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    Pronunciation · Words that change with stress

    How to pronounce “increase”

    IN-krees

    2 syllables · stress on “IN”

    INkrees
    Britishˈɪnkriːs
    Americanˈɪnkriːs

    In short

    “increase” is pronounced IN-krees: 2 syllables, with the stress on “IN”. IELTS Writing Task 1 and any data description use both forms in the same sentence, so the contrast has to be automatic rather than thought about. The version to avoid is in-KREES for the noun — extremely common when describing charts and data.

    Say “increase” in 3 steps

    1. 1Noun: IN-krees — a rise, an amount.
    2. 2Verb: in-KREES — to go up or make something go up.
    3. 3The same rule covers decrease, export, import and progress.

    The version to avoid

    Commonly said as: in-KREES for the noun — extremely common when describing charts and data

    IELTS Writing Task 1 and any data description use both forms in the same sentence, so the contrast has to be automatic rather than thought about.

    “increase” as a verb

    Used when increase means to grow or to raise something.

    in-KREES

    ɪnˈkriːs · stress on “KREES”

    inKREES

    Hear real people say it

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    Real speakers

    2 human recordings

    Actual people saying “increase”, not a synthetic voice. Real speech varies — that variation is what you need to recognise, and what a single model voice cannot show you.

    Recordings from Wikimedia Commons by Dvortygirl, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0. Full credits.

    Practise it out loud

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    0/6 practised

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    Three speakers per accent

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    The sounds inside this word

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    ɪi as in sitnn as in nokk as in keyrr as in rediːee as in seess as in see

    Don't confuse it with…

    Minimal pairs isolate the exact contrast this word depends on — the fastest way to train both ear and mouth.

    More words that change with stress

    Same pattern, same fix. Learning them as a group is far faster than one at a time.

    presentPREZ-untrecordREK-ordobjectOB-jiktsubjectSUB-jiktprojectPROJ-ektcontractKON-trakt

    Keep exploring

    Frequently asked questions

    How do you pronounce increase?
    increase is pronounced IN-krees, written /ˈɪnkriːs/ in IPA. Noun: IN-krees — a rise, an amount.
    How many syllables are in increase?
    two: IN-krees. The stress falls on “IN”.
    What is the most common mistake with increase?
    in-KREES for the noun — extremely common when describing charts and data. IELTS Writing Task 1 and any data description use both forms in the same sentence, so the contrast has to be automatic rather than thought about.
    Does increase change as a verb?
    Yes. Used when increase means to grow or to raise something. That form is pronounced in-KREES, /ɪnˈkriːs/ in IPA.

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