Endings that hide a whole extra syllable

1. 1
   chocolate/ˈtʃɔːklət/

   noun

   A sweet brown food made from cocoa beans.
2. 2
   vegetable/ˈvedʒtəbəl/

   noun

   A plant part eaten as food, like a carrot or a bean.
3. 3
   temperature/ˈtemprətʃər/iAlso said ˈtempərətʃər.

   noun

   How hot or cold something is.
4. 4
   business/ˈbɪznəs/

   noun

   A company that sells things or does work for money, along with the people in it.
5. 5
   laboratory/ˈlæbrəˌtɔːri/

   noun

   A room set up for scientific work and testing.
6. 6
   desperate/ˈdesprɪt/iAlso said ˈdespərɪt.

   adjective

   So out of hope that you would try almost anything.
7. 7
   every/ˈevəri/iAlso said ˈevri.

   adjective

   Each one in a group, with none left out.
8. 8
   separate/ˈsepərˌeɪt/iAlso said ˈsepərɪt or ˈseprət.

   verb

   To split something into parts.
9. 9
   probably/ˈprɑːbəˌbliː/iAlso said ˈprɑːbli.

   adverb

   Very likely, though not for certain.
10. 10
    especially/əˈspeʃli/iAlso said əˈspeʃəli.

    adverb

    More than usual, or more than the others.

The sentences

1. I had way too much chocolate over the weekend.

2. She put every vegetable she had into the soup.

3. The temperature dropped a lot last night.

4. My brother runs a small business downtown.

5. She works in a laboratory near the river.

6. I was desperate for a coffee this morning.

7. We had rain every single day last week.

8. Could you separate the whites from the colors?

9. We'll probably just stay home this weekend.

10. The dessert was great, especially the chocolate.

Pronunciation

• chocolate/ˈtʃɔːklət/

  Two syllables in normal speech, CHOK-lut. The middle 'o' is gone.

• vegetable/ˈvedʒtəbəl/

  Three syllables, VEJ-tuh-bul. Nothing sounds between the j and the t.

• temperature/ˈtemprətʃər/

  No per in the middle: tem-pruh-cher.

• business/ˈbɪznəs/

  Two syllables, not three: BIZ-nus, with the stress up front.

• laboratory/ˈlæbrəˌtɔːri/

  Stress on 'lab', and the 'o' after it drops: 'lab-ruh-tor-ee'.

• desperate/ˈdesprɪt/

  Two syllables, and the ending sounds like 'prit', not like 'rate'.

• every/ˈevəri/

  Three syllables here, 'ev-uh-ree' — the middle one is easy to lose.

• separate/ˈsepərˌeɪt/

  As a verb the ending is a full ate sound, unlike the flat adjective.

• especially/əˈspeʃli/

  No k sound at the front, and it runs to three beats: uh-SPESH-lee.

Questions

How do you pronounce chocolate?

It's two syllables, CHOK-lut; the middle 'o' disappears, as in 'I had way too much chocolate over the weekend.'

What does desperate mean?

It means so out of hope you'd try almost anything, as in 'I was desperate for a coffee this morning.'

How do you say business correctly?

It's two syllables, BIZ-nus, stressed up front, as in 'My brother runs a small business downtown.'