The word "apterism" is a rare word that means the lack of wings in animals such as insects, birds, or bats. Its spelling follows the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) pronunciation of the word, which is /æpˈtɛr.ɪz.əm/. According to the IPA, "ap" is pronounced like "apple" without the "l," "t" sounds like "tea," "e" is like "pet," and "r" is like "radio." "I" is like "sit" and "z" is like "buzz." In short, "apterism" is pronounced as ap-TER-iz-əm.