pronunciation of presentation in british

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How to pronounce presentation in British English ( 1 out of 2809 ):

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Definition:

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• presidential
• preparation

When you begin to speak English, it's essential to get used to the common sounds of the language, and the best way to do this is to check out the phonetics. Below is the UK transcription for 'presentation' :

• Modern IPA: prɛ́zəntɛ́jʃən
• Traditional IPA: ˌprezənˈteɪʃən
• 4 syllables : "PREZ" + "uhn" + "TAY" + "shuhn"

Test your pronunciation on words that have sound similarities with 'presentation' :

• presentations
• precipitation
• precondition
• predestination
• premonition
• present moment
• present tense
• present time
• profanation
• prostitution
• public presentation
• representation
• representations

Tips to improve your English pronunciation:

Here are a few tips that should help you perfect your pronunciation of 'presentation' :.

• Sound it Out : Break down the word 'presentation' into its individual sounds "prez" + "uhn" + "tay" + "shuhn". Say these sounds out loud, exaggerating them at first. Practice until you can consistently produce them clearly.
• Self-Record & Review : Record yourself saying 'presentation' in sentences. Listen back to identify areas for improvement.
• YouTube Pronunciation Guides : Search YouTube for how to pronounce 'presentation' in English .
• Pick Your Accent : Mixing multiple accents can be confusing, so pick one accent ( US or UK ) and stick to it for smoother learning.

Here are a few tips to level up your english pronunciation:

• Mimic the Experts : Immerse yourself in English by listening to audiobooks, podcasts, or movies with subtitles. Try shadowing—listen to a short sentence and repeat it immediately, mimicking the intonation and pronunciation.
• Become Your Own Pronunciation Coach : Record yourself speaking English and listen back. Identify areas for improvement, focusing on clarity, word stress, and intonation.
• Train Your Ear with Minimal Pairs : Practice minimal pairs (words that differ by only one sound, like "ship" vs. "sheep" ) to improve your ability to distinguish between similar sounds.
• Explore Online Resources : Websites & apps offer targeted pronunciation exercises. Explore YouTube channels dedicated to pronunciation, like Rachel's English and English with James for additional pronunciation practice and learning.

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Definition of presentation noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

presentation

• presentation on/about somebody/something The sales manager will give a presentation on the new products.
• Several speakers will be making short presentations .
• The conference will begin with a keynote presentation by a leading industry figure.
• a slide/video/multimedia presentation
• presentation on

Join our community to access the latest language learning and assessment tips from Oxford University Press!

• The trial was adjourned following the presentation of new evidence to the court.
• The presentation of prizes began after the speeches.
• The Mayor will make the presentation (= hand over the gift) herself.
• on presentation of something Members will be admitted on presentation of a membership card.
• a presentation copy (= a free book given by the author or publisher )
• a presentation ceremony/evening
• presentation to
• Improving the product's presentation (= the way it is wrapped, advertised, etc.) should increase sales.
• I admire the clear, logical presentation of her arguments.
• The main emphasis of the training will be on presentation skills .
• I've put my presentation on a memory stick.
• the school's annual presentation evening
• [countable] a performance of a play, etc. in a theatre
• [countable, uncountable] ( medical ) the position in which a baby is lying in the mother’s body just before birth

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Information

British english pronunciations, key to pronunciation.

Pronunciation Model

Some consonants can take the function of the vowel in unstressed syllables. Where necessary, a syllabic marker diacritic is used, hence petal /ˈpɛtl/ but petally /ˈpɛtl̩i/ .

Other symbols

The symbol ˈ at the beginning of a syllable indicates that the syllable is pronounced with primary stress. The symbol ˌ indicates secondary stress. Round brackets ( ) in a transcription indicate that the symbol within is optional.

The Third Edition of the  OED  gives British English pronunciations rooted largely in the model of Received Pronunciation’ (RP) developed by Professor Clive Upton for Oxford Dictionaries since the 1990s. In the following section, we provide an overview and definition of the term ‘RP’, but there are several key points which encapsulate our broad approach to OED British English pronunciation. Perhaps most importantly, RP for  OED  is not concerned with prescribing ‘correctness’, nor is it an intentionally ‘prestigious’ or class-linked variety but, as Upton describes in  The Routledge Dictionary of Pronunciation for Current English  (Upton & Kretzschmar 2017, hereafter  RDP ), ‘that accent which will be most widely acceptable, as well as most intelligible’ to native British English speakers, ‘and to which the speech of very many of them will in turn approximate closely’ (p.xiv). Both in the model and in the range of variant pronunciations provided,  OED  holds to the same principle as Jones (1917, p.viii-ix), who concisely explained:

‘I should like here to state that I have no intention of becoming either a reformer of pronunciation or a judge who decides what pronunciations are “good” and what are “bad”. The proper function of the phonetician is to observe and record accurately, to be, in fact, a kind of living phonograph. It may be as well to add that I am not one of those who believe in the desirability or the feasibility of setting up any one form of pronunciation as a standard for the English-speaking world.’

Upton’s model as described in  RDP  is similarly broad in this respect: ‘the criterion for inclusion being what is heard to be used by educated, non-regionally-marked speakers rather than what is “allowed by a preconceived model.’ With that in mind, for an  OED  user to fully appreciate the variety being described by  OED ’s British English pronunciation model, several points need to be made clear:

• the form of RP being described is still an ‘accent’. It is one variety of English pronunciation, not attempting to span all feasible ‘British’ pronunciations;
• regionally, it remains more prevalent in south-east England, but is found across Great Britain and the use of these forms will not immediately associate the speaker with being from any specific geographical location;
• the inclusion of systematic variants, e.g., both /bɑːθ/ and /baθ/ for  bath , are in part reflective of regional influence on the variety as a whole. ‘RP’ speakers may vary in this respect, and though there are tendencies for RP speakers from certain geographical roots to prefer one variant over another (legitimately covered by an RP which is not exclusively southern-British), a direct correspondence cannot entirely be claimed.

