Editing Kilometre (section)

== Pronunciation==
{{more citations needed section|date=October 2011}}
There are two common pronunciations for the word.<ref>{{Citation |last=Jones |first=Daniel |author-link=Daniel Jones (phonetician) |title=English Pronouncing Dictionary |editor=Peter Roach |editor2=James Hartmann |editor3=Jane Setter |place=Cambridge |publisher=Cambridge University Press |orig-year=1917 |year=2003 |isbn=3-12-539683-2 }}</ref><!--Click the link for why /r/'s are included though they aren't phonemic in BrE, AusE, etc.-->
# {{IPAc-en|ˈ|k|ɪ|l|ə|m|iː|t|ər|,_|-|l|oʊ|-}}
# {{IPAc-en|k|ᵻ|ˈ|l|ɒ|m|ᵻ|t|ər}}

The first pronunciation follows a pattern in English whereby SI units are pronounced with the stress on the first syllable (as in [[kilogram]], [[kilojoule]] and [[kilohertz]]) and the pronunciation of the actual base unit does not change irrespective of the prefix (as in [[centimetre]], [[millimetre]], [[nanometre]] and so on). It is generally preferred by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).{{citation needed|date=February 2015}}

Many other users, particularly in countries where SI (the metric system) is not widely used, use the second pronunciation with stress on the second syllable.<ref>{{Cite news| url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/tv_and_radio/article3586220.ece | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110307091048/http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/tv_and_radio/article3586220.ece | url-status=dead | archive-date=7 March 2011 | work=The Times | location=London | title=Correct pronunciation on the radio | first=Roland | last=White | date=23 March 2008 |access-date=7 May 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/kilometer |title=Kilometer – Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary |publisher=Merriam-Webster |access-date=2014-08-05}}</ref> The second pronunciation follows the stress pattern used for the names of measuring instruments (such as ''micrometer'', ''barometer'', ''thermometer'', ''tachometer,'' and ''speedometer''). The contrast is even more obvious in countries that use the American spelling of the word ''metre''. This pronunciation is irregular because it makes the kilometre the only SI unit with the stress on the second syllable.

After Australia introduced the metric system in 1970, the first pronunciation was declared official by the government's Metric Conversion Board. However, the Australian prime minister at the time, [[Gough Whitlam]], insisted that the second pronunciation was the correct one because of the Greek origins of the two parts of the word.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.cimms.ou.edu/~doswell/peeves/Discussions.html |title=E-mail Discussions on "Peeves" Topics |author=[[Charles A. Doswell III]] |website=[[Cooperative Institute for Mesoscale Meteorological Studies]] - [[University of Oklahoma]] |access-date=2014-08-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081022055855/http://www.cimms.ou.edu/~doswell/peeves/Discussions.html |archive-date=2008-10-22 |url-status=dead}}</ref>