How to Pronounce Suboptimal

To pronounce "suboptimal", say SUB-opt-im-al — 4 syllables. Tap play below to hear it in four English accents, or practice it syllable by syllable.

suboptimal

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Accent

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Syllable by syllable — tap each one

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4

Syllables

10

Letters

SUB-opt-im-al

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💡 Tip for remembering “suboptimal”

"suboptimal" has 4 syllables: sub-opt-im-al.

What does suboptimal mean?

adjective

  1. Worse than optimal.

    “A quickly produced suboptimal solution to a problem is often more useful than an optimal one that takes a long time to produce.”

Hear “suboptimal” in real sentences

Real example sentences from Tatoeba (CC-BY) — tap to hear each one, or see it used on YouGlish.

Related words

sub-optimalsuboptimumsubstandardnonoptimalinoptimalsubmarginalinfraoptimalless-than-stellar

Frequently asked questions

How many syllables are in "suboptimal"?▾

"Suboptimal" has 4 syllables: sub · opt · im · al.

What does "suboptimal" mean?▾

Suboptimal: Worse than optimal.

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