How to pronounce stymie
Say it like STY-mee. Stymie has two syllables, and the main stress falls on the first one (STY).
Click the play button next to American or British to hear how to pronounce stymie. Choose Slow to hear each sound clearly.
- STY
- mee
- Main stress
- Lighter stress
- Unstressed
Stymie pronunciation, sound by sound
Read the parts left to right, then blend them together without pausing.
- STYSay this part loudest and longest. The vowel is the "i" in time.
- meeKeep this part quick and light. The vowel is the "ee" in see.
American vs British pronunciation of stymie
American and British speakers say stymie in essentially the same way: /ˈstaɪmi/ in the US and /ˈstaɪmi/ in the UK.
British respelling: STY-mee.
What does stymie mean?
- A situation where an opponent's ball is directly in the way of one's own ball and the hole, on the putting green (abolished 1952).
- An obstacle or obstruction.
- To thwart or stump; to cause to fail or to leave hopelessly puzzled, confused, or stuck.“They had lost the key, and the lock stymied the first three locksmiths they called.”
- To bring into the position of, or impede by, a stymie.
Where does stymie come from?
From the meaning in golf (where the stymie ball blocks the other ball from "seeing" the hole), perhaps from Scots stymie, stimie (“person with poor eyesight”), from Scots stime (“the least bit”).
Words that rhyme with stymie
Practicing rhymes is a quick way to lock in the vowel sound of stymie.
Questions about saying stymie
How do you pronounce stymie?
Say STY-mee. The American pronunciation is /ˈstaɪmi/. In British English it is /ˈstaɪmi/. Press play above to hear it at normal speed or slowly.
How many syllables are in stymie?
Stymie has two syllables, and the main stress falls on the first one (STY). Broken into parts: STY · mee.
Do Americans and Brits say stymie the same way?
Almost exactly. The American form is /ˈstaɪmi/ and the British form is /ˈstaɪmi/, so you can use either pronunciation with any listener.