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Pronunciation

How to pronounce “descend”

“descend” is pronounced /dɪˈsɛnd/ (di-SEND) in American English and /dɪsɛnd/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “cend”.
The sound

Say “descend” in 2 beats

Say it like this

descend

/dɪˈsɛnd/

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

2 beats
  1. desdɪ
  2. cendsɛndstress
IPA (American)
/dɪˈsɛnd/
IPA (British)
/dɪsɛnd/
Respelling
di-SEND
Syllables
2 — des-CEND
Stress
Stress the second syllable: des-CEND. “cend” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
Part of speech
verb
Difficulty
Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/dɪˈsɛnd/

British

/dɪsɛnd/

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

Meaning

What “descend” means

  1. verb

    move downward and lower, but not necessarily all the way

    “The temperature is going down”

  2. verb

    come from; be connected by a relationship of blood, for example

    “She was descended from an old Italian noble family”

  3. verb

    do something that one considers to be below one's dignity

Say it in a sentence

“The path begins to descend sharply after the second gate.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

5 sounds, in the order you say them
dd×2ɪshort issɛshort enn

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

Questions

“descend”, answered

How do you pronounce “descend”?

“descend” is pronounced /dɪˈsɛnd/ (di-SEND) in American English and /dɪsɛnd/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “cend”. Build it as des-CEND, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “descend” have?

2: des · cend. The beat lands on the second, “cend”.

Is “descend” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /dɪˈsɛnd/ (di-SEND); British English says /dɪsɛnd/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “descend” mean?

As a verb: move downward and lower, but not necessarily all the way For example: “The temperature is going down” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “descend”?

Stress the second syllable: des-CEND. “cend” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

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