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Automobile

Transport
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

A self-propelled road vehicle, usually a car. In poetry, it can suggest speed, modernity, escape, or isolation.

Detailed Definition
An automobile is a motor vehicle designed for travel on roads, carrying passengers through cities, suburbs, and open country. Poets may use it as an emblem of twentieth-century freedom or alienation: headlights cutting rain, tires humming over asphalt, or a lone driver enclosed in glass and metal. Its mechanical motion can contrast with natural landscapes, while a stalled or abandoned automobile may evoke decay, departure, or interrupted ambition.
Example
Example in poetry:
“The automobile coughed awake beneath the elm,” gives the car a human, weary presence; In a road poem, an automobile can symbolize escape from a small town; “Rain stippled the automobile’s hood like impatient fingers,” uses sensory imagery; A speaker watching an abandoned automobile rust in a field can explore memory and decay
Additional Notes
Often symbolizes private freedom or alienation; details such as headlights, traffic, or a stalled engine can shape mood. Related images include roads, garages, and motels.
Also Known As
Car Motorcar Auto
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