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Pronunciation

How to pronounce “prison”

“prison” is pronounced /ˈpɹɪzən/ (PRI-zuhn) in American English and /pɹɪzən/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “pris”.
The sound

Say “prison” in 2 beats

Say it like this

prison

/ˈpɹɪzən/

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

2 beats
  1. prispɹɪstress
  2. onzən
IPA (American)
/ˈpɹɪzən/
IPA (British)
/pɹɪzən/
Respelling
PRI-zuhn
Syllables
2 — PRIS-on
Stress
Stress the first syllable: PRIS-on. “pris” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
Part of speech
noun
Difficulty
Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˈpɹɪzən/

British

/pɹɪzən/

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

Meaning

What “prison” means

  1. noun

    a correctional institution where persons are confined while on trial or for punishment

  2. noun

    a prisonlike situation; a place of seeming confinement

Say it in a sentence

“He spent three years in prison before being released.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

6 sounds, in the order you say them
ppɹrɪshort izzəschwann

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

Questions

“prison”, answered

How do you pronounce “prison”?

“prison” is pronounced /ˈpɹɪzən/ (PRI-zuhn) in American English and /pɹɪzən/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “pris”. Build it as PRIS-on, then run the first syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “prison” have?

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

Is “prison” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˈpɹɪzən/ (PRI-zuhn); British English says /pɹɪzən/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “prison” mean?

As a noun: a correctional institution where persons are confined while on trial or for punishment For example: “He spent three years in prison before being released.” It carries 1 other sense as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “prison”?

Stress the first syllable: PRIS-on. “pris” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

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