Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

sci-fi

/saɪ.faɪ/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.77 in modern English

Syllables: sci--fi
IPA: /saɪ.faɪ/

10

Scrabble Score

5

Letters

3

Syllables

4

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A genre of movies featuring mostly fictional scientific scenes.

Uncountable

noun

Syllabic abbreviation of science fiction.

Colloquial; Uncountable

adj

Of or pertaining to such a genre.

Example Sentences

"I'm the kind of sci-fi addict who can stand any amount of improbability, bad acting, uninterested direction and poverty-row budgets, but can't take The Mind of Mr. Soames."
"Several sci-fi films and novels have very accurately predicted and paved the way for many of the pieces of technology we enjoy today."

Etymology

Clipping of science fiction.

Regional Pronunciation

British English: /saɪ.faɪ/

Usage

Inflected Forms

sci fi (alternative) scifi (alternative)

Derived Forms

skiffy

Synonyms

science fiction. science-fiction sci-fix sci-fic SF S.F. S. F.

Rhymes With

by my why high try guy buy july drive-by die eye hi

Questions

How do you pronounce sci-fi?: The recorded pronunciation is /saɪ.faɪ/.
What does sci-fi mean?: A genre of movies featuring mostly fictional scientific scenes.
Where does sci-fi come from?: Clipping of science fiction.

How to pronounce sci-fi

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “sci-fi”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/saɪ.faɪ/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “sci-fi”.
Repeat and practice — Say “sci-fi” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.