Proper Pronunciation Guide
obsequious
[ɑb̚ 
si kwi
əs]
Tips:
- Pronounce the initial letter “o” as /ɑ/—like the vowel in the word “stop.”
- Stop-but-do-not-explode the letter “b”—/b̚/—and release the air on the following consonant /s/, which begins the second syllable.
- Pronounce the letter “e” like the name of the letter itself—/i/—and stress it.
- Pronounce the letters “qu” as /kw/.
- Pronounce the letter “i” also like the name of the letter “e”—/i/.
- Use the y-like consonant glide /j/ to link from the third to the final syllable—from/i/ to [əs].
Practice Sentence:
| "Mr. Lipton's summations of actors' careers, which some viewers found obsequious, made him the target of a scathing, and recurrent, parody by the actor Will Ferrell on "Saturday Night Live." (The New York Times, May 26, 2005, p. E-1.) |
Definition:
(Adjective) Characterized by placing oneself in an inferior or servile position to someone else in order to seek an advantage or curry favor; showing great deference; sycophantic.