Pronunciation

How to pronounce “intervene

“intervene” is pronounced /ˌɪntɚˈvin/ (in-tuh-VEEN) in American English and /ɪntəviːn/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “vin”.
The sound

Say “intervene” in 3 beats

Say it like this

intervene

/ˌɪntɚˈvin/

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

3 beats
  1. ɪnɪn
  2. vinvinstress
IPA (American)
/ˌɪntɚˈvin/
IPA (British)
/ɪntəviːn/
Respelling
in-tuh-VEEN
Syllables
3 — ɪn-tɚ-VIN
Stress
Stress the third syllable: ɪn-tɚ-VIN. “vin” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall 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

/ˌɪntɚˈvin/

British

/ɪntəviːn/

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

Meaning

What “intervene” means

  1. verb

    get involved, so as to alter or hinder an action, or through force or threat of force

    Why did the U.S. not intervene earlier in WW II?

  2. verb

    be placed or located between other things or extend between spaces and events

    This interludes intervenes between the two movements

  3. verb

    occur between other event or between certain points of time

    the war intervened between the birth of her two children

Say it in a sentence

A passer-by had to intervene before it turned nasty.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

6 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

intervene”, answered

How do you pronounce “intervene”?

“intervene” is pronounced /ˌɪntɚˈvin/ (in-tuh-VEEN) in American English and /ɪntəviːn/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “vin”. Build it as ɪn-tɚ-VIN, then run the third syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “intervene” have?

3: ɪn · tɚ · vin. The beat lands on the third, “vin”.

Is “intervene” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˌɪntɚˈvin/ (in-tuh-VEEN); British English says /ɪntəviːn/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “intervene” mean?

As a verb: get involved, so as to alter or hinder an action, or through force or threat of force For example: “Why did the U.S. not intervene earlier in WW II?” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “intervene”?

Stress the third syllable: ɪn-tɚ-VIN. “vin” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “intervene” 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.