Pronunciation

How to pronounce “speech

“speech” is pronounced /spitʃ/ (SPEECH) in American English and /spiːtʃ/ in British English — one syllable.
The sound

Say “speech” in one beat

Say it like this

speech

/spitʃ/

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

1 beat
  1. speechspitʃ
IPA (American)
/spitʃ/
IPA (British)
/spiːtʃ/
Respelling
SPEECH
Syllables
1 — speech
Stress
One syllable, so the whole word carries the beat — say /spitʃ/ in one unbroken piece rather than clipping the vowel.
Part of speech
noun
Difficulty
Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/spitʃ/

British

/spiːtʃ/

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

Meaning

What “speech” means

  1. noun

    the act of delivering a formal spoken communication to an audience

    he listened to an address on minor Roman poets

  2. noun

    (language) communication by word of mouth

    his speech was garbled

  3. noun

    something spoken

    he could hear them uttering merry speeches

Say it in a sentence

She practiced her speech in front of the mirror all week.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

4 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

speech”, answered

How do you pronounce “speech”?

“speech” is pronounced /spitʃ/ (SPEECH) in American English and /spiːtʃ/ in British English — one syllable. It is one unbroken piece — /spitʃ/ — with no pause anywhere inside it.

How many syllables does “speech” have?

One, despite the 2 vowel letters in the spelling. The whole word is /spitʃ/ — a single beat.

Is “speech” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /spitʃ/ (SPEECH); British English says /spiːtʃ/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “speech” mean?

As a noun: the act of delivering a formal spoken communication to an audience For example: “he listened to an address on minor Roman poets” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “speech”?

One syllable, so the whole word carries the beat — say /spitʃ/ in one unbroken piece rather than clipping the vowel.

Practise this word

Now say “speech” 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.