The word "quatercousin" is spelled with a silent "u" before the "a," which can be confusing for some readers. The IPA phonetic transcription for this word is /kwɔːtəkʌzən/. This indicates that the "qu" sound is pronounced as /kw/, while the "a" is pronounced as /ɔː/. The last syllable is pronounced with a short /ʌ/ sound, followed by a /z/ and an /ən/. Despite its tricky spelling, "quatercousin" refers to a cousin who is four times removed from the speaker's grandparents.