It is also vital to appreciate that transcriptions are phonological or ‘phonemic’, rather than phonetic per se . Although the adopted symbols for each sound attempt to reflect something of their phonetic (articulatory) nature in correspondence with the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), they are inherently phonemes: the minimally  contrastive  speech sound units in a variety, highlighting where the substitution of one sound for another may make a difference to the meaning of the word. Each phoneme has a range of possible allophones (ways of realizing or articulating it) depending on context and/or speaker preference. Consequently, RP transcriptions should not be viewed as representing one individual’s pronunciation. Even though there will be a single sound file attached to each, the sound file demonstrates just one feasible way of realizing the string of phonemes which constitute the transcription.

Defining RP

The term RP is much debated. Many linguists argue that it is outdated, reflecting the prestigious standard of the socially and economically elite; a socially acceptable (i.e., ‘received’) form based on the speech of privately-educated men and their families (the ‘Public School Pronunciation’ described by Jones 1917). In his analysis and deconstruction of RP, Wells (1982) highlighted the variation within it, distinguishing between ‘mainstream RP’, ‘U-RP’ (‘upper crust’ RP), ‘adoptive RP’ (for speakers who did not acquire RP as children) and even ‘quasi-RP’ (varying from adoptive RP in certain allophonic respects), and ‘near-RP’ (not falling with the definition of RP but with few clearly regional features).

In attempts to steer towards a broader and more contemporary conceptualization free of the more objectionable social connotations of ‘RP’, many alternative names have been proposed, including ‘Modern Received Pronunciation’, ‘Standard Southern British English’, ‘BBC English’ (see, e.g., Roach 2004), and ‘Non-Regional Pronunciation’. The last of these is described by Collins & Mees (2013, p.4) as reflecting ‘a more encompassing neutral type of modern British English but one which nevertheless lacks obvious local accent features’, one which allows ‘for the present-day range of variation to be heard from educated middle and younger generation speakers in England who have a pronunciation which cannot be pinned down to a specific area’. Yet another term experiencing some revival is that of ‘General British’ (GB), first proposed by Windsor Lewis (1972) but more recently adopted by Cruttenden (2014) and Carley, Mees & Collins (2018). Maidment’s (2016)  Speech Internet Dictionary  focuses its definition of GB on it being the ‘British accent whose varieties are least associated with any specific areas of Great Britain’ and notes it is the variety which is the ‘most frequent model employed in the teaching of British English as an additional language’. There is a locus of GB speakers in south-east England, but GB can readily be found in smaller numbers across Great Britain, including in Wales and Scotland (Cruttenden 2014), which offers some justification for referring to  OED ’s variety as British rather than English. It is the lack of specifically regional accent features which perhaps best characterizes the variety of British English represented in  OED .

All of these attempts to redefined and re-encapsulate this British variety have merit, but an alternative is to view RP as a more flexible concept which evolves with societal views of standard or regionally neutral forms. Upton’s view of RP followed the lead of A.C. Gimson in looking to a redefined, ‘diluted’ RP which is not so narrow in social and geographical representation (see Upton 2008, which is also a useful summary of much of the  OED  model). His description of vowel qualities reflects the symbols he adopted for  OED , for  The Oxford Dictionary of Pronunciation for Current English  (Upton, Kretzschmar & Konopka 2001, hereafter  CDP ), and its second edition  RDP  (Upton & Kretzschmar 2017).

Except for the final four keywords in the table above, the British vowels correspond to Upton 2008’s vowel qualities. Several choices are worthy of comment here. dress and trap reflect a general lowering of RP’s short front vowels, particularly the use of /a/ rather than /æ/ (as historically and even often contemporarily used, and the symbol chosen for OED ’s U.S. English model). bath words have been addressed briefly above, though Upton further details the increasing centralization and shortening of the /ɑː/ variant as well as the influence of otherwise RP speakers who diverge only in use of bath /a/ . Upton et al.’s justification for including both within CDP is that the variety is not exclusively southern-British, and explains that its inclusion fits the ‘diluted’ RP form being described. In this model, entries that would have traditionally been included in Wells’ cloth set are losing their more traditional /ɔː/ transcriptions as words such as  cross  and  soft  are now typically /ɒ/ for the vast majority of RP speakers. Upton adopts the broader central mid quality of /əː/ for nurse rather than the /ɜː/ common in many RP transcriptions.

For many RP speakers, square is not diphthongal as traditionally regarded but a tense monophthong in the region of the dress vowel. price begins with a quality between centralized front and centralized back, better reflected as /ʌɪ/ than the traditional and still widely-used /aɪ/ . Although retraction of the start quality is noted in mouth words too (as Cruttenden 2014, p.149 explains, ‘at a point between the back and front open positions, more fronted than the position for GB /ɑː/ ’), the extent of retraction from front is not necessarily very significant, and no alternative representation to /aʊ/ has gained widespread attraction. cure , traditionally and still not infrequently /ʊə/ , is joined by monophthongal /ɔː/ , leading to homophones such as  moor  and  more  for some RP speakers.

