b/b/
Press your lips together, add vocal cord vibration, then release.
How to pronounce bankruptcy in American English
BANG·kruhp·see
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Americans pronounce bankruptcy as BANG-kruhp-see (/ˈbæŋkrəptsi/). In "bankruptcy", the "a" vowel before NG shifts toward "ay" — sounding like "ay" as in "say", a distinctly American pattern — most prominent in Midwestern American English; other GenAm speakers may use a less raised vowel. This is called the Cat-Vowel Before NG, and it's one of the defining features of casual American English. It comes out as BANG·kruhp·see. Stress falls on the first syllable — keep everything else short and quick. You'll hear it in sentences like "He filed for bankruptcy after his business failed completely".
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Sound by sound
Every sound in "bankruptcy".
3 syllables, 9 sounds. Tap a syllable to jump to its row, then explore each sound's mouth shape and how it's made.
a/æ/
Nasalized-ngBefore NG, the vowel changes to sound more like the AY (/eɪ/) diphthong. The middle part of the tongue lifts toward the roof of the mouth, then the front part arches up.
ng/ŋ/
Lift the back of your tongue to the soft palate. Lower your soft palate to let air flow through your nose.
k/k/
Raise the back of your tongue to touch the soft palate (velum). Stop the air, then release.
r/r/
Curl or bunch your tongue without letting the tip touch the roof of your mouth. Brace the sides of your tongue against your upper back teeth, and round your lips slightly.
uh/ʌ/
Relax your lips, jaw, and tongue completely. Drop your jaw slightly and keep the tongue neutral.
p/p/
Press your lips together to stop the air, then release. No vocal cord vibration.
s/s/
Place your tongue tip near the roof of your mouth behind your top teeth. Push air through the narrow gap. No voicing.
ee/i/
Pull the corners of your lips back slightly. Arch the middle-front of your tongue high toward the roof of the mouth.
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Watch out
Common pronunciation mistakes in American English.
The textbook way isn't wrong — it's just not how anyone actually says it.
01
Pronouncing the vowel before NG too pure.
In "bankruptcy", the "a" vowel before NG shifts toward "ay" — sounding like "ay" as in "say", a distinctly American pattern — most prominent in Midwestern American English; other GenAm speakers may use a less raised vowel. Vowel changes to sound like /eɪ/ ("ay" as in "say").
BANG-kruhp-see→BANG·kruhp·see
02
Stressing the wrong syllable.
Stress falls on the first syllable, not the others. Stretch BANG — keep everything else short and quick.
bang·KRUHP·SEE→BANG·kruhp·see
03
Pronouncing the unstressed syllable too fully.
Don't pronounce the first syllable too fully. The unstressed syllable reduces to a schwa — the lazy "uh" sound — in casual speech.
BANG·KRUHP·see→BANG·kruhp·see
Questions
Questions people ask about this.
How is "bankruptcy" stressed in American English?
Stress falls on the first syllable — say "BANG" with a longer, fuller vowel and keep every other syllable short and quick. The respell "BANG-kruhp-see" marks the stressed syllable in capitals so the rhythm is easy to read at a glance.
Why does the second syllable in "bankruptcy" reduce to "uh"?
Unstressed syllables in American English collapse toward a schwa — a lazy, neutral "uh" sound. The full vowel is what textbooks teach, but in actual American speech every unstressed vowel reduces. The respell "BANG-kruhp-see" shows the reduced form so you can hear the casual rhythm directly.
Is the American pronunciation of "bankruptcy" different from British English?
American English uses different vowel shapes, a relaxed retroflex R, and connected-speech tricks like flap-T and glottal-stop T that British Received Pronunciation generally avoids. The respell "BANG-kruhp-see" reflects the casual American form; British dictionaries typically print a citation form with crisper consonants and different vowel choices.
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