How to pronounce speech
Say it like SPEECH. Speech 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 speech. Choose Slow to hear each sound clearly.
- SPEECH
- Main stress
- Lighter stress
- Unstressed
Speech pronunciation, sound by sound
Read the parts left to right, then blend them together without pausing.
- SPEECHSay this part loudest and longest. The vowel is the "ee" in see.
American vs British pronunciation of speech
American and British speakers say speech in essentially the same way: /spitʃ/ in the US and /spiːtʃ/ in the UK.
British respelling: SPEECH.
What does speech mean?
- the act of delivering a formal spoken communication to an audience“he listened to an address on minor Roman poets”
- (language) communication by word of mouth“his speech was garbled”“he uttered harsh language”
- something spoken“he could hear them uttering merry speeches”
Where does speech come from?
From Middle English speche, from Old English spǣċ, sprǣċ (“speech, discourse, language”), from Proto-West Germanic *sprāku (“speech, language”), from Proto-Indo-European *spereg-, *spreg- (“to make a sound”).
Similar and opposite words
Similar meaning
Words that rhyme with speech
Practicing rhymes is a quick way to lock in the vowel sound of speech.
Questions about saying speech
How do you pronounce speech?
Say SPEECH. The American pronunciation is /spitʃ/. In British English it is /spiːtʃ/. Press play above to hear it at normal speed or slowly.
How many syllables are in speech?
Speech is a single syllable, so the whole word carries the stress. Broken into parts: SPEECH.
Do Americans and Brits say speech the same way?
Almost exactly. The American form is /spitʃ/ and the British form is /spiːtʃ/, so you can use either pronunciation with any listener.