How to pronounce steampunk
Say it like STEEM-pungk. Steampunk has two syllables, and the main stress falls on the first one (STEEM).
Click the play button next to American or British to hear how to pronounce steampunk. Choose Slow to hear each sound clearly.
- STEEM
- pungk
- Main stress
- Lighter stress
- Unstressed
Steampunk pronunciation, sound by sound
Read the parts left to right, then blend them together without pausing.
- STEEMSay this part loudest and longest. The vowel is the "ee" in see.
- pungkKeep this part quick and light. The vowel is the "u" in cup.
American vs British pronunciation of steampunk
American and British speakers say steampunk in essentially the same way: /ˈstimpʌŋk/ in the US and /ˈstiːmpʌŋk/ in the UK.
British respelling: STEEM-pungk.
What does steampunk mean?
- A subgenre of science fiction that depicts advanced technology combined with Victorian style and aesthetics, such as steam-powered machines and vehicles, visible gears and screws and people dressed in 19th-century attires.
- A writer of steampunk fiction.
- A person cosplaying as a steampunk character.
- To depict in a steampunk manner.
Where does steampunk come from?
From steam + -punk, by analogy with cyberpunk, coined by science-fiction writer Kevin Wayne Jeter (born 1950) in a 1987 letter to the magazine Locus in response to a review of his book Infernal Devices published the same year (see the quotation below).
Questions about saying steampunk
How do you pronounce steampunk?
Say STEEM-pungk. The American pronunciation is /ˈstimpʌŋk/. In British English it is /ˈstiːmpʌŋk/. Press play above to hear it at normal speed or slowly.
How many syllables are in steampunk?
Steampunk has two syllables, and the main stress falls on the first one (STEEM). Broken into parts: STEEM · pungk.
Do Americans and Brits say steampunk the same way?
Almost exactly. The American form is /ˈstimpʌŋk/ and the British form is /ˈstiːmpʌŋk/, so you can use either pronunciation with any listener.