VEYE-brayt
/ˈvaɪbɹeɪt/
vibrate is pronounced VEYE-brayt (/ˈvaɪbɹeɪt/). Vibrate is a verb meaning to move or be moved back and forth rapidly or continuously, as a small object or body part does under the influence of an external force or energy. It can also describe the state of oscillating at a regular rate, producing a tremor or hum. The word carries both physical and metaphorical senses, including vibration in machinery or excitement in a voice or signal.
Vibrate is a verb meaning to move or be moved back and forth rapidly or continuously, as a small object or body part does under the influence of an external force or energy. It can also describe the state of oscillating at a regular rate, producing a tremor or hum. The word carries both physical and metaphorical senses, including vibration in machinery or excitement in a voice or signal.
"The phone will vibrate when a notification arrives."
"Her voice began to vibrate with emotion as she spoke."
"The machine vibrates at a high frequency, causing slight noise."
Pronounce as /ˈvaɪ.breɪt/. The first syllable has a stressed long vowel, /aɪ/ as in bite, followed by /br/ with a clear onset and a final /eɪt/ in the second syllable. Audible break: [ˈvaɪ.] + [breɪt]. Keep the jaw relatively closed for /aɪ/ and release into /breɪt/ with a slight delay between syllables. Overall pattern: primary stress on the first syllable; the ending rhymes with 'wait'. Audio reference: you’ll hear [ˈvaɪ.breɪt] in standard American and British pronunciations.
Common errors: (1) misplacing stress, saying /ˈvɪ.brate/ with a short /ɪ/ in the first syllable; (2) truncating the second syllable, leading to /ˈvaɪ.breɪ/; (3) flattening the /aɪ/ to /əɪ/ or /ɪə/. Correction: keep /aɪ/ in the first syllable and clearly release /breɪt/ in the second. Ensure the /b/ is a full onset before /r/ and avoid inserting a schwa before /breɪt/.
US/UK/AU share /ˈvaɪ.breɪt/ with stress on the first syllable, but rhoticity affects linked vowels after /r/. US tends to a darker rhotic /ɹ/ and slightly longer /aɪ/ before /breɪt/, UK often maintains crisp /r/ in non-rhotic positions, and AU tends toward a more centralized /ə/ in some rapid speech, but final /breɪt/ remains distinct. Overall, the main vowel sounds do not radically differ; differences appear in connected speech and vowel quality around /r/ and /t/ release.
The difficulty lies in the two-part rhythm: a fronted /ˈvaɪ/ with a diphthong /aɪ/ followed by a tense /breɪt/. The transition between /ɪˈbreɪ/ requires precise tongue control to avoid a lax /brɪ/ or /breɪ/ without the final /t/. Also, the /t/ at the end can be unreleased in rapid speech. Practitioners must manage syllable-timing and ensure the /br/ onset is clean. IPA cues help map the exact tongue position and lip shaping.
In vibrate, the middle consonant cluster /br/ requires a smooth, brief release before the /r/. The onset /v/ in the first syllable is bilabial; the transition from /v/ to /ɪ/ is a typical ligature for English, but ensure the following /br/ has a decisive onset. The /br/ cluster can cause minor vowel intrusion or a weak /ɹ/ if you don’t flatten the jaw slightly and keep the lips firm for the /b/ before the /r/. Practice by isolating /br/ with a brief stop, then blend with /ˈvaɪ/.
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Vibrate comes from the Latin verb vibrare, meaning to move to and fro, or to shake. The root vib- relates to shaking or beating, found in words like vibration and vibra. The Latin vibrare evolved into Old French vibrer, which passed into English by the late medieval period as vibrate or vibrater, with the noun vibration emerging from the same stem. Early uses in English primarily described mechanical shaking or oscillation, as in machinery or weapons. By the 18th and 19th centuries, vibrate broadened in scope to include more abstract senses—sound vibrations in acoustics, light vibrations in physics, and, later, electronic signals in telecommunications. The modern usage spans physics, engineering, biology (muscle fibers vibrate), music (vibrato, a controlled vocal vibration), and colloquial speech (a voice can vibrate with emotion), reflecting both physical motion and perceptual effects of that motion. The word’s evolution tracks the broader scientific understanding of vibration phenomena, from simple pendulum-like motion to complex resonant systems. First known printed use in English dates to the 15th century, with substantial expansion in scientific and technical literature as the Industrial Revolution advanced machinery and instrumentation, embedding vibrate as a core term in engineering, physics, and everyday descriptions of motion and sensation.
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "vibrate" and can often be used interchangeably.
🔄 These words have opposite meanings to "vibrate" and show contrast in usage.
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Words that rhyme with "vibrate"
-bit sounds
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