How to pronounce bottleneck
American English pronunciation
BOT-ul-nek
- IPA
- /ˈbɑtəlˌnɛk/
- Syllables
- BOT · ul · nek (3 syllables, stress on the 1st)
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What bottleneck means
A narrow point where things get stuck and slow down
In a sentence: The bridge was a bottleneck, so cars lined up for a mile.
Where it comes from: It's bottle plus neck. Like the thin top of a bottle, it is a narrow spot that lets only a little through at a time.
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