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Pronunciation

How to pronounce “essay”

“essay” is pronounced /ɛˈseɪ/ (e-SAY) in American English and /ɛseɪ/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “say”.
The sound

Say “essay” in 2 beats

Say it like this

essay

/ɛˈseɪ/

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

2 beats
  1. esɛ
  2. sayseɪstress
IPA (American)
/ɛˈseɪ/
IPA (British)
/ɛseɪ/
Respelling
e-SAY
Syllables
2 — es-SAY
Stress
Stress the second syllable: es-SAY. “say” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
Part of speech
noun, verb
Difficulty
Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ɛˈseɪ/

British

/ɛseɪ/

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

Meaning

What “essay” means

  1. noun

    an analytic or interpretive literary composition

  2. noun

    a tentative attempt

  3. verb

    make an effort or attempt

    “He tried to shake off his fears”

Say it in a sentence

“The essay had to be under two thousand words.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

3 sounds, in the order you say them
ɛshort esseɪlong a

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

Questions

“essay”, answered

How do you pronounce “essay”?

“essay” is pronounced /ɛˈseɪ/ (e-SAY) in American English and /ɛseɪ/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “say”. Build it as es-SAY, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “essay” have?

2: es · say. The beat lands on the second, “say”.

Is “essay” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ɛˈseɪ/ (e-SAY); British English says /ɛseɪ/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “essay” mean?

As a noun: an analytic or interpretive literary composition For example: “The essay had to be under two thousand words.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “essay”?

Stress the second syllable: es-SAY. “say” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

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