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Pronunciation

How to pronounce “precedent”

“precedent” is pronounced /ˈpɹɛsɪdənt/ (PRE-si-duhnt) in American English and /pɹɛsɪdənt/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “prec”.
The sound

Say “precedent” in 3 beats

Say it like this

precedent

/ˈpɹɛsɪdənt/

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

3 beats
  1. precpɹɛstress
  2. edsɪ
  3. entdənt
IPA (American)
/ˈpɹɛsɪdənt/
IPA (British)
/pɹɛsɪdənt/
Respelling
PRE-si-duhnt
Syllables
3 — PREC-ed-ent
Stress
Stress the first syllable: PREC-ed-ent. “prec” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
noun, adjective
Difficulty
Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˈpɹɛsɪdənt/

British

/pɹɛsɪdənt/

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

Meaning

What “precedent” means

  1. noun

    an example that is used to justify similar occurrences at a later time

  2. noun

    (civil law) a law established by following earlier judicial decisions

  3. noun

    a system of jurisprudence based on judicial precedents rather than statutory laws

    “common law originated in the unwritten laws of England and was later applied in the United States”

Say it in a sentence

“The decision sets a precedent for every similar case.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

9 sounds, in the order you say them
ppɹrɛshort essɪshort iddəschwanntt

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

Questions

“precedent”, answered

How do you pronounce “precedent”?

“precedent” is pronounced /ˈpɹɛsɪdənt/ (PRE-si-duhnt) in American English and /pɹɛsɪdənt/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “prec”. Build it as PREC-ed-ent, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “precedent” have?

3: prec · ed · ent. The beat lands on the first, “prec”.

Is “precedent” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈpɹɛsɪdənt/ (PRE-si-duhnt); British English says /pɹɛsɪdənt/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “precedent” mean?

As a noun: an example that is used to justify similar occurrences at a later time For example: “The decision sets a precedent for every similar case.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “precedent”?

Stress the first syllable: PREC-ed-ent. “prec” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

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