English pronunciation · Words Starting with C
Catastrophic Pronunciation
Catastrophic is pronounced ka-tuh-STRAH-fik, IPA /ˌkætəˈstrɑfɪk/.
ka-tuh-STRAH-fik
US /ˌkætəˈstrɑfɪk/ · UK /ˌkætəˈstrɒfɪk/
Syllables: ka · tuh · STRAH · fik (4 syllables, stress on syllable 3)
adjective: Causing sudden and very great damage.
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Catastrophic in a Sentence
- A catastrophic failure of the cooling system shut the plant down.
- The storm did catastrophic damage to the harbour wall.
- Losing that file would be catastrophic for the whole case.
Common Mispronunciations of Catastrophic
Not kuh-TA-struh-fik
Adding -ic drags the force one syllable to the right, onto STRAH.
Not ka-tuh-STROH-fik
That o is short, the vowel of hot, once the stress lands on it.
Tip: Only the third of the four beats is loud: ka-tuh-STRAH-fik.
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