How to Pronounce ‘Unfortunately’

The word ‘unfortunately’ is pronounced uhn-for-chuh-n’t-lee [IPA: ʌnˈfɔːr.tʃə.nət.li].
The primary stress is on the second syllable.

Watch my tutorial on how to pronounce ‘unfortunately’ and practice with me:

Here’s a quick recap:

1. uhn
   The first syllable begins with the CUP sound (the same vowel as in the word ‘cup’) and ends with an N sound.
2. for
   The second syllable begins with an F sound and then shifts to OR as in ‘four’. This is an R vowel so make sure the R is short and that you focus on the vowel part of this sound.
3. chuh
   To make the third syllable, make a CH sound and then move into a schwa sound.
4. n’t
   The fourth syllable begins with an N sound and then changes into a schwa sound that is followed by a T sound. The schwa should be very short.
5. lee
   The fifth syllable begins with an L sound and shifts into a high ‘ee’ sound as in
   the word ‘see’.

Additional resources:

• Schwa sound
• Sheep-ship
• Primary Stress
• American R
• How to pronounce long words in English