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Pronunciation

How to pronounce “surpass”

“surpass” is pronounced /sɚˈpæs/ (suh-PAS) in American English and /səpas/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “pass”.
The sound

Say “surpass” in 2 beats

Say it like this

surpass

/sɚˈpæs/

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

2 beats
  1. sursɚ
  2. passpæsstress
IPA (American)
/sɚˈpæs/
IPA (British)
/səpas/
Respelling
suh-PAS
Syllables
2 — sur-PASS
Stress
Stress the second syllable: sur-PASS. “pass” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
Part of speech
verb
Difficulty
Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/sɚˈpæs/

British

/səpas/

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

Meaning

What “surpass” means

  1. verb

    distinguish oneself

    “She excelled in math”

  2. verb

    be or do something to a greater degree

    “her performance surpasses that of any other student I know”

  3. verb

    move past

    “A black limousine passed by when she looked out the window”

Say it in a sentence

“Her second attempt did surpass everything she had done before.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

4 sounds, in the order you say them
ss×2ɚschwappæshort a

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

Questions

“surpass”, answered

How do you pronounce “surpass”?

“surpass” is pronounced /sɚˈpæs/ (suh-PAS) in American English and /səpas/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “pass”. Build it as sur-PASS, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “surpass” have?

2: sur · pass. The beat lands on the second, “pass”.

Is “surpass” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /sɚˈpæs/ (suh-PAS); British English says /səpas/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “surpass” mean?

As a verb: distinguish oneself For example: “She excelled in math” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “surpass”?

Stress the second syllable: sur-PASS. “pass” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “surpass” and see every sound

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