TAHR-dee
/ˈtɑɹdi/
tardy is pronounced TAHR-dee (/ˈtɑɹdi/). Tardy means delayed or late beyond an expected or usual time. It describes people, tasks, or processes that do not arrive or occur as scheduled, often causing inconvenience. The term can carry a mildly critical tone, highlighting a lapse or failure to meet a deadline, standard, or societal expectation.
Tardy means delayed or late beyond an expected or usual time. It describes people, tasks, or processes that do not arrive or occur as scheduled, often causing inconvenience. The term can carry a mildly critical tone, highlighting a lapse or failure to meet a deadline, standard, or societal expectation.
"She arrived tardy to the meeting, causing the agenda to be shifted."
"The project faced tardy approvals, pushing the launch back by several days."
"His tardy response suggested he hadn’t checked his email promptly."
Tip: break it into two phonemes: /ˈtɑr/ + /di/. Start with the tip of the tongue behind the upper teeth for the /t/ and /ɑ/ as in 'father,' then a smooth /r/ with the tongue curled slightly without a strong roll. End with a clear /i/ (as in 'see'). The stress is on the first syllable: TAR-dy. You can listen to native pronunciations on Forvo or YouGlish and mimic their timing. IPA: US /ˈtɑːr.di/; UK /ˈtɑː.di/; AU /ˈtɑː.di/.
Common mistakes include reducing the first syllable to /tɜr/ or mispronouncing the /ɑː/ as a short /æ/ in American fast speech. Another error is slurring the /r/ in non-rhotic contexts, producing /tɑːdi/ without a noticeable rhotic quality. To fix: emphasize the long open, back /ɑː/ vowel, fully articulate /r/ before the /d/, and keep the final /i/ as a clear /iː/. Practice with minimal pairs like tar-dy vs tardy.
In General American, you’ll hear a rhotic /r/ and a long /ɑː/ in the first syllable: /ˈtɑːr.di/. In Received Pronunciation (UK), the /r/ is non-rhotic, but since /ɑː/ is preserved, you get /ˈtɑː.di/ with a lighter 'r' or non-rolling r. Australian English aligns with rhoticity but tends to be more vowel-tilted; you hear /ˈtɑː.di/ with clear, clipped consonants. The main variation is the rhoticity of /r/ and vowel duration; US keeps /r/ strongly, UK suppresses it in coda, AU typically rhotics but with distinct vowel quality.
The challenge is the short, rounded vowel /ɑː/ followed by a difficult-to-articulate /r/ in American English, especially in rapid speech. The transition from /ɑː/ to /r/ requires trailing tongue elevation and lip rounding, and many speakers reduce the vowel to /æ/ or blend /ɑ/ with a softened /r/. Additionally, the final /i/ should not become a schwa; keep it as a clear /iː/. Practicing with controlled tempo helps lock the mouth positions.
A unique feature is the stressed first syllable with a postvocalic /r/ in rhotic accents. The /r/ is not silent in US English, forming TAR-dy with a strong rhotic quality. In non-rhotic accents like some UK varieties, the /r/ is less pronounced, so it may sound more like TAR-di without a strong /r/. Paying attention to whether your accent keeps or drops /r/ is key for achieving natural-sounding tardy.
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Tardy comes from the Old French tardif (late, slow) and is ultimately linked to Latin tardus (slow). The word entered English via Norman French influence in the Middle English period. Historically, tardy was not only about clock-time lateness but also about being slow to act or respond, with connotations of incompetence or neglect. Over centuries, its usage broadened from a descriptive adjective to a evaluative term in formal and informal contexts. By the 16th to 18th centuries, tardy appeared in legal and bureaucratic language to describe late filings or delayed processes, and in everyday speech to describe someone who is habitually late. In modern usage, tardy retains its core sense of lateness while sometimes carrying a softer or more humorous tone in casual speech, though it can be used in a mildly scolding way in professional settings. First known English attestations are found in Middle English texts influenced by Norman French, with consistent use throughout Early Modern English period as trade, law, and education expanded the concept of timely action.
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "tardy" and can often be used interchangeably.
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Words that rhyme with "tardy"
-rdy sounds
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