4 syllables: Great, Grand, fath, ers. Stress on Great.
grayt-grand-FAH-thurz
/ˈɡɹeɪtˌɡɹændˈfɑðɚz/
Great-Grandfathers is pronounced grayt-grand-FAH-thurz (/ˈɡɹeɪtˌɡɹændˈfɑðɚz/). It has four syllables (Great-Grand-fath-ers), with the stress on "Great". Great-Grandfathers is a plural noun referring to male ancestors who are the grandfathers of one’s parent. It designates a generation removed with respect to both paternal and maternal lines. The term emphasizes lineage and family history, often in genealogical or historical contexts, and is typically spoken with a hyphenated compound prefix and a plural s.
nounGreat-Grandfathers is a plural noun referring to male ancestors who are the grandfathers of one’s parent. It designates a generation removed with respect to both paternal and maternal lines. The term emphasizes lineage and family history, often in genealogical or historical contexts, and is typically spoken with a hyphenated compound prefix and a plural s.
How to Pronounce Great-Grandfathers
"My great-grandfathers fought in different wars and lived in separate regions."
"We traced the stories of my great-grandfathers through old letters."
"Her family reunion included stories about several great-grandfathers who influenced the clan."
Break it into three parts: great- (ɡreɪt-), grand- (ɡrænd-), and fathers (ˈfɑːðərz). Primary stress falls on great- and the first syllable of fathers: /ˈɡreɪtˌɡrænˈfɑːðərz/. In US/UK/AU, the final -s is voiced as /-z/ or /-ərz/ in connected speech. Place the tongue for /ɡ/ in /ɡreɪt/, raise the palate for /ɹ/ in /ˈɡreɪt/, then glide into /ɡræn-/ with a short /æ/ and rounded lips. Finish with /ˈfɑːðərz/ (US) or /ˈfɑːðəz/ (UK/AU). Audio references: you can listen to the pronunciation on Pronounce or YouGlish using the exact phrase “great-grandfathers.”
Common errors include: misplacing the stress across the compound, confusing /æ/ and /ɜː/ in grand- and fathers, and running the words together as one long tag rather than three syllables. Correction tips: emphasize great- as /ˈɡreɪt/ with a clear vowel; keep grand- /ɡrænd/ distinct before /fɑːðərz/; finally, enunciate -fathers as /ˈfɑːðərz/ with a light, voiced -z ending in fluent speech.
US pronunciation tends to rhotically blend vowels less in the final -ers, with /ˈɡreɪtˌɡrænˌfɑːðərz/. UK tends to flatter /ˈɡreɪntˌɡrɑːndˌfɑːðəz/, with non-rhoticity affecting post-vocalic /r/. Australian generally falls between, with /ˈɡreɪtˌɡrænˌfɑːðəz/ and a tendency toward clearer non-rhoticity in careful speech. The main differences lie in rhoticity of final syllables and vowel quality in /ɑː/ vs /ɒ/ and the treatment of /ɜː/ in final syllables.
The difficulty centers on handling multi-morpheme stress: where to place primary stress across great-, grand-, and fathers; the consonant cluster /ɡrændf-/ can trip speakers, and the final /-ərz/ in fast speech often reduces to /-əz/ or /-ərz/. The hyphen also signals a boundary that some speakers gloss over, causing mis-segmentation. Practicing with deliberate syllable-by-syllable segmentation helps reduce slurring and improves clarity.
Is the suffix -fathers ever pronounced with reduced intensity, and should the final -s always be voiced? In careful speech, -fathers is fully articulated as /ˈfɑːðərz/ (US) or /ˈfɑːðəz/ (UK/AU). In rapid speech, you might hear a reduced form /ˈfɑːðɚz/ or /ˈfɑːðəz/ with a lighter, shorter vowel before the final /z/. The main point is to maintain the distinct /f/ onset and avoid swallowing the /ð/ sound.
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The term Great-Grandfathers combines three morphemes: great- (a prefix indicating two generations removed in a family lineage), grandfather (the father of one’s parent), and -s (plural suffix). The word ‘great’ to denote multiple generations dates to early modern English, expanding from great-grandfather to great-great-grandfather with successive generations implied by the prefix. ‘Grandfather’ originates from the French grand-pere (grandfather), adopted into English by the late Middle Ages, compounded with ‘grand-’ to mark generational distance. The hyphenation in Great-Grandfathers reflects its status as a compound noun, often used in genealogical discourse, and helps preserve the semantic boundary between generations. First attested instances appear in genealogical writings of the 18th and 19th centuries as families began systematically recording lineage. Over time, the compound was solidified in standard usage to refer collectively to multiple individuals who hold the status of great-grandfather across the family tree, with the plural -s indicating more than one person across different lines or generations. Today, the term is common in family histories, biographies, and genealogical research, and is frequently encountered in oral histories and ancestral narratives.
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Words that rhyme with "Great-Grandfathers"
-her sounds
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