3 syllables: de, vel, ops. Stress on vel.
div-EL-uhps
/dɪˈvɛləps/
develops is pronounced div-EL-uhps (/dɪˈvɛləps/). It has three syllables (de-vel-ops), with the stress on "vel". Develops means to grow, advance, or cause something to progress or mature over time. It describes a process wherein something is developed through gradual changes, improvements, or expansion. In usage, it often partners with agents or subjects that contribute to growth or evolution, whether in people, plans, or situations.
Develops means to grow, advance, or cause something to progress or mature over time. It describes a process wherein something is developed through gradual changes, improvements, or expansion. In usage, it often partners with agents or subjects that contribute to growth or evolution, whether in people, plans, or situations.
- Misplacing stress on the first syllable: de-VELOPs. Solution: feel the beat, count 1-2-3, put main beat on second syllable. - Vowel quality drift: replacing /ɛ/ with /iː/ or /eɪ/ in the second syllable. Solution: practice with minimal pairs like /dɪˈvɛl/ vs /dɪˈviːl/. - Final cluster handling: incompletely releasing /ps/ or voicing it as /s/. Solution: end with crisp, lightly voiced /p/ plus /s/, avoid a vowel between /p/ and /s/.
"The city develops new housing projects to accommodate a growing population."
"Her research develops a more efficient method for processing data."
"The plot develops slowly, revealing new twists as the story unfolds."
Pronounce it di-VEL-ops with the primary stress on the second syllable: /dɪˈvɛl.əps/ in US, or /dɪˈvel.əps/ in UK/AU. The first syllable is short, the second carries primary stress and a clear 'vel' or 'vɛl' vowel, followed by a weak schwa in the third and a final sibilant /z/ or /s/ depending on connected speech. Think: di- VEL-uhps. See audio references in Pronounce and major dictionaries for listening examples.
Common errors include stressing the first syllable instead of the second (de-DE-vops) and mispronouncing the central vowel as /i/ or /iː/, producing /diˈviː.ləps/. Another mistake is not releasing the final /s/ as a voiced /z/ in rapid speech, sounding like /dɪˈvɛləp/. To correct: stress the second syllable, use a clear /ɛ/ in the second vowel, and finish with a light, voiced /z/ in fluid speech.
In US English, the second syllable features a clear /ɛ/ in /dɪˈvɛl.əps/ with a relatively reduced final /s/. UK English tends toward /dɪˈvel.əps/ with slightly crisper consonants and less vowel reduction in connected speech. Australian pronunciation mirrors UK settings but often features more vowel breadth in the first syllable and a pronounced /ɪ/ in the first vowel, yielding /dɪˈvɛl.əps/ or /dəˈvel.əps/ depending on speaker. Accent differences mainly affect vowel quality and rhoticity in surrounding words.
The difficulty lies in the multisyllabic rhythm and the mid vowels in the second syllable: /ˈvɛl/ or /ˈvel/ with a strong stress that shifts expectations for the following unstressed /ə/ and final /ps/. The final cluster /ps/ surfaces as a lightly released, voiceless combination when linked to next word, which can feel like /s/ or /z/ depending on context. Practice with connected speech to stabilize the syllable-timing and voicing balance.
There are no silent letters in develops; it is fully phonetic in standard pronunciation. The digraphs are /d/ (d), /ɪ/ (i), /ˈvɛl/ (vel), /ə/ (uh), /ps/ (ps). The final /ps/ is not silent but blends with the next word; in careful speech you may hear a subtle /p/ release before the /s/. For most speakers, keep the final /ps/ crisp without a separate vowel in between.
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- US: rhotic influence is neutral here; ensure /ɹ/ in surrounding words doesn’t bleed into /dɪˈvɛl.əps/. - UK: crisper consonants; keep /vel/ clear with less vowel reduction. - AU: broader vowel quality; you may hear a slightly more centralized /ə/ in the second syllable; maintain /ə/ vs /ɪ/ contrast clearly. Use IPA cues /dɪˈvel.əps/ (US/UK) and /dɪˈvel.əps/ (AU) with careful vowel length variations.
Develops comes from the verb develop, which traces to Old French desvoloper, meaning to uncover or unfold, with roots ultimately in Late Latin evolupare (to unfold). The modern English sense of developing—causing to grow or advance—emerged in the 15th-16th centuries, influenced by the Latin prefix de- (undo or thoroughly) and voloper (to roll, wrap), evolving through Anglo-French and Middle English usages. The word underwent semantic broadening to describe gradual growth in people, plans, technology, or stories. By the 18th and 19th centuries, develop shifted from physical unfolding to more abstract processes like development of ideas, economies, and infrastructure. In contemporary usage, develops commonly collocates with agents (the city develops, she develops a plan) and with nouns signaling processes (develops confidence, develops software). First known written attestations appear in legal and scientific texts describing development processes, then permeated general usage as modern project-based language intensified.
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Words that rhyme with "develops"
-ves sounds
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