Happy Summer Solstice!

In the word solstice, the first syllable SOL

is pronounced like

soul

or

sole

The final L sound is what is sometimes called a 'syllabic L'

The syllabic L sounds like this: /əl/

It is formed by gliding from the schwa sound /ə/ to /l/

Practice saying the whole word slowly, like this:

'so əl · stəs

Etymological Tidbit

The word solstice comes from the Latin words for sun (sol) and to stand (sistere), because at the solstices, the Sun's declination appears to "stand still"; that is, the seasonal movement of the Sun's daily path (as seen from Earth) pauses at a northern or southern limit before reversing direction.