WUHN-dur-fuh-lee
/ˈwʌndɚfəli/
wonderfully is pronounced WUHN-dur-fuh-lee (/ˈwʌndɚfəli/). Wonderfully is an adverb meaning in a wonderful or admirable way, expressing strong approval or enjoyment. It typically modifies verbs or adjectives (e.g., “she sings wonderfully”) and conveys a sense of exceptional quality or delight. The word combines the sense of wonder with adverbial -ly formation, signaling degree or manner in which something is done.
Wonderfully is an adverb meaning in a wonderful or admirable way, expressing strong approval or enjoyment. It typically modifies verbs or adjectives (e.g., “she sings wonderfully”) and conveys a sense of exceptional quality or delight. The word combines the sense of wonder with adverbial -ly formation, signaling degree or manner in which something is done.
"She spoke wonderfully during the presentation, captivating the audience."
"The sunset looked wonderfully bright from the hilltop."
"He handled the challenge wonderfully, with calm and clever improvisation."
The word is pronounced /ˈwɒndərfəli/ in US English and /ˈwɒndəfəli/ in UK English. It has four syllables: WON-der-full-ly. The primary stress sits on WON. Start with the /w/ lip rounding, then /ɒ/ as in 'hot', followed by /n/ and /d/ with a light /ə/ schwa in the second syllable, then /f/ and /ə/ in the third, and end with /li/ (lingual motion toward a light /i/). In fast speech, the /ər/ can be a reduced schwa, and the final /li/ can sound like /li/ or /lɪ/ depending on speaker. Audio reference: try listening to native speakers saying “wonderfully” in phrases like “she spoke wonderfully.”
Common errors include misplacing the stress (saying ‘WON-der-ful-ly’ with stress on WON rather than WON-der-ful-ly), omitting or softening the /r/ in American pronunciation (pronouncing /ˈwɒndəfuli/), and conflating the /ə/ in the second syllable with /ɪ/ or /iː/. To correct: keep the secondary syllable unstressed as /ˈwɒndər/ with a light schwa, ensure the /r/ is rhotic in US English, and articulate /f/ clearly before the final /li/. Practice with minimal pairs like WON-der vs WON-derr to feel the rhythm. Listen to standard pronunciations and mimic the four-syllable flow.
In US English, /ˈwɑːndərfəli/ or /ˈwɒndərfəli/ with rhotic /ɹ/ and a clear /ɡ/ not involved; the second syllable has a reduced schwa. In UK English, /ˈwɒndəfəli/ with minimal rhotics in non-rhotic accents; the /r/ is often silent, and the /ə/ remains. Australian English typically /ˈwɔːndəfəli/ with a broader /ɔː/ in the first syllable and a non-rhotic /r/ still. Differences center on rhoticity and vowel quality: US emphasizes /ɹ/ and shorter /ɒ/ vs UK/AU often broader vowel sounds and reduced rhotics. Use IPA for clarity when teaching across dialects.
Because it combines a multi-syllable chain with a stressed first syllable, a mid vowel in the second, and a final -ly suffix that often reduces in rapid speech. The /ər/ can blur in fast speech, and distinguishing the /d/ before /ər/ from the following /f/ requires precise tongue placement. Learners often mispronounce it as ‘wonderful-EE’ or misplace /ɹ/ in non-rhotic dialects. The main challenge is maintaining the four-syllable rhythm with clear /d/ and a light /l/ before the final /y/.
In wonderful the vowel sound is /ɒ/ (US /ɑ/) in the first syllable; in wonderfully, the first syllable remains similarly /ɒ/ or /ɑː/ depending on dialect, but there is no separate 'ow' digraph as in 'how'. The key is that wonderful is the stem with primary stress on WON-, and wonderfully adds -er-ful-ly after it. The /ow/ spelling doesn’t map to a separate diphthong in standard English here; you should focus on the /ɒ/ or /ɔː/ vowel, and the following /n/ after the /w/ onset.
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Wonderful originates from the Old English word wunderful, composed of wunder (wonder, marvel) and -ful (full of). It entered Middle English usage with the sense of full of wonder. The adverb wonderfully formed in the same era by adding the -ly suffix to the adjective wonderful, yielding the sense of “in a wonderful manner.” The word wonderself has roots in Germanic languages with cognates in Old Frisian and Dutch; the sense of marvel and astonishment expanded during the Early Modern period as poets and writers used wondrous to emphasize extraordinary qualities. First known use of wonderful appears in the 14th century, with wonderfully appearing in early modern texts by the 15th–16th centuries as a common adverbial form, aligning with other -ly adverbs of manner derived from adjectives. Over time, wonderfully has kept its emphatic nuance, often used with positive evaluative force in both spoken and literary contexts, while occasionally used in a sarcasm or hyperbolic sense in contemporary speech. Contemporary usage emphasizes performance, emotion, and quality, rather than mere adequacy.
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "wonderfully" and can often be used interchangeably.
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Words that rhyme with "wonderfully"
-lly sounds
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