Pronunciation

How to pronounce “dissertation

“dissertation” is pronounced /ˌdɪsɚˈteɪʃən/ (di-suh-TAY-shuhn) in American English and /dɪsəteɪʃən/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “tat”.
The sound

Say “dissertation” in 4 beats

Say it like this

dissertation

/ˌdɪsɚˈteɪʃən/

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

4 beats
  1. dis
  2. ser
  3. tatteɪstress
  4. ionʃən
IPA (American)
/ˌdɪsɚˈteɪʃən/
IPA (British)
/dɪsəteɪʃən/
Respelling
di-suh-TAY-shuhn
Syllables
4 — dis-ser-TAT-ion
Stress
Stress the third syllable: dis-ser-TAT-ion. “tat” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
noun
Difficulty
Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˌdɪsɚˈteɪʃən/

British

/dɪsəteɪʃən/

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

Meaning

What “dissertation” means

  1. noun

    a treatise advancing a new point of view resulting from research; usually a requirement for an advanced academic degree

Say it in a sentence

Her dissertation compared two ways of teaching reading.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

8 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

dissertation”, answered

How do you pronounce “dissertation”?

“dissertation” is pronounced /ˌdɪsɚˈteɪʃən/ (di-suh-TAY-shuhn) in American English and /dɪsəteɪʃən/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “tat”. Build it as dis-ser-TAT-ion, then run the third syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “dissertation” have?

4: dis · ser · tat · ion. The beat lands on the third, “tat”.

Is “dissertation” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˌdɪsɚˈteɪʃən/ (di-suh-TAY-shuhn); British English says /dɪsəteɪʃən/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “dissertation” mean?

As a noun: a treatise advancing a new point of view resulting from research; usually a requirement for an advanced academic degree For example: “Her dissertation compared two ways of teaching reading.”

Where is the stress in “dissertation”?

Stress the third syllable: dis-ser-TAT-ion. “tat” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “dissertation” and see every sound

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