Supplementing the strong vowels are a range of weak vowel qualities. Weak vowels in RP have traditionally included /ɪ/ , /ə/ , and /ʊ/ . Word-final /ɪ/ in happy is now more often /i/ , though in non-utterance-final flowing speech may be less close and front, a possibility covered by the use of /ɪ/ in such cases (e.g.,  Betty Crocker ). It should not be assumed that the use of /ɪ/ here implies the same as a ‘trad-RP’ happy vowel.  CDP ’s novel approach to vowel qualities falling on the continuum between /ɪ/ and /ə/ and between /ə/ and /ʊ/ has been adopted into  OED , using the symbols /ᵻ/ and /ᵿ/ respectively.

Finally, the above table includes two accepted nasalized vowels in the British English model, /ã/ (as in  gratin ) and /ɒ̃/ (as in  bouillon ). Nasalized vowels are exclusively found within loan words that have not become fully naturalized in English, but where anglicization is evident and speakers are not code-switching. The common RP pronunciation retains a nod to its etymology in the form of a nasalized vowel quality (i.e., airflow directed through oral and nasal cavities simultaneously).

Several consonant features warrant discussion here: ‘non-English’ sounds, glottal stops, /r/ , /j/ , nasal assimilation,  wh , and syllabic consonants. RP consonants are consistently described as a set of 24: six plosives ( /p, t, k, b, d, ɡ/ ), nine fricatives ( /f, v, θ, ð, s, z, ʃ, ʒ, h/ ), two affricates ( /tʃ, dʒ/ ), three nasals ( /m, n, ŋ/ ), and four approximants of which one is lateral ( /r, w, j/ and /l/ ). To these  OED  adds two other consonants which, like nasalized vowels, are routinely accepted in otherwise anglicized loans depending on the root. The voiceless velar fricative /x/ is preserved by many RP speakers in Irish and Scottish Gaelic loans such as  loch/lough , and the voiceless alveolar lateral fricative /ɬ/ may similarly appear in Welsh loans such as  penillion .

British English in  OED  is non-rhotic, so /r/ does not pattern as it does in, say, U.S. English. ‘Linking’ /r/ , i.e. ‘retained historical post-vocalic word-final /r/ occurring before a vowel in the following word’ (Upton 2008, p.249) or more broadly where there is an orthographic ‘r’ not pronounced when the word is pronounced in isolation, is routinely included in  OED . ‘Intrusive’ /r/ , where no ‘underlying’ /r/ or orthographic ‘r’ exists and which does not factor in traditional RP, is nonetheless commonplace and is represented by /(r)/ .

Coalescence of /tj/ , /dj/ , /sj/ , and /zj/ to /tʃ/ , /dʒ/ , /ʃ/ , and /ʒ/ respectively is represented by the inclusion of both forms, e.g.,  traduce  as both /trəˈdjuːs/ and /trəˈdʒuːs/ . Historical /lj/ and /sj/ syllable onsets, such as in  lucid  and  suit , are increasingly without /j/ in RP, and for this reason are either bracketed or presented as separate variants (in part with view to the sound files, which by default record all bracketed segments as articulated; separate entries permit the more common pronunciation to have its own sound file).

Segments that are frequently elided in natural speech are bracketed (e.g.  softness   /ˈsɒf(t)nəs/ ). Representation of assimilation (the tendency for certain consonants to assume features of neighbouring ones in particular contexts) is limited, as these are often predictable by rule (see, e.g., Roach 2009) and to do so would introduce considerable numbers of additional and potentially unnecessary variants. Consequently, despite  light bulb  being frequently [ˈlʌɪp bʌlb] and  handbag  being [ˈhambaɡ] , they remain /ˈlʌɪt bʌlb/ and /ˈhan(d)baɡ/ respectively. One form of assimilation that is explicitly recognized is the assimilation of /n/ to /ŋ/ , in words such as  ungallant . Factors of stress and the salience of any morpheme boundary are evaluated in determining between /n/ only, /ŋ/ only, or both.

The sequence  wh  in words such as  when  and  which  is historically more of a voiceless labial-velar fricative, often transcribed lexicographically as /hw/ . Though this remains a feature of Scottish English and a variable feature of U.S. English, it has dropped rapidly as a feature of RP, and all such  OED  entries are purely /w/ .

Syllabic consonants are extremely common in RP, though generally limited in British English to /n/ , /l/ and /m/ (very rarely /ŋ/ ).  OED  indicates these with a subscript diacritic syllabic marker, not shown if the only logical articulation would be to syllabify such a consonant, hence  little  as /ˈlɪtl/ (the final /l/ must be syllabic).

Prosodically, British English is described with one primary stress in each entry, barring some interjections which may have multiple primary stresses where more than one syllable is equally weighted (and monosyllables, where no stress mark is appropriate). Compared with some of the other  OED  Englishes, the primary stressed syllable often has considerably greater prominence than other syllables and so secondary stresses are less frequently marked (e.g., British English blackbird   /ˈblakbəːd/ is marked with a primary only, compared with U.S. /ˈblækˌbərd/ ). Affixes and combining forms do not have their ‘partial’ pronunciations transcribed, but instead supply a statement of their typical effect on primary stress placement. Adjectives are given their predicative stress pattern, rather than with attributive stress-shift (hence  overpaid  as in  the manager was  /ˌəʊvəˈpeɪd/ , not with the stress on the first syllable as in  the  /ˌəʊvəpeɪd ˈmanᵻdʒə/ ).

