General Word Structure

The word technology is made up of four syllables when pronounced by both Hindi speakers as well as by American English speakers. We can segment them like this:

tech-no-lo-gy

The word technology is a combination of techno, from the Greek tekhno, meaning skill, and the suffix -ology, which is also of Ancient Greek origin (-logia) and is used to convey that something is a certain body of knowledge, or field of study.

First Syllable

The first syllable of technology is tech. Many times, instead of saying all four syllables of technology, people just refer to it using the first syllable and talk about tech.

Hindi speakers often pronounce this syllable with a retroflex t sound instead of the alveolar t sound that American English speakers use. They curl their tongue backwards when making the first consonant in this syllable. If you want to sound more American, make sure that you aren't curling your tongue backwards, just point the tip of your tongue to the top of your mouth, leaving a small amount of space between your tongue and your front teeth.

Hindi speakers often pronounce this word with the vowel. This is different than the vowel AE speakers use, which is , which is made with your lips closer together.

This syllable is an unstressed syllable. When American English speakers pronounce it, they say it quickly, softly, and with a lower pitch.

Second Syllable

The second syllable of the word technology is no.

Hindi speakers and American English speakers generally use different vowels when pronouncing this syllable. Although when we write this word this syllable contains the same two letters we use when writing the word no, American English speakers don't pronounce it the same way. Instead of using the vowel, we use the .

This is a stressed syllable. When American English speakers pronounce it, is the most prominent syllable in the word technology, because they say this syllable for a longer time, make it louder, make the pitch higher, and use a very clear vowel.

Third Syllable

The third syllable of the word technology is lo.

Hindi speakers and American English speakers generally use different vowels when pronouncing this syllable. Like the comments about the previous syllable in this word, this word is spelled with the letter "o", but American English speakers don't pronounce it with the vowel, we use the vowel.

This is an unstressed syllable, which American English speakers pronounce more quietly, for less time, and with a lower pitch, especially compared with the previous syllable.

Fourth Syllable

The third syllable of the word technology is lo.

Hindi speakers and American English speakers pronounce the individual sounds similarly in this word. There is a difference in the pitch used in this words, however. Native Hindi speakers have a tendency to raise the pitch on this syllable, but American English speakers lower the pitch on this syllable. The rising pitch at the end of words is especially noticeable to American English speakers, so try to lower your pitch at the end of words instead of raising it if you want to make your accent less noticeable.

Pronunciation Patterns of Similar Words

Tech as an abbreviation

As mentioned in the section on the first syllable of technology, tech is a common abbreviation that is used. When tech is pronounced as its own word, similar to the it is pronounced as an unstressed syllable in the word technology, American English speakers pronounce this word using the alveolar t instead of the retroflex t, and instead of . Make sure that when tech is pronounced by itself, that the pitch you use is not a rising pitch; you shouldn't be raising your voice as you say it if you want to sound more similar to an American.

Adding suffixes to technology

There are a few suffixes that can be added, one after the other, to technology, to produce the words technologic, technological, and technologically. The suffix -ic is a stress shifting suffix. When it's added, it shifts stress to the second to last syllable. Technology is stressed by American English speakers on the second syllable. However, technologic is stressed by American English speakers on the third syllable.

The suffixes -al and -ly are non-stress-shifting suffixes. When they are added to words, the stress pattern remains the same. Technology can be combined with the non-stress-shifting suffix -ist to produce technologist, which like technology is pronounced with stress on the second syllable. When the stress-shifting suffix -ic is added to the technology, the stressed syllable changes from the second syllable to the third syllable in the word technologic. However, adding -al doesn't cause the stress to change, and neither does adding -ly. Technological is pronounced with the most stress on the third syllable, no, and technologically is also pronounced with the most stress on the third syllable.

Words starting with techn-

There are several other English words which have roots in the Greek word teknos. Let's take a look at how these words are pronounced.

Most words starting with techn- are going to be pronounced with stress on the first syllable. The reason for this is that "tech" is a heavy syllable. Heavy syllables contain more than one vowel and/or end in a consonant, and tend to be the syllable that gets stressed within the word. The first syllable of words starting with techn- is "tech", which ends in the 'k' sound, and because of that it is emphasized. The words technophobe is an example of this. These words are formed with suffixes -phobe and since this is a non-stress-shifting suffix, it is stressed on the first syllable.

Words starting with techn- that are formed with suffixes that do shift stress are not stressed on the first syllable, but are instead stressed based on the stress rule associated with that stress-shifting suffix. For instance, words with the suffix -ique are stressed on the last syllable, so the word technique isn't emphasized on the first syllable, it is stressed on the second syllable instead. Words with the suffix -ician are stressed in the second-to-last syllable, so the word technician isn't stressed on the first syllable; instead, it is stressed on the second syllable.

Summary

When pronouncing the word technology, and it's related forms, it's important to keep in mind that native speakers of American English use an alveolar t and the vowels and when pronouncing the letters "e" and "o" in this word. Additionally, the second syllable should be stressed the most, since this word contains the -logy that shifts stress to the third-to-last syllable in a word.

Make sure that when you say words like technologic, that you emphasize the second to last syllable. If you shorten technology, when you say tech, lower the pitch of your voice instead of raising it, which is common among native Hindi speakers. Lastly, keep in mind that many of the words that start with techn- end in suffixes, and pronounce them keeping in mind that some suffixes do shift the stressed syllable in a word.