Pronunciation

How to pronounce “access

“access” is pronounced /ˈækˌsɛs/ (AK-ses) in American English and /aksɛs/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “ac”.
The sound

Say “access” in 2 beats

Say it like this

access

/ˈækˌsɛs/

The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /aksɛs/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.

2 beats
  1. acækstress
  2. cesssɛs
IPA (American)
/ˈækˌsɛs/
IPA (British)
/aksɛs/
Respelling
AK-ses
Syllables
2 — AC-cess
Stress
Stress the first syllable: AC-cess. “ac” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
Part of speech
noun, verb
Difficulty
Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˈækˌsɛs/

British

/aksɛs/

No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.

Meaning

What “access” means

  1. noun

    the right to enter

  2. noun

    the right to obtain or make use of or take advantage of something (as services or membership)

  3. noun

    a way of entering or leaving

    he took a wrong turn on the access to the bridge

Say it in a sentence

Only staff have access to the storeroom after six o'clock.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

4 sounds, in the order you say them

Each sound has its own page: where the tongue goes, what it is usually confused with, and words to drill it on.

Questions

access”, answered

How do you pronounce “access”?

“access” is pronounced /ˈækˌsɛs/ (AK-ses) in American English and /aksɛs/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “ac”. Build it as AC-cess, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “access” have?

2: ac · cess. The beat lands on the first, “ac”.

Is “access” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈækˌsɛs/ (AK-ses); British English says /aksɛs/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “access” mean?

As a noun: the right to enter For example: “Only staff have access to the storeroom after six o'clock.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “access”?

Stress the first syllable: AC-cess. “ac” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “access” and see every sound

Record it once and sayit lines your audio up against the target sound by sound — what landed, what slipped, and what it sounded like instead.