech, altering the perceived rhythm. Maintaining clear vowel quality in /ɪ/ and distinct /t/ before it, plus a precise /juːd/ cluster, is challenging for many learners.
The word ends with a /d/ after a long /juː/, which can be misread as /d/ vs /dʒ/ or dropped in slowed speech. A unique point is maintaining the two-syllable rhythm with a clear /ˈtɪn/ stress block, ensuring the /j/ in /juː/ glides correctly into /d/. Focus on producing /juː/ as a rounded, elongated vowel before the final /d/.
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US: associate /ɪ/ with a lax, centralized vowel; maintain a strong /t/ release before /ɪn/. UK: slightly tighter vowel in /ɪ/ and less rhoticity influence; AU: similar to UK but with broader vowel colouring and vowels often longer; ensure /juː/ remains a rounded, long glide before final /d/.
Continued comes from Middle English continued, from the verb continue, which derives from Old French continuer, and from Latin continuare, related to continuus meaning ‘uninterrupted, continuous.’ The root is continua, meaning ‘a sequence, uninterrupted succession,’ from the Latin continuus (continu-). The English noun and adjective forms emerged as the suffix -ed signaled past participle or past adjective usage. Historically, continued gradually shifted in pronunciation from /kənˈtɪn.juːd/ or /kənˈtɪn.juːd/ variants toward the modern forms as stress patterns and vowel reduction settled in English. The word has long been used in legal, narrative, and scientific contexts to convey ongoing action or state, and its spelling has remained stable since Middle English, reflecting its Latin roots via French influence. First known use in English dates to the late 14th century in legal and religious texts, with the sense of “continued” as an ongoing process becoming more common in modern usage. Its semantic expansion includes figurative senses like continued growth, indicating sustained rate or progress.”,
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "continued" and can often be used interchangeably.
🔄 These words have opposite meanings to "continued" and show contrast in usage.
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Words that rhyme with "continued"
-ted sounds
Practice with these rhyming pairs to improve your pronunciation consistency:
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