Exclusions and/or Audio-Only Features

The use of a glottal stop [ʔ] as an allophone of /t/ between vowels in RP is still not widespread (e.g.  butter  is usually [ˈbʌtə] not [ˈbʌʔə] ). However, the glottal stop is often found as a /t/ allophone before nonsyllabic consonants such as in  Gatwick ,  Rottweiler  (Upton 2008). There are can also be glottally – reinforced /p, t, k, tʃ/ sounds in which a glottal stop supports the closure in the oral cavity, as in  stop ,  wait, hike, much . Glottal closures may also support vowels in some contexts.  OED  does not represent glottal stops in transcriptions, even though they may even be present in the soundfiles, because they are not phonemically distinctive. That is, they never make a difference to the meaning of a word in and of themselves ( [ˈbʌʔə] and [ˈbʌtə] both always mean  butter , just as [ˈneɪtʃə] and [ˈneɪ ʔ tʃə] both mean  nature ), because glottal stops or glottal reinforcement simply contribute to the range of allophones of one of the English phonemes.

British English Pronunciations throughout the OED’s History

Transcribed pronunciations were a feature of James Murray’s original  A New English Dictionary on Historical Principles  ( NED ), known from the 1890s onwards as the first edition of the  OED . To Murray, such transcriptions were an essential inclusion, since they sought to represent ‘the actual living form or forms of a word, that is,  the word itself , of which the current spelling is only a symbolization’ (Vol. I, p.xxiv). Pronunciations have consequently retained a special status in  OED , such that the aim is not to encompass an evolution of pronunciations nor prescribe pronunciations faithful to entries’ etymologies, but to give the current form(s) of each ‘living word’; ‘the  latest fact  in the form-history of the word’.

Pronunciations in  OED  are therefore reflective of the principle that language is first and foremost  spoken . And yet new words may be formed on orthographic bases, leading to challenges such as those Murray describes: ‘On several occasions, the Editor has applied directly to the introducer of a word, to know how he pronounces it, or means it to be pronounced, and has received the answer, that he has never thought of its pronunciation, does not presume to say how it ought to be pronounced, and leave it to people to pronounce as they like, or to the Dictionary to say what is the  right  pronunciation. This, of course, reverses the natural order of language, in which speech comes first, and writing is only its symbolization; for here the first thing is the written symbol addressed to the eye […], while, for ‘pronunciation’, anything passes muster which suffices to recall the written symbol in question, just as any reading of a mathematical formula passes muster, if it enables an auditor to write down the formula again.’ (Vol. I, p.xi)

The transcriptions of  NED  would not be fully recognizable to modern  OED  users. Murray’s attempt to represent all ‘simple’ sounds by one symbol apiece remains very much part of modern segmental phonetics and phonology, but accepted notation has evolved, largely in light of the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) which came along just too late for the beginnings of the dictionary’s publication in 1884 (the first version of the IPA was published in 1888). A key to  NED ’s pronunciations is reproduced  here . The Second Edition of  OED  converted Murray’s notation to a more IPA-based system (a key to these unrevised transcriptions can be found  here ), and the model for the Third Edition is broadened and reformulated as discussed above. Minor refinements continue to be introduced as the Dictionary evolves. Since OED does not set out to trace the pronunciation developments of each entry in great detail but primarily to provide current pronunciations, not every alteration is systematically noted. However, where there is a significant change between editions, editorial notes in the etymology of an entry record the earlier pronunciation.

Carley, P., Mees, I.M. & Collins, B. 2018.  English Phonetics and Pronunciation Practice . London: Routledge.

Collins, B. & Mees, I.M. 2013.  Practical Phonetics and Phonology . 3 rd  edn. Abingdon: Routledge.

Cruttenden, A. 2014.  Gimson’s Pronunciation of English . 8 th  edn. Abingdon: Routledge.

Jones, D. 1917.  English Pronouncing Dictionary . London: Dent.

Jones, D. 2011.  Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary . 18 th  edn. Edited by P. Roach, J. Setter, & J. Esling. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Maidment, J. 2016.  Speech Internet Dictionary  [Online Resource]. Accessed 17/06/20 at http://blogjam.name/sid/  

Roach, P. 2004. British English: Received Pronunciation.  Journal of the International Phonetic Association , 34(2), pp.239-245.

Roach, P. 2009.  English Phonetics and Phonology . 4 th  edn. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Upton, C. & Kretzschmar, W. 2017.  The Routledge Dictionary of Pronunciation for Current English.  Abingdon: Routledge.

Upton, C. 2008. Received Pronunciation.  In:  B. Kortmann & C. Upton, eds.  Varieties of English 1: the British Isles.  Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter, pp.237-252.

Upton, C., Kretzschmar, W. & Konopka, R. 2001.  Oxford Dictionary of Pronunciation for Current English.  Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Wells, J. C. 2008.  Longman Pronouncing Dictionary . 3 rd  edn. Harlow: Pearson Education.

Wells, J.C. 1982.  Accents of English 2: The British Isles . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Windsor Lewis, J. 1972.  A Concise Pronouncing Dictionary of British and American English . London: Oxford University Press.

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presentation - transcription, translation and pronunciation online

Transcription and pronunciation of the word " presentation " in British and American variants. Detailed translation and examples.

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How to correctly pronounce 'presentation'?

I have been confident with my pronunciation of the word presentation , which is /prɛz(ə)nˈteɪʃ(ə)n/ or /ˌprez.ən'teɪ.ʃən/ .

