How many syllables in “butterfly”?
“butterfly” has 3 syllables: but·ter·fly
IPA
/ˈbʌt.ɚ.ˌflaɪ/
Stress
BUT-ter-fly (pattern 1-0-2)
Division
but·ter·fly
Pronunciation
| Say it like | IPA | Syllables | Count | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BUT-ter-fly | /ˈbʌt.ɚ.ˌflaɪ/ | b ah t · er · f l ay | 3 | CMU dictionary |
Syllables are shown in ARPAbet (the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary's phoneme alphabet). Respellings put the stressed syllable in capitals.
Syllables vs. morphemes
Syllables (3)
but·ter·fly
Morphemes (2)
butter + fly
The syllable breaks of butterfly (but·ter·fly) line up with its morphemes (butter + fly): every morpheme boundary is also a syllable boundary, so the word divides the same way for a syllable count and for a morphology exercise.
Count syllables in your own text
Paste a line or a whole poem: syllables, stress, IPA and meter, free and in your browser.
Open the syllable counter →Pronunciations from the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. Hyphenation from the hyph_en_US patterns.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many syllables are in "butterfly"?
"butterfly" has three syllables: but·ter·fly.
How do you divide "butterfly" into syllables?
but·ter·fly. The syllable breaks of butterfly (but·ter·fly) line up with its morphemes (butter + fly): every morpheme boundary is also a syllable boundary, so the word divides the same way for a syllable count and for a morphology exercise.
Is this syllable counter free?
Yes. The Fixie syllable counter is free, needs no signup, and runs in your browser; paste any text to count syllables, see stress and IPA.