Pronunciation

How to pronounce “leverage

“leverage” is pronounced /ˈlɛvɚɪdʒ/ (LE-vuh-ij) in American English and /liːvəɹɪdʒ/ in British English, and /ˈlɛvɹədʒ/ and /ˈlivɚɪdʒ/ are also accepted — 3 syllables, stressed on “lɛ”.
The sound

Say “leverage” in 3 beats

Say it like this

leverage

/ˈlɛvɚɪdʒ/

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

3 beats
  1. stress
  2. ɪdʒɪdʒ
IPA (American)
/ˈlɛvɚɪdʒ/
IPA (British)
/liːvəɹɪdʒ/
Also accepted
/ˈlɛvɹədʒ/
Also accepted
/ˈlivɚɪdʒ/
Respelling
LE-vuh-ij
Syllables
3 — LƐ-vɚ-ɪdʒ
Stress
Stress the first syllable: LƐ-vɚ-ɪdʒ. “lɛ” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall 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

/ˈlɛvɚɪdʒ/

British

/liːvəɹɪdʒ/

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

Meaning

What “leverage” means

  1. noun

    the mechanical advantage gained by being in a position to use a lever

  2. noun

    strategic advantage; power to act effectively

    relatively small groups can sometimes exert immense political leverage

  3. noun

    investing with borrowed money as a way to amplify potential gains (at the risk of greater losses)

Say it in a sentence

They used the delay as leverage in the final negotiation.
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

leverage”, answered

How do you pronounce “leverage”?

“leverage” is pronounced /ˈlɛvɚɪdʒ/ (LE-vuh-ij) in American English and /liːvəɹɪdʒ/ in British English, and /ˈlɛvɹədʒ/ and /ˈlivɚɪdʒ/ are also accepted — 3 syllables, stressed on “lɛ”. Build it as LƐ-vɚ-ɪdʒ, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “leverage” have?

3: lɛ · vɚ · ɪdʒ. The beat lands on the first, “lɛ”.

Is “leverage” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈlɛvɚɪdʒ/ (LE-vuh-ij); British English says /liːvəɹɪdʒ/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “leverage” mean?

As a noun: the mechanical advantage gained by being in a position to use a lever For example: “They used the delay as leverage in the final negotiation.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “leverage”?

Stress the first syllable: LƐ-vɚ-ɪdʒ. “lɛ” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “leverage” 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.