Pronunciation guide
How to pronounce athlete
ATH-leet - two syllables only
US/ˈæθ.lit/
æθlit
UK/ˈæθ.liːt/
æθliːt
New to IPA symbols? Read the IPA guide.
Common mistake
Often stretched to three syllables as 'ATH-uh-leet'; it is just two.
What “athlete” means
A participant in any of a group of sporting activities including track and field, road running, cross country running and racewalking.
A person who actively participates in physical sports, especially with great skill; a sportsperson.
In a sentence
- She's the first athlete in her sport to obtain a corporate sponsor.
- The Olympic athlete trained rigorously for four years before the Games.
Definitions and examples are derived from Wiktionary, used under CC BY-SA 4.0, then edited by QuickPronounce. Pronunciation data draws on CMUdict.