Pronunciation

How to pronounce “insurance

“insurance” is pronounced /ˌɪnˈʃʊɹəns/ (in-SHUU-ruhns) in American English and /ɪnʃʊəɹəns/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “ʃʊ”.
The sound

Say “insurance” in 3 beats

Say it like this

insurance

/ˌɪnˈʃʊɹəns/

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

3 beats
  1. ɪnɪn
  2. ʃʊʃʊstress
  3. ɹənsɹəns
IPA (American)
/ˌɪnˈʃʊɹəns/
IPA (British)
/ɪnʃʊəɹəns/
Respelling
in-SHUU-ruhns
Syllables
3 — ɪn-ƩƱ-ɹəns
Stress
Stress the second syllable: ɪn-ƩƱ-ɹəns. “ʃʊ” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
noun
Difficulty
Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˌɪnˈʃʊɹəns/

British

/ɪnʃʊəɹəns/

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

Meaning

What “insurance” means

  1. noun

    promise of reimbursement in the case of loss; paid to people or companies so concerned about hazards that they have made prepayments to an insurance company

  2. noun

    written contract or certificate of insurance

    you should have read the small print on your policy

  3. noun

    protection against future loss

Say it in a sentence

They bought travel insurance before the long road trip.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

7 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

insurance”, answered

How do you pronounce “insurance”?

“insurance” is pronounced /ˌɪnˈʃʊɹəns/ (in-SHUU-ruhns) in American English and /ɪnʃʊəɹəns/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “ʃʊ”. Build it as ɪn-ƩƱ-ɹəns, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “insurance” have?

3: ɪn · ʃʊ · ɹəns. The beat lands on the second, “ʃʊ”.

Is “insurance” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˌɪnˈʃʊɹəns/ (in-SHUU-ruhns); British English says /ɪnʃʊəɹəns/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “insurance” mean?

As a noun: promise of reimbursement in the case of loss; paid to people or companies so concerned about hazards that they have made prepayments to an insurance company For example: “They bought travel insurance before the long road trip.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “insurance”?

Stress the second syllable: ɪn-ƩƱ-ɹəns. “ʃʊ” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “insurance” 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.