Pronunciation

How to pronounce “occur

“occur” is pronounced /əˈkɝ/ (uh-KUR) in American English and /əkɜː/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “cur”.
The sound

Say “occur” in 2 beats

Say it like this

occur

/əˈkɝ/

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

2 beats
  1. ocə
  2. curstress
IPA (American)
/əˈkɝ/
IPA (British)
/əkɜː/
Respelling
uh-KUR
Syllables
2 — oc-CUR
Stress
Stress the second syllable: oc-CUR. “cur” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls 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

/əˈkɝ/

British

/əkɜː/

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

Meaning

What “occur” means

  1. verb

    come to pass

    What is happening?

  2. verb

    come to one's mind; suggest itself

    It occurred to me that we should hire another secretary

  3. verb

    to be found to exist

    sexism occurs in many workplaces

Say it in a sentence

Frost can occur here as late as the middle of May.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

3 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

occur”, answered

How do you pronounce “occur”?

“occur” is pronounced /əˈkɝ/ (uh-KUR) in American English and /əkɜː/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “cur”. Build it as oc-CUR, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “occur” have?

2: oc · cur. The beat lands on the second, “cur”.

Is “occur” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /əˈkɝ/ (uh-KUR); British English says /əkɜː/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “occur” mean?

As a verb: come to pass For example: “What is happening?” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “occur”?

Stress the second syllable: oc-CUR. “cur” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “occur” 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.