p/p/
Press your lips together to stop the air, then release. No vocal cord vibration.
How to pronounce prerequisite in American English
pree·REH·kwuh·zuht
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Americans pronounce prerequisite as pree-REH-kwuh-zuht (/ˌpriˈrɛkwəzət/). Stress falls on the second syllable — keep everything else short and quick. You'll hear it in sentences like "I need to complete the prerequisite course before advancing".
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Sound by sound
Every sound in "prerequisite".
4 syllables, 11 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.
ee/i/
Pull the corners of your lips back slightly. Arch the middle-front of your tongue high toward the roof of the mouth.
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.
eh/ɛ/
Drop your jaw moderately. Touch the tongue tip behind the bottom front teeth and lift the mid-front part slightly toward the roof.
k/k/
Raise the back of your tongue to touch the soft palate (velum). Stop the air, then release.
w/w/
Round your lips into a tight circle. Lift the back of your tongue toward the soft palate and add voice.
uh/ʌ/
Relax your lips, jaw, and tongue completely. Drop your jaw slightly and keep the tongue neutral.
z/z/
Same position as S, but add vocal cord vibration. Feel the buzz.
uh/ʌ/
Relax your lips, jaw, and tongue completely. Drop your jaw slightly and keep the tongue neutral.
t/t/
Touch the tip or front edge of your tongue to the roof of your mouth just behind your teeth. Keep your jaw relaxed. Stop the air, then release with a puff.
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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
Releasing the final consonant with a puff of air.
In "prerequisite", the "t" is not released — the articulators get into position but hold without the burst of air. Air stops but there's no release burst — the articulators hold position.
prerequisite→PREE·REH·kwuh·zuht
02
Stressing the wrong syllable.
Stress falls on the second syllable, not the others. Stretch REH — keep everything else short and quick.
PREE·reh·KWUH·ZUHT→PREE·REH·kwuh·zuht
03
Pronouncing the unstressed syllable too fully.
Don't pronounce the second syllable too fully. The unstressed syllable reduces to a schwa — the lazy "uh" sound — in casual speech.
pree·REH·KWUH·zuht→PREE·REH·kwuh·zuht
Questions
Questions people ask about this.
How is "prerequisite" stressed in American English?
Stress falls on the second syllable — say "REH" with a longer, fuller vowel and keep every other syllable short and quick. The respell "pree-REH-kwuh-zuht" marks the stressed syllable in capitals so the rhythm is easy to read at a glance.
Why does the third syllable in "prerequisite" 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 "pree-REH-kwuh-zuht" shows the reduced form so you can hear the casual rhythm directly.
Is the American pronunciation of "prerequisite" 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 "pree-REH-kwuh-zuht" reflects the casual American form; British dictionaries typically print a citation form with crisper consonants and different vowel choices.
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