# pronunciation question: kilometer **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 3, 2004, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-kilometer/272858 "2004-11-03T22:09:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![professor\_folk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/df788c/32.png) [@professor\_folk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/professor_folk)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2004, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-kilometer/272858/1 "2004-11-03T22:09:54Z")
Kilometer (or the British variant ‘kilometre’): people around here in Canada where I live seem to pronounce this 2 distinctly different ways: kilo-meater kilaw-mitter is there one proper way of pronouncing this word, or are both correct? ---
**Author:** ![Polycarp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2004, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-kilometer/272858/2 "2004-11-03T22:18:59Z")
> [@professor folk](#): > > Kilometer (or the British variant ‘kilometre’): > people around here in Canada where I live seem to pronounce this 2 distinctly different ways: > kilo-meater > kilaw-mitter > is there one proper way of pronouncing this word, or are both correct? This was addressed some months ago, and the answers were interesting: Areas in Ontario and California, and parts of the Midwest, consider that 0.624 mile is a KILL-oh-MEE-ter; much of the rest of the English-speaking world calls one a kih-LAHM-uh-ter, with variations galore. There’s no clear regional divide – pockets of each in areas of the other. ---
**Author:** ![UrbanChic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/9dc877/32.png) [@UrbanChic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UrbanChic)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2004, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-kilometer/272858/3 "2004-11-03T22:19:56Z")
[Both are correct.](http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?book=Dictionary&va=kilometer) ---
**Author:** ![CurtC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ce73a5/32.png) [@CurtC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CurtC)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2004, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-kilometer/272858/4 "2004-11-03T22:27:14Z")
I think the main difference is that in one, the accent is on the first and third syllables, in the other, it’s on the second: KIL o meeter kil OM eeter The ‘o’ sound is also different between the two. The first is preferred in engineering use, because you just prepend the “kilo” prefix to the term “meter.” British pronunciation rules cause the accent to shift syllables when stuff is added, so that it’s usually on the second syllable: HIStory versus hisTORical. Don’t know why it’s that way, but since kilometer is an international word, not just English, I strongly prefer KILometer. ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2004, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-kilometer/272858/5 "2004-11-03T22:36:07Z")
I’d say the usage is about 50/50 here. I say KILO metre, with the emphasis on the prefix, similar to KILO gram, KILO pascal etc. ---
**Author:** ![Fuji\_Kitakyusho](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f0a364/32.png) [@Fuji\_Kitakyusho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fuji_Kitakyusho)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2004, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-kilometer/272858/6 "2004-11-03T23:07:36Z")
The prefix is “kilo” and the base is “meter”. Why would you pronounce these words differently when they’re joined together? ---
**Author:** ![Manduck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/manduck/32/256_2.png) [@Manduck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Manduck)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2004, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-kilometer/272858/7 "2004-11-03T23:35:34Z")
> [@Fuji Kitakyusho](#): > > The prefix is “kilo” and the base is “meter”. Why would you pronounce these words differently when they’re joined together? Because words work that way sometimes. How do you pronounce thermometer? ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2004, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-kilometer/272858/8 "2004-11-04T01:29:03Z")
How do you pronounce _kilometer_? “Klick.” ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2004, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-kilometer/272858/9 "2004-11-04T01:36:33Z")
> [@Fuji Kitakyusho](#): > > The prefix is “kilo” and the base is “meter”. Why would you pronounce these words differently when they’re joined together? Because it’s a word in its own right, therefore independent of the pronunciation of individual words from which it was created. (FWIW, is there any connection between the English pronunciation of the word in Canada perhaps being closer to the French _kilometre_?) ---
**Author:** ![Gest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9d8465/32.png) [@Gest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gest)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2004, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-kilometer/272858/10 "2004-11-04T01:56:56Z")
> [@tomndebb](#): > > How do you pronounce _kilometer_? > > “Klick.” You’re a Kalahari bushman? ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2004, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-kilometer/272858/11 "2004-11-04T02:12:57Z")
“Klick” is standard US military shorthand for kilometer. All ground maps and measurements are done in meters and kilometers and have been that way for many years. Not sure where the military got it from; it may be a british or European slang term too. ---
