Pronunciation

How to pronounce “profession

“profession” is pronounced /pɹəˈfɛʃən/ (pruh-FE-shuhn) in American English and /pɹəfɛʃən/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “es”.
The sound

Say “profession” in 3 beats

Say it like this

profession

/pɹəˈfɛʃən/

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

3 beats
  1. profpɹə
  2. esstress
  3. sionʃən
IPA (American)
/pɹəˈfɛʃən/
IPA (British)
/pɹəfɛʃən/
Respelling
pruh-FE-shuhn
Syllables
3 — prof-ES-sion
Stress
Stress the second syllable: prof-ES-sion. “es” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
noun
Difficulty
Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/pɹəˈfɛʃən/

British

/pɹəfɛʃən/

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

Meaning

What “profession” means

  1. noun

    the body of people in a learned occupation

    the news spread rapidly through the medical profession

  2. noun

    an occupation requiring special education (especially in the liberal arts or sciences)

  3. noun

    an open avowal (true or false) of some belief or opinion

    a profession of disagreement

Say it in a sentence

Teaching is a profession that asks a great deal of you.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

7 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

profession”, answered

How do you pronounce “profession”?

“profession” is pronounced /pɹəˈfɛʃən/ (pruh-FE-shuhn) in American English and /pɹəfɛʃən/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “es”. Build it as prof-ES-sion, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “profession” have?

3: prof · es · sion. The beat lands on the second, “es”.

Is “profession” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /pɹəˈfɛʃən/ (pruh-FE-shuhn); British English says /pɹəfɛʃən/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “profession” mean?

As a noun: the body of people in a learned occupation For example: “the news spread rapidly through the medical profession” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “profession”?

Stress the second syllable: prof-ES-sion. “es” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “profession” and see every sound

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