In the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary, the pronunciation of this word is as above in both AmE and BrE. I also listen to the human pronunciation given by the dictionary and decide that it must be /ˌprez.ən'teɪ.ʃən/ . Also, on http://dictionary.cambridge.org , both AmE and BrE versions are pronounced as /prez.ən'teɪ.ʃən/ .

However, on the Oxford Learner's Dictionaries ( http://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com ), this word is pronounced as BrE /ˌpreznˈteɪʃn/ , AmE /ˌpriːzenˈteɪʃn/ with the human pronunciation being clearly different.

So my questions:

• Why do the two 'reliable' dictionaries give different versions of pronunciation of presentation ?

Are both right? Which is more common?

• american-english
• pronunciation
• british-english

• 2 Isn't it simply a case of "British prez-en-tation , American pree-zen-tation "? –  WS2 Commented Jun 8, 2017 at 10:37
• 3 Why are you paying attention to British dictionaries when trying to figure out whether a variant pronunciation in American English pronunciation? All three American dictionaries I checked indicate that both pronunciations are acceptable. –  Peter Shor Commented Jun 8, 2017 at 10:43
• 4 I hear both versions, and while the short E version is likely more common (here in the Midwest US), the long E version is fairly common as well. –  Hot Licks Commented Jun 8, 2017 at 11:24
• 3 What is your question? Can a word such as "presentation" have two different, correct pronunciations–even in the same country? The answer is yes. As a native speaker of American English, I use /prez/ and the /priz/ variant seems odd, but we don't all speak the same. –  Arm the good guys in America Commented Jun 8, 2017 at 11:30
• 1 You guys seem to miss my points. What I mean is learners of English in their non-speaking countries depend on dictionaries to learn English. But Cambridge says only /ˌpreznˈteɪʃn/ for both AmE and BrE while Oxford teaches them that /ˌpreznˈteɪʃn/ is BrE and /ˌpriːzenˈteɪʃn/ is AmE. –  Niamh Doyle Commented Jun 8, 2017 at 13:59

2 Answers 2

Some answers to your questions:

Why do the two 'reliable' dictionaries give different versions of pronunciation of presentation?

Who told you that these were "the two 'reliable' dictionaries"? These are both British dictionaries, and both seem to treat American pronunciations more or less as a side issue; they don't always get them correct. They are very reliable for the definitions of the words (at least the British English definitions, which are the same for most words as the American definitions) and the British pronunciations.

Two of the American dictionaries I checked ( Merriam-Webster and American Heritage ), say that both /ˌprezənˈteɪʃən/ and /ˌpriːzənˈteɪʃən/ are acceptable pronunciations. I hear both. So for this particular word, these American dictionaries are batting 1000, while the British dictionaries are not. Unfortunately, neither of them gives pronunciations in IPA.

Which is more common? That may depend on which region of the U.S. that you live in, and I wouldn't want to guess the answer without access to a nation-wide survey.

• 1 For what it’s worth, in a 2007 update for presentation the OED gives Brit. /ˌprɛznˈteɪʃn/, U.S. /ˌprɛznˈteɪʃ(ə)n/, /ˌpriˌzɛnˈteɪʃ(ə)n/, /ˌpriznˈteɪʃ(ə)n/. I can’t say that the /priz/ pronunciation personally rings any bells; I’ve only ever said /prɛz/. I can’t imagine anyone in the world ever saying /prez/ like prays . –  tchrist ♦ Commented Feb 17, 2018 at 16:43

Because English speakers pronounce the word in different ways.

Yes, both are right. I don't know which is more common. But if you choose a pronunciation from a reliable dictionary, there should be no problem. If you chat with other speakers and hear them pronounce the word differently from you, then maybe you can change the way you pronounce it. Reliable dictionaries won't give you bad pronunciations. You can also check forvo.com and listen to various native pronunciations.

It is also simply not true that, to quote part of your comment,

learners of English in their non-speaking countries depend on dictionaries to learn English.

Maybe you do. Most learners I know rely on more natural sources, such as podcasts, forvo, speaking with native speakers on Italki, Verbling, GoSpeaky, etc., YouTube videos such as Rachel's English, listening to English radio, watching movies, etc. Yes, you can start by consulting a dictionary, but you should rely more on these other sources if you're truly studying and learning the language. And I haven't even mentioned taking English classes or hiring a tutor. Okay, now I have mentioned them.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged american-english pronunciation british-english or ask your own question .

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Presentations in English: part 1

Using the correct technical language and adequate pronunciation..

Most professionals already know the technical language or English "jargon" relevant to their particular field. However, many may be more proficient with reading technical terminology and could be less familiar with pronouncing the expressions correctly in English.

If the words you need to know are long or complicated to pronounce, you could practise them before giving the presentation in English. One way to do this is by using a free Text to Speech programme (TTS). Insert sentences into the box which include the technical words and select a British English or American English voice if possible. Do not worry that the voice is machine generated. For pronunciation practice of individual words the quality is usually adequate.* You can often download an Mp3 version to keep.

Practice makes perfect

If you want your audience to understand you correctly during the presentation, practise your own pronunciation of technical vocabulary by copying the TTS extracts as mp3 files and then recording and listening to your own voice and comparing the two versions. Keep the TTS extracts on your laptop or mobile device for listening practice on the day the presentation starts, if possible.

Part 2 - Planning your presentation

*Machine generated TTS software often has problems with intonation (rising or falling voice in questions or stressing particular words etc.) but if you use it only for practice of how to pronounce particular words in English, you should find it very useful.

Copyright © 2023 Practising English All rights reserved

Having trouble hearing a pronunciation? * Click here to listen with your default audio player .

