Pronunciation

How to pronounce “portion

“portion” is pronounced /ˈpɔɹʃən/ (PAWR-shuhn) in American English and /pɔːʃən/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “por”.
The sound

Say “portion” in 2 beats

Say it like this

portion

/ˈpɔɹʃən/

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

2 beats
  1. porpɔɹstress
  2. tionʃən
IPA (American)
/ˈpɔɹʃən/
IPA (British)
/pɔːʃən/
Respelling
PAWR-shuhn
Syllables
2 — POR-tion
Stress
Stress the first syllable: POR-tion. “por” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
Part of speech
noun, verb
Difficulty
Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˈpɔɹʃən/

British

/pɔːʃən/

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

Meaning

What “portion” means

  1. noun

    something determined in relation to something that includes it

    he wanted to feel a part of something bigger than himself

  2. noun

    something less than the whole of a human artifact

    the rear part of the house

  3. noun

    the allotment of some amount by dividing something

    death gets more than its share of attention from theologians

Say it in a sentence

A small portion of the garden is given to herbs.
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

portion”, answered

How do you pronounce “portion”?

“portion” is pronounced /ˈpɔɹʃən/ (PAWR-shuhn) in American English and /pɔːʃən/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “por”. Build it as POR-tion, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “portion” have?

2: por · tion. The beat lands on the first, “por”.

Is “portion” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈpɔɹʃən/ (PAWR-shuhn); British English says /pɔːʃən/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “portion” mean?

As a noun: something determined in relation to something that includes it For example: “he wanted to feel a part of something bigger than himself” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “portion”?

Stress the first syllable: POR-tion. “por” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “portion” 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.