How to pronounce wasteland
Say it like WAYST-land. Wasteland has two syllables, and the main stress falls on the first one (WAYST).
Click the play button next to American or British to hear how to pronounce wasteland. Choose Slow to hear each sound clearly.
- WAYST
- land
- Main stress
- Lighter stress
- Unstressed
Wasteland pronunciation, sound by sound
Read the parts left to right, then blend them together without pausing.
- WAYSTSay this part loudest and longest. The vowel is the "ay" in day.
- landGive this part a little weight. The vowel is the "a" in cat.
American vs British pronunciation of wasteland
American and British speakers say wasteland in essentially the same way: /ˈweɪstˌlænd/ in the US and /ˈweɪstˌlænd/ in the UK.
British respelling: WAYST-land.
What does wasteland mean?
- A place with no remaining resources; a desert.“Ten years of drought had left the area a wasteland.”
- Any barren or uninteresting place.“After his experiences, he no longer found western Kansas such a wasteland.”
- A devastated, uninhabitable area.
Where does wasteland come from?
Inherited from Middle English wast lond, modification of earlier weste lond, from Old English weste land (“wasteland”); equivalent to waste + land.
Similar and opposite words
Similar meaning
Questions about saying wasteland
How do you pronounce wasteland?
Say WAYST-land. The American pronunciation is /ˈweɪstˌlænd/. In British English it is /ˈweɪstˌlænd/. Press play above to hear it at normal speed or slowly.
How many syllables are in wasteland?
Wasteland has two syllables, and the main stress falls on the first one (WAYST). Broken into parts: WAYST · land.
Do Americans and Brits say wasteland the same way?
Almost exactly. The American form is /ˈweɪstˌlænd/ and the British form is /ˈweɪstˌlænd/, so you can use either pronunciation with any listener.