How to pronounce kick
Say it like KIK. Kick is a single syllable, so the whole word carries the stress.
Click the play button next to American or British to hear how to pronounce kick. Choose Slow to hear each sound clearly.
- KIK
- Main stress
- Lighter stress
- Unstressed
Kick pronunciation, sound by sound
Read the parts left to right, then blend them together without pausing.
- KIKSay this part loudest and longest. The vowel is the "i" in sit.
American vs British pronunciation of kick
American and British speakers say kick in essentially the same way: /kɪk/ in the US and /kɪk/ in the UK.
British respelling: KIK.
What does kick mean?
- drive or propel with the foot
- thrash about or strike out with the feet
- strike with the foot“The boy kicked the dog”“Kick the door down”
- the act of delivering a blow with the foot“he gave the ball a powerful kick”“the team's kicking was excellent”
- the swift release of a store of affective force“they got a great bang out of it”“what a boot!”
- the backward jerk of a gun when it is fired
Where does kick come from?
From Middle English kyken (“to strike out with the foot”), from Old Norse kikna (“to sink at the knees”) and keikja (“to bend backwards”) (compare Old Norse keikr (“bent backwards, the belly jutting forward”)), from Proto-Germanic *kaikaz (
Words that rhyme with kick
Practicing rhymes is a quick way to lock in the vowel sound of kick.
Questions about saying kick
How do you pronounce kick?
Say KIK. The American pronunciation is /kɪk/. In British English it is /kɪk/. Press play above to hear it at normal speed or slowly.
How many syllables are in kick?
Kick is a single syllable, so the whole word carries the stress. Broken into parts: KIK.
Do Americans and Brits say kick the same way?
Almost exactly. The American form is /kɪk/ and the British form is /kɪk/, so you can use either pronunciation with any listener.