k/k/
Raise the back of your tongue to touch the soft palate (velum). Stop the air, then release.
How to pronounce cascades in American English
ka·SKAYDZ
Start here
Americans pronounce cascades as ka-SKAYDZ (/kæˈskeɪdz/). Stress falls on the second syllable — keep everything else short and quick. You'll hear it in sentences like "The waterfall cascades down the side of the cliff".
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Sound by sound
Every sound in "cascades".
2 syllables, 7 sounds. Tap a syllable to jump to its row, then explore each sound's mouth shape and how it's made.
a/æ/
Drop the jaw noticeably. Keep the body of the tongue low and forward, and don't let the back of the tongue raise toward the soft palate. Pull the lip corners back slightly, almost a starting smile.
s/s/
Place your tongue tip near the roof of your mouth behind your top teeth. Push air through the narrow gap. No voicing.
k/k/
Raise the back of your tongue to touch the soft palate (velum). Stop the air, then release.
ay/eɪ/
Start with your jaw slightly open and the front of your tongue forward and slightly up. Glide upward, your jaw closes a little more and your tongue arches higher toward the roof of the mouth.
d/d/
Touch the tip of your tongue to the roof of your mouth just behind your teeth. Add vocal cord vibration as you release.
z/z/
Same position as S, but add vocal cord vibration. Feel the buzz.
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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
Stressing the wrong syllable.
Stress falls on the second syllable, not the others. Stretch SKAYDZ — keep everything else short and quick.
KA·skaydz→ka·SKAYDZ
Questions
Questions people ask about this.
How is "cascades" stressed in American English?
Stress falls on the second syllable — say "SKAYDZ" with a longer, fuller vowel and keep every other syllable short and quick. The respell "ka-SKAYDZ" marks the stressed syllable in capitals so the rhythm is easy to read at a glance.
Is the American pronunciation of "cascades" 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 "ka-SKAYDZ" reflects the casual American form; British dictionaries typically print a citation form with crisper consonants and different vowel choices.
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