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Pronunciation

How to pronounce “survive”

“survive” is pronounced /sɚˈvaɪv/ (suh-VYV) in American English and /səvaɪv/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “vaɪv”.
The sound

Say “survive” in 2 beats

Say it like this

survive

/sɚˈvaɪv/

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

2 beats
  1. sɚsɚ
  2. vaɪvvaɪvstress
IPA (American)
/sɚˈvaɪv/
IPA (British)
/səvaɪv/
Respelling
suh-VYV
Syllables
2 — sɚ-VAꞮV
Stress
Stress the second syllable: sɚ-VAꞮV. “vaɪv” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.
Part of speech
verb
Difficulty
Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/sɚˈvaɪv/

British

/səvaɪv/

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

Meaning

What “survive” means

  1. verb

    continue to live through hardship or adversity

    “We went without water and food for 3 days”

  2. verb

    continue in existence after (an adversity, etc.)

    “He survived the cancer against all odds”

  3. verb

    support oneself

    “he could barely exist on such a low wage”

Say it in a sentence

“The apple trees survive on almost no attention at all.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

4 sounds, in the order you say them
ssɚschwavv×2aɪlong i

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

Questions

“survive”, answered

How do you pronounce “survive”?

“survive” is pronounced /sɚˈvaɪv/ (suh-VYV) in American English and /səvaɪv/ in British English — 2 syllables, stressed on “vaɪv”. Build it as sɚ-VAꞮV, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “survive” have?

2: sɚ · vaɪv. The beat lands on the second, “vaɪv”.

Is “survive” said differently in British English?

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

What does “survive” mean?

As a verb: continue to live through hardship or adversity For example: “We went without water and food for 3 days” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “survive”?

Stress the second syllable: sɚ-VAꞮV. “vaɪv” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllable falls away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “survive” and see every sound

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