2 syllables: Drach, mas. Stress on Drach.
DRAHK-muhz
/ˈdɹɑkməz/
Drachmas is pronounced DRAHK-muhz (/ˈdɹɑkməz/). It has two syllables (Drach-mas), with the stress on "Drach". Drachmas is the plural of the ancient Greek unit of currency, the drachma. In modern usage, it refers to the former coin or its monetary value, and can appear in academic, historical, or literary contexts. It is a formal term with roots in antiquity, often encountered in discussions of ancient economies or numismatics.
nounDrachmas is the plural of the ancient Greek unit of currency, the drachma. In modern usage, it refers to the former coin or its monetary value, and can appear in academic, historical, or literary contexts. It is a formal term with roots in antiquity, often encountered in discussions of ancient economies or numismatics.
- Over-lax first vowel: replace a lazy /æ/ with a stronger, more cat-like /æ/; keep the tongue high and back, not centralized. - Blurring the final sounds: don’t merge /m/ and /z/ into a single nasalized sound; articulate /m/ fully and end with a clear /z/. - Stress misplacement: always stress the first syllable; say DRACK-muhz, not drack-MAZ. - Final consonant mispronunciations: some learners máy mispronounce as /məs/ or /maz/; ensure the final is a short, voiced /z/ with a light schwa preceding. Corrective tips: practice with minimal pairs (drachma, drachmas) to keep contrast; nibble the vowel in the first syllable; record and compare.
"The ancient city minted thousands of drachmas each year to fund public works."
"She studied the drachmas exchanged during the classical period to understand early trade."
"The novel features a scene where the hero pays a drachma for a chorus performance."
/ˈdræk.məz/ in US/UK/Australian English. Put primary stress on the first syllable: DRACK-muhz. The first vowel is a short æ as in cat; the final syllable uses a relaxed, schwa-like vowel and the final z-sound is soft. If speaking slowly, clearly separate as DRACK-muhz to avoid blending. Listening reference: you’ll hear it pronounced with a short a and a voiced z-like end by native speakers. IPA guide: ˈdræk.məz.
Mistakes include over-laxing the first syllable (DRACK-muhz with a weak æ) or pronouncing it as DRAYK-muhs/DRACH-mas. Commonly people soften the /s/ to a hiss or merge the /m/ and /z/ sounds. Corrective tips: keep /æ/ tense like in cat, pause slightly before the final /m/ to separate from /ə/, and finish with a clean /z/ as in buzz. Practice with minimal pairs: drachma vs drachmas, drax-mas vs drag-mas. IPA cue: ˈdræk.məz.
US/UK/AU all share /ˈdræk.məz/, but rhotacization and vowel length can shift slightly. US tends to a tighter, shorter /æ/ and a more pronounced /z/ end. UK may lengthen or slightly round the vowel in some dialects, with less pronounced r-coloring (non-rhotic). AU mirrors US patterns but may have a softer final /z/ depending on speaker. Overall, the main features—stress on the first syllable and a short æ then schwa before z—remain, with subtle vowel quality and voicing differences across regions.
Because it combines a tense short-vowel /æ/ in a closed syllable with a tricky final consonant cluster /mz/ after a weak vowel. The /m/ must link to a voiced /z/ without an accidental /s/ hiss, and the final /əz/ can shorten in rapid speech. People often misplace stress or blend /m/ and /z/ as /mz/ with no vowel. Practice by isolating the /æ/ and maintaining a short schwa for the second syllable; ensure slow release into /z/ for accuracy.
A unique feature is maintaining the slight separation or light stress between /k/ and /m/ in the first syllable, ensuring the /æ/ remains distinct before the /k/ closure, then a clean transition to the schwa. Some speakers might insert a brief vowel before /m/ in rapid speech; avoid that to keep the natural, formal cadence of this historical term. Focus on crisp /dræ/ followed by a muted /m/ and a voiced /z/.
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- US: crisp /æ/; slight rhoticity reduces vowel length; final /z/ is clear. - UK: less overt rhoticity; keep /æ/ slightly tenser and a tunneled /z/; avoid trailing vowel. - AU: similar to US with possibly slightly wider mouth and more relaxed final /z/; maintain voicing. Overall, keep stress on the first syllable, crisp /dr/ onset, and a clean /æ/ then /m/ + /z/.
Drachma derives from the ancient Greek word δραχμή (drachmē). The term likely originated from the verb δρᾱ́σσω (drásso), meaning “to grasp” or “to seize,” reflecting its role in weighing silver and minting coins. In early Greece, a drachma signified a fixed weight of silver used for trade; the coin’s value varied by city-state but circulated widely. The form drachma appears in the Linear B records of Mycenaean Greece (c. 1600–1100 BCE) as drachmā, indicating a standard unit of weight and value. By classical times (5th–4th centuries BCE), city-states like Athens issued drachma coins with icons such as owl symbols, establishing a durable monetary identity. The plural drachmē manuscripts and inscriptions appear in Hellenistic and later Roman contexts, evolving into the modern term drachmas in English to denote multiple coins or the historical currency. The Roman era saw the drachma metaphorically preserved as a unit of account, and in modern scholarly usage, “drachmas” can reference the currency in discussions of ancient economies, while in some contexts it also appears in literary translations of classical texts. First known use in English likely emerged in the 16th–17th centuries as classical scholarship popularized Greek monetary terms, with the plural form becoming standardized through later numismatic literature and translations of Greek histories and plays. Some languages still retain a version of the word—e.g., 'drachme' in French and 'drachma' in Greek—reflecting the coin’s broad historical reach and enduring cultural association with classical antiquity.
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Words that rhyme with "Drachmas"
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