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IPA : prez(ə)nˈteɪʃn

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Phonetic spelling of presentation

p-re-sen-ta-tion 1 rating rating ratings Private p-resent-a-tion 0 rating rating ratings Marcos McClure pre-sen-ta-tion 0 rating rating ratings Gerrit Mabaso prez-uh n-tey-shuh n 0 rating rating ratings Fredy Willms

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President Volodymyr Zelensky says Ukrainian troops are advancing deeper into Russia's Kursk region as part of a surprise incursion launched nine days ago

He says a military administration is being set up in the settlement of Sudzha

This comes as a UK source confirms to the BBC that British Challenger 2 tanks have been used in Ukraine's incursion into Russia

Meanwhile, Russia's defence minister says he is overseeing plans to "safeguard the border population", including by allocating more forces to the area

Moscow has insisted that it is pushing Ukrainian troops back, and claims to have retaken a settlement in the Kursk region

Live Reporting

Edited by Nathan Williams and Sophie Abdulla

What's happened today? published at 18:50 British Summer Time 15 August 18:50 BST 15 August

• A UK source has confirmed to the BBC that UK-donated Challenger 2 tanks have been used by Ukraine as part of its surprise incursion into Russia. The department reiterated that Ukraine had "a clear right" to use UK-supplied weapons to defend itself
• The policy means anti-tank missiles, artillery, armoured vehicles and other UK-donated weapons could be used during Ukraine's offensive. However, there is an exception for the UK's Storm Shadow missiles
• Meanwhile, President Zelensky says Ukrainian troops continue advancing deeper into Russia’s Kursk region as part of a surprise incursion, claiming "more than 80" settlements there were now under Ukrainian control
• A Ukrainian military administration was being set up in the biggest one of them - Sudzha - Zelensky said
• And in a post on Telegram, the Russian Ministry of Defence says a coordinating council has been set up to deal with military security in Russia’s Belgorod, Bryansk and Kursk regions

Today's live coverage has now closed - read the latest in our main story here .

Russian Ministry of Defence says 'coordinating council' established published at 18:22 British Summer Time 15 August 18:22 BST 15 August

In a post on Telegram, the Russian Ministry of Defence says a coordinating council has been set up to deal with military security in Russia’s Belgorod, Bryansk and Kursk regions, all of which border Ukraine.

The decision was announced by defence minister Andrei Belousov at a special meeting on border security, following Ukraine’s surprise incursion.

“Its purpose is to improve the efficiency of comprehensive support of the groups of forces, solving the tasks of protecting the state border, protection of the territory and population of the regions,” Belousov was quoted as telling the meeting.

In pictures: Evacuations from Russia's Belgorod region published at 18:08 British Summer Time 15 August 18:08 BST 15 August

As we previously reported, a federal level emergency has been declared in Russia's Belgorod region .

Belgorod is next to the Kursk region, where Ukrainian forces crossed into Russia - an incursion that started over a week ago.

On Monday, 11,000 people were evacuated from the Krasnaya Yaruga district, according to the Russian state news agency TASS.

Images show Russian citizens arriving at a railway station to travel to temporary accommodation centres in the Nevinnomyssk, Mineralnye Vody and Shpakovsky municipalities.

Ukrainian residents urged to evacuate eastern town as Russia closes in published at 17:37 British Summer Time 15 August 17:37 BST 15 August

Seven people were killed in August 2023 when the eastern Ukrainian town of Pokrovski was shelled by Russian forces

Back in Ukraine residents, especially families are being urged to leave the Ukrainian-held town of Pokrovsk as Russian forces in the Donetsk region close in.

According to Ukrainian media, the head of the region's Pokrovsk military administration Serhiy Dobryak says the "enemy has almost reached the edge of our community".

Russian forces are "a bit more than 10km from the outskirts of Pokrovsk city", Dobryak says, adding that the "community and city were shelled", with critical private and residential infrastructure targeted.

"People are dying. So I am calling on you not to procrastinate and to evacuate. This particularly concerns families with children and the elderly."

Pokrovsk - about 70km (43 miles) north-west of Russian-held Donetsk city - has been the epicentre of intense fighting for months with Russian forces edging forward since October 2023.

Is Ukraine overplaying its hand? published at 17:15 British Summer Time 15 August 17:15 BST 15 August

With each day that Ukrainian forces remain inside Russia the risk increases that they could, conceivably, find themselves overwhelmed by superior force of numbers.

"The Russian army tends to move slowly," says a senior British defence source, "but once it cranks into gear it presents a sizable force."

Ukraine is critically short of manpower in this war and it certainly can't afford to lose some of its best remaining combat troops who have carried out this incursion so skilfully.

"The moment the Russians start redeploying some of their best troops in size to tackle this incursion, "says another senior British defence source, "that's the moment the Ukrainians need to withdraw back across the border."

Military experts reckon that after some early successes, Ukraine has made a number of costly strategic mistakes in the war.

Sacrificing so many of its best troops in the ultimately failed defence of Bakhmut and Avdievka in easter Ukraine has been a terrible blow.

Some go further, accusing President Zelensky of a disastrous error of judgement in not mobilising more of his country’s young men from the start. "This is a war of survival for Ukraine," said one.

"Delaying conscription is not a luxury it has."