**Author:** ![shillabus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5f8ce5/32.png) [@shillabus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shillabus)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2004, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-kilometer/272858/12 "2004-11-04T02:13:43Z")
Following the same train of thought… how do you pronounce centimeter? I’ve _never_ heard people try to pronounce CENT-i-meter as cen-TIM-iter, so why do people pronounce KIL-i-meter as ki-LOM-iter? Words describing a **unit of measure** such as kilometer, centimeter, and hectometer should be pronounced the same (first syllable stressed), and words describing a **measurement tool** such as tachometer and speedometer should pronounced the same (second syllable stressed). I hope that clears it up for you. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2004, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-kilometer/272858/13 "2004-11-04T02:18:48Z")
> [@shillabus](#): > > … words describing a **measurement tool** such as tachometer and speedometer should pronounced the same (second syllable stressed). I take it this applies to newton-meters? ---
**Author:** ![cantara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6f9a4e/32.png) [@cantara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cantara)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2004, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-kilometer/272858/14 "2004-11-04T14:12:52Z")
You know I saw this and thought I would post my viewpoint, but I see that shillabus has beaten me to it. Each point that was made is one that I was going to post. Well done, shillabus! Saying klAWmitter seems to fall out of your mouth where as saying KILometer requires a finer enunciation. It appears that the former is said as 3 syllables rather than 4 for the latter. I chalk it up to laziness. Occasionally I will say klAWgrum or cenTIMitter to see peoples reactions. Gorillaman, I believe that the pronunciation of newton-meters measurements is ‘tork’. The newton-meters are the units and the measuring device would be a torque wrench. (I assume there are other devices for measuring torque, but I don’t know what they would be…) ---
**Author:** ![spingears](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ebca7d/32.png) [@spingears](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spingears)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2004, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-kilometer/272858/15 "2004-11-04T15:25:02Z")
> [@professor folk](#): > > Kilometer (or the British variant ‘kilometre’): > people around here in Canada where I live seem to pronounce this 2 distinctly different ways: > kilo-meater > kilaw-mitter > is there one proper way of pronouncing this word, or are both correct? From [dictionary.com](http://dictionary.com) kil·o·me·ter ( P ) Pronunciation Key (k-lm-tr, kl-mtr) n. Abbr. km ``` A metric unit of length equal to 1,000 meters (0.62 mile). See table at measurement. ``` kilo·metric (kl-mtrk) adj. ``` Usage Note: Although the pronunciation of kilometer with stress on the second syllable, (k-lm-tr), is often censured because it does not conform to the stress pattern in millimeter and centimeter (it originally came about by false analogy with barometer and thermometer), it continues to thrive in American English. In a recent survey, 69 percent of the Usage Panel preferred this pronunciation, while 29 percent preferred the pronunciation (kl-mtr). ``` ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2004, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-kilometer/272858/16 "2004-11-04T16:03:34Z")
> [@cantara](#): > > YThe newton-meters are the units Nope - they’re Newton-metres (the different spellings _do_ have a use sometimes 😉 ) > [@](#): > > and the measuring device would be a torque wrench. (I assume there are other devices for measuring torque, but I don’t know what they would be…) Newton-meter is a collective term for torque-wrences, scales, and anything else that measures force. Although I concede that on Googling, it appears to mainly be used in Britain ---
**Author:** ![Balduran](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/cc9497/32.png) [@Balduran](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balduran)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2004, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-kilometer/272858/17 "2004-11-04T16:11:18Z")
> [@GorillaMan](#): > > Newton-meter is a collective term for torque-wrences, scales, and anything else that measures force. Although I concede that on Googling, it appears to mainly be used in Britain Huh. I was wondering what you were talking about before, mixing up a unit of measurement with a measuring device. Now I understand. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2004, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-kilometer/272858/18 "2004-11-04T16:34:13Z")
> [@spingears](#): > > (k-lm-tr, kl-mtr) > (kl-mtrk) > (k-lm-tr), > (kl-mtr). I’m now sure how helpful a vowel-free pronunciation guide is. ---
**Author:** ![cantara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6f9a4e/32.png) [@cantara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cantara)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2004, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-kilometer/272858/19 "2004-11-04T18:03:45Z")
> [@gorillaman](#): > > Newton-meter is a collective term for torque-wrences, scales, and anything else that measures force. Although I concede that on Googling, it appears to mainly be used in Britain I fought the ignorance, and my ignorance lost again…I guess that answers my parenthetical musing. I would be tempted to call them nuTONmitters then, but would sound too silly. By the same token, the town sends someone around to our house every couple of months to check the water meter, not our waTERmitter. ---
**Author:** ![CurtC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ce73a5/32.png) [@CurtC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CurtC)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2004, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-kilometer/272858/20 "2004-11-04T20:29:23Z")
> [@GorillaMan](#): > > Newton-meter is a collective term for torque-wrences, scales, and anything else that measures force. Although I concede that on Googling, it appears to mainly be used in Britain I didn’t know the term was used that way, but technically, it’s wrong, except for torque wrenches. The newton is a unit of force - newton-meters are force times distance, which can be either torque or energy. An “energy” newton-meter is also known as a joule. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pronunciation-question-kilometer/272858.md?page=2)