s/s/
Place your tongue tip near the roof of your mouth behind your top teeth. Push air through the narrow gap. No voicing.
How to pronounce species in American English
SPEE·sheez
Start here
Americans pronounce species as SPEE-sheez (/ˈspiʃiz/). Stress falls on the first syllable — keep everything else short and quick. You'll hear it in sentences like "She advocates for the protection of endangered species" or "Endangered species need protection from poachers to survive" — more examples below.
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Sound by sound
Every sound in "species".
2 syllables, 6 sounds. Tap a syllable to jump to its row, then explore each sound's mouth shape and how it's made.
p/p/
Press your lips together to stop the air, then release. No vocal cord vibration.
ee/i/
Pull the corners of your lips back slightly. Arch the middle-front of your tongue high toward the roof of the mouth.
sh/ʃ/
Flare your lips and lift the mid-front tongue close to the roof of your mouth. Blow air through without 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.
z/z/
Same position as S, but add vocal cord vibration. Feel the buzz.
In real conversation
Hear "species" in the wild.
Click any sentence to see the full breakdown — every link, every reduction, every flap-T.
"Deforestation creates habitat loss for potential thousands of species."
dee·for·uh·STAY·shuhn kree·AYTS HA·buh·tat LAHS fer puh·TEHN·shuhl THOW·zuhndz uhv SPEE·sheez
"Endangered species need protection from poachers to survive."
uhn·DAYN·jerd SPEE·sheez NEED pruh·TEHK·shuhn fruhm POH·cherz tuh ser·VAHYV
"He enjoys birdwatching and keeping a log of the species he sees."
hee uhn·JOYZ BURD·wah·chuhng and KEE·puhng uh LAHG uhv dhuh SPEE·sheez hee SEEZ
"She visited the aquarium to learn about different fish species."
shee VIH·zuh·tuhd dhee uh·KWAIR·ee·uhm tuh LURN uh·BOWT DIH·fer·uhnt FIHSH SPEE·sheez
"The protected area has helped endangered species populations recover."
dhuh pruh·TEHK·tuhd AIR·ee·uh huhz HEHLPT uhn·DAYN·jerd SPEE·sheez pahp·yuh·LAY·shuhnz ruh·KUH·ver
"The scientist discovered a new species of frog in the rainforest."
dhuh SAHY·uhn·tuhst duh·SKUH·verd uh noo SPEE·sheez uhv FRAHG ihn dhuh RAYN·for·uhst
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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 SPEE — keep everything else short and quick.
spee·SHEEZ→SPEE·sheez
Questions
Questions people ask about this.
How is "species" stressed in American English?
Stress falls on the first syllable — say "SPEE" with a longer, fuller vowel and keep every other syllable short and quick. The respell "SPEE-sheez" marks the stressed syllable in capitals so the rhythm is easy to read at a glance.
Is the American pronunciation of "species" 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 "SPEE-sheez" reflects the casual American form; British dictionaries typically print a citation form with crisper consonants and different vowel choices.
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