k/k/
Raise the back of your tongue to touch the soft palate (velum). Stop the air, then release.
How to pronounce crisis in American English
KRAHY·suhs
Start here
Americans pronounce crisis as KRAHY-suhs (/ˈkraɪsəs/). Stress falls on the first syllable — keep everything else short and quick. You'll hear it in sentences like "The crisis required a vital and wise reply" or "The humanitarian crisis has displaced millions of refugees" — more examples below.
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Sound by sound
Every sound in "crisis".
2 syllables, 6 sounds. Tap a syllable to jump to its row, then explore each sound's mouth shape and how it's made.
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.
ahy/aɪ/
Start with your jaw open wide and your tongue resting low and flat. Glide the front of your tongue up toward the roof of your mouth as your jaw closes halfway.
s/s/
Place your tongue tip near the roof of your mouth behind your top teeth. Push air through the narrow gap. No voicing.
uh/ʌ/
Relax your lips, jaw, and tongue completely. Drop your jaw slightly and keep the tongue neutral.
s/s/
Place your tongue tip near the roof of your mouth behind your top teeth. Push air through the narrow gap. No voicing.
In real conversation
Hear "crisis" in the wild.
Click any sentence to see the full breakdown — every link, every reduction, every flap-T.
"Financial regulations were tightened following the banking crisis."
fuh·NAN·shuhl rehg·yuh·LAY·shuhnz wer TAHY·duhnd FAH·loh·uhng dhuh BANG·kuhng KRAHY·suhs
"Global supply chains were disrupted by the unexpected crisis."
GLOH·buhl suh·PLAHY CHAYNZ wer duhs·RUHP·tuhd bahy dhee uh·nuhk·SPEHK·tuhd KRAHY·suhs
"The crisis required a vital and wise reply."
dhuh KRAHY·suhs ruh·KWAHY·erd uh VAHY·duhl and WAHYZ ruh·PLAHY
"The president addressed the nation regarding the economic crisis."
dhuh PREH·zuh·duhnt uh·DREHST dhuh NAY·shuhn ruh·GAR·duhng dhee eh·kuh·NAH·muhk KRAHY·suhs
"The foreign minister addressed the assembly about the crisis."
dhuh FOR·uhn MIH·nuh·ster uh·DREHST dhee uh·SEHM·blee uh·BOWT dhuh KRAHY·suhs
"The humanitarian crisis has displaced millions of refugees."
dhuh hyoo·ma·nuh·TAIR·ee·uhn KRAHY·suhs huhz dih·SPLAYST MIHL·yuhnz uhv REH·fyoo·JEEZ
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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 first syllable, not the others. Stretch KRAHY — keep everything else short and quick.
krahy·SUHS→KRAHY·suhs
02
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.
KRAHY·SUHS→KRAHY·suhs
Questions
Questions people ask about this.
How is "crisis" stressed in American English?
Stress falls on the first syllable — say "KRAHY" with a longer, fuller vowel and keep every other syllable short and quick. The respell "KRAHY-suhs" marks the stressed syllable in capitals so the rhythm is easy to read at a glance.
Why does the second syllable in "crisis" 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 "KRAHY-suhs" shows the reduced form so you can hear the casual rhythm directly.
Is the American pronunciation of "crisis" 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 "KRAHY-suhs" reflects the casual American form; British dictionaries typically print a citation form with crisper consonants and different vowel choices.
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