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Pronunciation

How to pronounce “persist”

“persist” is pronounced /pɚˈsɪst/ (puh-SIST) in American English and /pəsɪst/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “sist”.
The sound

Say “persist” in 2 beats

Say it like this

persist

/pɚˈsɪst/

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

2 beats
  1. perpɚ
  2. sistsɪststress
IPA (American)
/pɚˈsɪst/
IPA (British)
/pəsɪst/
Respelling
puh-SIST
Syllables
2 — per-SIST
Stress
Stress the second syllable: per-SIST. “sist” 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

/pɚˈsɪst/

British

/pəsɪst/

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

Meaning

What “persist” means

  1. verb

    continue to exist

    “These stories die hard”

  2. verb

    be persistent, refuse to stop

    “he persisted to call me every night”

  3. verb

    stay behind

    “The smell stayed in the room”

Say it in a sentence

“Rumours persist that the mill will reopen next year.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

5 sounds, in the order you say them
ppɚschwass×2ɪshort itt

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

Questions

“persist”, answered

How do you pronounce “persist”?

“persist” is pronounced /pɚˈsɪst/ (puh-SIST) in American English and /pəsɪst/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “sist”. Build it as per-SIST, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “persist” have?

2: per · sist. The beat lands on the second, “sist”.

Is “persist” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /pɚˈsɪst/ (puh-SIST); British English says /pəsɪst/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “persist” mean?

As a verb: continue to exist For example: “These stories die hard” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “persist”?

Stress the second syllable: per-SIST. “sist” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

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