3 syllables: Pey, o, te. Stress on o.
piy-AW-tee
/pɪˈjɔˌti/
Peyote is pronounced piy-AW-tee (/pɪˈjɔˌti/). It has three syllables (Pey-o-te), with the stress on "o". Peyote is a small, spineless cactus native to the southwestern United States and Mexico, used traditionally in indigenous religious rituals. The plant contains mescaline, a psychoactive alkaloid, and is known for its psychoactive effects when consumed as part of ceremonial practices or as a hallucinogenic substance. In general usage it also refers to the psychedelic experience or the pot-plant itself, often in historical or ethnobotanical contexts.
nounPeyote is a small, spineless cactus native to the southwestern United States and Mexico, used traditionally in indigenous religious rituals. The plant contains mescaline, a psychoactive alkaloid, and is known for its psychoactive effects when consumed as part of ceremonial practices or as a hallucinogenic substance. In general usage it also refers to the psychedelic experience or the pot-plant itself, often in historical or ethnobotanical contexts.
How to Pronounce Peyote
"The shaman prepared peyote buttons for the ceremonial rite."
"Researchers studied the cultural significance of peyote among Native American communities."
"He wrote a paper about the historical trade of peyote across the border."
Peyote is pronounced as /ˈpeɪ.oʊt/ (US) or /ˈpeɪ.əʊt/ (UK/AU). The first syllable carries primary stress: 'PAY'. The second syllable sounds like 'ote' in 'oat' or 'boat' without the B, so it rhymes with 'note' minus the initial consonant blend. Mouth position: start with a rounded, tense /peɪ/ glide then close to /oʊ/ or /əʊ/ for the second syllable. IPA helps, but you’ll hear it as PAY-ohte, emphasizing the long A and the long O in many dialects.
Common mistakes: 1) Flattening the second syllable to a short /o/ or /ɒ/ instead of the long /oʊ/ or /əʊ/. 2) Misplacing stress as PAY-ot or pe-YOTE; keep primary stress on the first syllable: PAY-ohte. 3) Merely saying 'pey-oht' with reduced vowel in the second syllable; maintain the long vowel in /oʊ/ or /əʊ/. Correction: break the word into PAY-Ohte, articulate the 'o' as a diphthong in the second syllable, and ensure the second syllable isn't rushed.
US: /ˈpeɪ.oʊt/ with clear /oʊt/; UK/AU: /ˈpeɪ.əʊt/ or /ˈpeɪəʊt/ with a lighter rhotic influence and a more centralized second syllable; Australian English often reduces the second syllable slightly more, making /əʊ/ glide shorter. Overall, the primary stress remains on the first syllable in all varieties, but the second syllable can shift from /oʊt/ to /əʊt/ depending on speaker and tempo.
The difficulty lies in the two-syllable structure with a final stressed diphthong and a potentially reduced, unstressed second syllable. The first syllable requires a precise /eɪ/ vowel (long A), while the second syllable uses a trailing /oʊ/ or /əʊ/ glide that can blur in fast speech. Non-native speakers may over-simplify the second syllable or misplace the stress. Practicing PAY-ohte with slow tempo helps stabilize the diphthong transitions and keeps timing consistent.
There are no silent letters in Peyote; both syllables are pronounced. The challenge is the vowel sequencing: the second syllable uses a long open-mid vowel with a rising or level glide. Paying attention to the transition between /eɪ/ in the first syllable and /oʊ/ or /əʊ/ in the second helps avoid truncation or swallowing the second syllable. Emphasize the natural break between PAY and OTE, keeping the second syllable distinct.
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Peyote derives from the Spanish peyote, which in turn comes from the Nahuatl word peyotl (also peyōtl in classical Nahuatl). The term entered English in the 19th century as ethnographic and botanical texts began documenting theAztec and broader Indigenous use of the cactus. The root peyotl denotes a ritual or sacred drink or sacramental context; over time, peyote came to signify the plant itself and, by extension, the psychoactive experience associated with mescaline. Early explorers and ethnographers described it as a ceremonial object, and the term evolved in ethnobotanical literature to cover both the plant and its ceremonial use. In modern usage, peyote remains tied to Native American religious practices, particularly within the Peyote Way Church of God and the Native American Church, while also appearing in academic discussions of hallucinogenic plants and ethnobotany with attention to cultural respect and legal status across regions.
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "Peyote" and can often be used interchangeably.
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Words that rhyme with "Peyote"
-ght sounds
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