4 syllables: Me, ta, sta, tic. Stress on sta.
met-uh-STAT-ik
/ˌmɛtəˈstætɪk/
Metastatic is pronounced met-uh-STAT-ik (/ˌmɛtəˈstætɪk/). It has four syllables (Me-ta-sta-tic), with the stress on "sta". Metastatic is an adjective specifically used in medicine to describe cancer that has spread from its original site to other parts of the body. In common usage within clinical contexts, it denotes disease progression beyond the primary tumor, often indicating a more advanced stage. It can function as a noun in some medical shorthand, though the adjective form is far more typical in formal reporting.
nounMetastatic is an adjective specifically used in medicine to describe cancer that has spread from its original site to other parts of the body. In common usage within clinical contexts, it denotes disease progression beyond the primary tumor, often indicating a more advanced stage. It can function as a noun in some medical shorthand, though the adjective form is far more typical in formal reporting.
"The patient was diagnosed with metastatic cancer after the tumor had spread to the liver."
"Metastatic disease requires systemic therapy rather than localized treatment alone."
"Radiographic imaging revealed multiple metastatic lesions in the bones."
You say /ˌmɛtəˈstæ tɪk/ in careful speech, with primary stress on the third syllable: met-uh-STAT-ik. The first syllable is a quick ‘meh,’ the second is ‘tə,’ and the stressed ‘STAT’ sounds with the short a as in cat, followed by a light ‘-ik.’ In IPA: US /ˌmɛtəˈstæ tɪk/; UK /ˌmetəˈstætɪk/; AU /ˌmetəˈstatɪk/. Audio references: you can check medical pronunciation videos and dictionaries for the exact rhythm and alveolar stops.
Common errors: 1) Misplacing the primary stress (trying met-uh-MAS-tic or mett-uh-STAT-ic). 2) Merging the second and third syllables too quickly, making ‘met-uh-sta-tic’ blur the STAT. 3) Mispronouncing the final 'tic' as a hard 'tick' without a slightly lax vowel. Correction: keep stress on the third syllable, clearly enunciate the ‘stat’ with a short a, and finish with a light ‘-ɪk’ sound. Use the IPA cues /ˌmɛtəˈstæ tɪk/ and slow practice to lock the rhythm.
Across accents, the main difference is vowel quality and rhoticity. US tends to have /ˌmɛtəˈstæ tɪk/ with a lax final vowel and r-colored influence in surrounding words. UK typically uses /ˌmetəˈstætɪk/ with a crisper /æ/ in 'stat' and non-rhoticity; AU is similar to UK but can show slightly broader vowels and a tendency to reduce unstressed vowels in connected speech. Overall, the stressed syllable remains clear, but the surrounding vowels shift slightly in height and quality.
The difficulty lies in the three-syllable rhythm and the cluster around the stressed syllable: met-a-STAT-ic. The short, sharp ‘stat’ requires precise articulation with a crisp /t/ and a fast follow-up /ɪk/. Learners often misplace stress on the second syllable or merge syllables, leading to /ˌmɛtəˈstatɪk/ or /ˌmeˈtastɪk/. Focus on maintaining the proper stress, and clearly separating /stæ/ from the final /tɪk/.
A unique aspect is the relatively abrupt central 'STAT' cluster in the stressed syllable and its impact on syllable timing. The /ˈstæ/ portion carries the beat of the word, so you’ll allocate slightly more duration to that syllable while keeping a compact, quick follow-through into /ɪk/. This pattern helps distinguish metastatic from similar words like metastasis (pronounced ˌmɛtəˈstæ sɪs). Remember the contrast between the stressed 'STAT' and the trailing 'ic'.
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US: rhotic influence, subtle /ɹ/ in surrounding words; maintain clear /ɪ/ in final syllable, avoid 'stat-ik' blends. UK: non-rhotic; pronounce /tæ/ clearly, keep final /ɪk/ crisp but not tensed. AU: slightly broader vowels, occasional reduction of unstressed vowels; keep stress on STAT with a precise /æ/ and a clear final /ɪk/. Use IPA cues /ˌmɛtəˈstæ tɪk/ (US) vs /ˌmetəˈstætɪk/ (UK) vs /ˌmetəˈstatɪk/ (AU).
Metastatic comes from the Greek prefix meta- meaning 'beyond, after' and a stem related to stasis or standing still, combined with the medical suffix -atic, which forms adjectives. The root metastasis itself derives from meta- ‘beyond’ and histanai ‘to cause to stand,’ historically used in pathology to describe the process by which cancer cells spread from a primary site to distant locations. In English medical texts, metastasis dates to the early 19th century, with -atic adjectives appearing in the late 19th to early 20th century to qualify disease states or behavior. The term metastasis gained clinical traction as cancer research progressed and physicians formalized stages of cancer progression; by the mid-20th century, metastatic cancer had become a standard descriptor in radiology, oncology, and pathology reports, indicating dissemination rather than local growth. The word’s use expanded from narrow tumor behavior to general descriptions of spreading disease processes in various cancers, though its core meaning remains “spread beyond the original site.”
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Words that rhyme with "Metastatic"
-tic sounds
Practice with these rhyming pairs to improve your pronunciation consistency:
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