Latest updates on Ukraine's Russian incursion published at 16:55 British Summer Time 15 August 16:55 BST 15 August

• President Zelensky says Ukrainian forces have taken full control of the Russian town of Sudzha - and set up a military administration there
• Ukraine's top commander says its troops are 35 km inside Russia's Kursk region, where they control 1,150 sq km of territory , including 82 settlements
• This comes as a source has told the BBC that British tanks have been used during Ukraine's incursion into Russian territory
• Russia defence minister says he is personally overseeing plans to "safeguard" the population on the border , including by sending more troops the region
• The UN's Human Rights Office says it has asked Moscow for access to Russian border areas affected by a cross-border attack by Ukrainian forces

You can read this morning's updates here , including the confirmation from the UK Ministry of Defence that Ukraine can use British weapons on Russian soil - except long-range Storm Shadow missiles.

Ukrainian military administration being set up in Sudzha - Zelensky published at 16:28 British Summer Time 15 August 16:28 BST 15 August

President Volodymyr Zelensky says Ukrainian troops continue advancing deeper into Russia’s Kursk region as part of a surprise incursion launched nine days ago.

In an address , external , he said "a new advancement" has been made and more Russian soldiers have been captured.

He also referred to the figure previously given by his Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrsky and said "more than 80" settlements in Russia's Kursk region were now under Ukrainian control.

A Ukrainian military administration was being set up in the biggest one of them, Sudzha, the Ukrainan president said.

"I thank each of our warriors who are making this possible. Well done!" President Zelensky said.

Gen Syrsky said earlier that the "commandant’s office" would provide help to any remaining local residents.

But in addition to solving logistics and humanitarian issues, setting up a Ukrainian administration in the captured Russian town sends out a message: we're here to stay, at least for now.

In pictures: Aid distributed to people in Kursk published at 16:09 British Summer Time 15 August 16:09 BST 15 August

As we receive more information on humanitarian corridors between Russia and Ukraine , people in the Kursk region in Russia have been receiving humanitarian aid from the Red Cross.

Ukraine 'working with military' on humanitarian corridor towards Sumy published at 15:51 British Summer Time 15 August 15:51 BST 15 August

We reported earlier on Ukrainian plans for a "security zone" in Kursk with humanitarian corridors both towards Russia and Ukraine.

We've since had an update from Ukraine Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk via Telegram, who says Kyiv is working with the military on a possible route for civilians to leave Kursk for Sumy in Ukraine.

As for the other direction - towards Russia - she says this is a possibility, but no official request from Russia has been received so far.

Russian defence minister 'overseeing plans to safeguard border population' published at 15:10 British Summer Time 15 August 15:10 BST 15 August

Sandro Vetsko BBC Monitoring

Russian officials have drawn up a plan for "additional measures" to safeguard the population and infrastructure in areas bordering Ukraine, Defence Minister Andrei Belousov says.

The Russian Defence Ministry published a video on its Telegram channel of Belousov telling a group of senior officers and officials that the measures would involve improving the "management of troops in interaction with... the administration of the Belgorod region, nominating accountable officials and allocating additional forces and means".

Belousov said the objective was ensuring "territorial integrity and protection of the population and infrastructure" in Russia’s border regions, and that the focus of the meeting today was Belgorod.

He said he would be "personally" seeing to it that the plan is implemented. Interfax news agency said the plan would also apply to Kursk and Bryansk regions. All three border Ukraine.

UN asks Russia for access to areas affected by cross-border attack by Ukraine published at 14:46 British Summer Time 15 August 14:46 BST 15 August

The United Nations Human Rights Office says it has asked Moscow for access to Russian border areas affected by a cross-border attack by Ukrainian forces.

A spokesperson for the body told the AFP news agency that the request for "authorities to facilitate access" was sent on Wednesday and includes the "Belgorod, Bryansk, and Kursk regions".

Kyiv says it intends to create "humanitarian corridors" in Kursk for civilian evacuation both towards Russia and Ukraine.

Not clear how many UK tanks being used in offensive published at 14:15 British Summer Time 15 August 14:15 BST 15 August

British ministers and officials have repeatedly stated that it’s up to Ukraine to decide how it uses UK supplied weapons.

But questions about restrictions have heightened with Ukraine’s recent incursion inside Russia.

The Ministry of Defence says there’s been no change in policy, though it’s not giving any detail of what British supplied weapons are being used in this latest offensive.

However, a UK source confirmed to the BBC that British made Challenger tanks were among significant western armour now making up Ukraine's strike force.

It’s not clear how many, but the UK only gave Ukraine 14 of the tanks for last year’s less successful offensive in southern Ukraine, in which one was destroyed.

There is still an exception about the use of UK long range Storm Shadow missiles. Britain has still not given Ukraine permission to strike targets inside Russia, despite Ukrainian pressure.

Ukraine commander says military office set up in occupied territory in Russia published at 13:55 British Summer Time 15 August 13:55 BST 15 August

Ukraine's top commander Oleksandr Syrsky says "a military commandant's office" has been set up in Ukrainian-occupied Russian territory.

In a video posted on social media, he is seen telling a meeting chaired by President Zelensky: "To maintain law and order and meet the immediate needs of the population, a military commandant's office has been created in the territories controlled [by Ukraine]. Maj-General Moskalyov has been appointed to lead it."

Syrsky also says Ukrainian troops are 35 km inside the Kursk region, where they control 1,150 sq km of territory including 82 settlements.

“The situation is under control in general,” he told Zelensky.

What's happened so far today? published at 13:31 British Summer Time 15 August 13:31 BST 15 August

This morning we've been bringing you developments in the Ukraine war following confirmation from the Ministry of Defence that Ukraine can use British weapons on Russian soil - with the exception of long-range Storm Shadow missiles.

The government said this does not represent a change in policy.

Since then a UK source has confirmed to the BBC that Challenger 2 tanks have been used during Ukraine's Russian incursion . The UK had given Ukraine 14 such tanks in last year.

Meanwhile, the Ukraine air force said it downed 29 Russian drones overnight - adding that one person was killed and 13 injured.

According to state news agency TASS a federal-level emergency situation has been declared for the border region Belgorod.

Moscow has said it is pushing Ukrainian troops back, with Russia's defence ministry claiming it has regained control of the settlement of Krupets in the Kursk region.

Tempo of Ukraine forces 'slowing' over the last couple of days - security expert published at 13:19 British Summer Time 15 August 13:19 BST 15 August

We've just heard from former Nato analyst and defence and security expert at the University of Bath, Patrick Bury.

He says the incursion has met initial goals including increasing morale among the Ukrainian army and the nation and "destabilising the regime in the short run".

"[The operation] has shown that Western arms can be used inside Russia and there is no major escalation," he adds.

"That may start to raise questions about what are the next steps."

He continues to say that over the last few days the tempo of the Ukrainian forces has been "slowing".

That could be for two reasons he explains - the Russians are starting to stabilise the line and the second due to logistics - "at some point [the Ukrainians] need to resupply themselves".

At some point, Kyiv will have to decide how much land it wants to hold, or whether it should fall back to more defensive lines further west, he adds.

Russia claims to have recaptured lost territory in Kursk published at 13:02 British Summer Time 15 August 13:02 BST 15 August

Russia's defence ministry claims it has regained control of the settlement of Krupets in the Kursk region.

The border region of Kursk has been the focus of Ukraine's surprise attack into Russia, which began 10 days ago.

In a statement, Russia's Ministry of Defence says the "destruction of the enemy" is complete and "control over the settlement of Krupets has been restored".

This comes as Ukraine claims to be advancing further into border regions as part of its offensive.

Federal-level emergency situation declared for Belgorod published at 12:36 British Summer Time 15 August 12:36 BST 15 August

Let's turn back to the situation on the ground.

Yesterday we reported that Belgorod was the second Russian region to declare a state of emergency. The region borders with Kursk where the Ukrainian incursion began last Tuesday.

State news agency TASS has reported today that a federal-level emergency situation has been declared for the region by the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations.

It followed the region's governor Vyacheslav Gladkov introducing a regional-level emergency situation. On Wednesday morning he said there had been 23 drone attacks in 24 hours.

We've got more on this here .

Western weapons yes – but not long-range missiles published at 12:17 British Summer Time 15 August 12:17 BST 15 August

A UK RAF Eurofighter Typhoon with Storm Shadow cruise missiles and other weapons

Ukraine’s lightning incursion into Russia has undoubtedly been boosted by the inclusion of Western weaponry.

German Marder and US Stryker armoured fighting vehicles are known to have been used, as well as German-supplied combat engineering equipment.

But the one weapon Ukraine says it really needs in this offensive - Britain’s Storm Shadow missile – it can’t.

Whitehall has given the green light for other kit to be used but not the long-range Storm Shadow inside Russia’s borders, for fear of escalation and how Moscow would respond.

"Storm Shadow is designed to penetrate bunkers or buildings before exploding," says Brig Ben Barry at the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS).

"Targets could include Command & Control nodes, airfield installations, hardened aircraft shelters, ammo bunkers, such as those holding glide bombs, radar and air defence sites."

In other words, all the kind of long-range positions from which Russia has been prosecuting its war against Ukraine and which Kyiv is now looking to take out in order to change the dynamics of this conflict in its favour.

UK confirmed donation of Challenger 2 tanks in 2023 published at 12:05 British Summer Time 15 August 12:05 BST 15 August

It was in January 2023 that then-Prime Minister Rishi Sunak confirmed the UK would send Challenger 2 tanks to Ukraine.

Fourteen of the attack vehicles were donated with Downing Street at the time saying the move showed "the UK's ambition to intensify support".

Sunak said then that the tanks would help Ukrainian forces "push Russian troops back".

President Zelensky thanked the UK and said that the decision to send the tanks "will not only strengthen us on the battlefield, but also send the right signal to other partners".

The UK also trained Ukrainian forces to use them.

You can read our story from the time here.

What is the Challenger 2? published at 11:51 British Summer Time 15 August 11:51 BST 15 August

Earlier we learnt, via a source, that Challenger 2 tanks are being used inside Russia - we have some further details here on what they look like and their functionality.

The attack vehicle is more than 20 years old - built in the late 1990s.

how to pronounce presentation

/ˌpɹɛzənˈtɛɪʃən/.

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the above transcription of presentation is a detailed (narrow) transcription according to the rules of the International Phonetic Association; you can find a description of each symbol by clicking the phoneme buttons in the secction below.

presentation is pronounced in four syllables

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video examples of presentation pronunciation

An example use of presentation in a speech by a native speaker of american english:

“… member said during the presentation we …”

meaning of presentation

Presentation is the act of formally sharing information about something to someone.

presentation frequency in english - B2 level of CEFR

the word presentation occurs in english on average 24.1 times per one million words; this frequency warrants it to be in the study list for B2 level of language mastery according to CEFR, the Common European Framework of Reference.

topics presentation can be related to

it is hard to perfectly classify words into specific topics since each word can have many context of its use, but our machine-learning models believe that presentation can be often used in the following areas:

1) communication, information, and media;

2) people, society, and culture;

words with pronunciation similar to presentation

Words that rhyme with presentation, did this page help you.