Burst is a short, forceful release or eruption, often used to describe a sudden, intense action or emotion. As a verb, it means to explode outward suddenly or to cause something to erupt. The term conveys a rapid, energetic release, sometimes with an abrupt end. In pronunciation, the word is compact and brisk, typically stressed on the single syllable.
- Mispronounce the vowel: Treat the /ɜː/ as a lax schwa; keep it tense and quick, not lax. Pinch the mouth around the mid-back vowel so it doesn’t drift toward /ɪ/ or /æ/. - Softening the final /t/: In rapid speech, you may drop or merge the /t/. Practice keeping the /t/ audible with a clean alveolar stop; don’t let it disappear into the preceding /s/. - Slurring /st/ into /s/ or /t/: Keep /s/ and /t/ as distinct segments; avoid turning /st/ into a long, sibilant blend. Use exercises that isolate /s/ then /t/ in quick succession.
- US: /ˈbɜːrst/ with a rhotic or slightly rhotic quality depending on speaker; ensure the /ɹ/ or lack thereof doesn’t blur the syllable boundary. UK/AU: typically non-rhotic; the /ɜː/ is slightly longer and the /ɹ/ is not pronounced if you’re learning non-rhotic speech. Maintain a brisk, concise vowel before the /st/. - Vowel color: The /ɜː/ should be central with slight backness; avoid fronting to /e/ or backing to /ɒ/. - Final cluster: The /st/ should be crisp; avoid turning into /s/ + /t/ with a pause. Practice with minimal pairs like burst/bursted to dial in speed without losing precision. IPA references: US /ˈbɜːrst/, UK/AU /ˈbɜːst/.
"The balloon will burst if you overinflate it."
"He burst into laughter after hearing the joke."
"The dam burst, releasing a flood of water downstream."
"Her cheeks burst with a bright smile as she recognized him."
Burst originates from Middle English bursten, from Old English burrstan, related to the Proto-Germanic *burstanan. The form likely comes from an older verb meaning to break open or to burst. The transition from a literal physical rupture to metaphorical uses (burst of energy, burst into song) occurred across the early modern period as English expanded its expressive vocabulary. The sense of a sudden, violent release retained primary emphasis on a rapid, forceful outward movement. By the 16th–18th centuries, burst was common in bothtransitive and intransitive senses, including figurative expressions like “burst into tears” or “burst into laughter.” Its usage expanded alongside industrial and technological metaphors (burst pipes, burst into action), cementing its place as a versatile verb in everyday English, while the noun form “burst” remained prevalent for describing an instance of sudden release. First known uses are found in Germanic language family texts, with English documented usage by the medieval period and reified in modern lexicography as both a verb and noun.
💡 Etymology tip: Understanding word origins can help you remember pronunciation patterns and recognize related words in the same language family.
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "Burst" and can often be used interchangeably.
🔄 These words have opposite meanings to "Burst" and show contrast in usage.
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Words that rhyme with "Burst"
-rst sounds
Practice with these rhyming pairs to improve your pronunciation consistency:
🎵 Rhyme tip: Practicing with rhyming words helps you master similar sound patterns and improves your overall pronunciation accuracy.
Burst is pronounced with a single stressed syllable: /ˈbɜːrst/ (US: /ˈbɜːrst/, UK/AU: /ˈbɜːst/). Start with an open-mid back unrounded vowel (the /ɜː/ sound, similar to 'fur' but without r-coloration in non-rhotic accents), then finish with a clear /st/ cluster. The mouth closes quickly after the vowel to produce the final /st/ sequence. 注意 the r-coloring is light in non-rhotic varieties; in rhotic accents you’ll hear a faint /ɹ/ before the /st/ in some speakers. Audio reference: listen for a tight, clipped onset and brisk coda.
Two common errors are: (1) pronouncing it as /bɜːrst/ with an extra vowel length before the /st/, which makes it sound slow; ensure the vowel is brisk, short-to-mid in length. (2) In some accents, speakers slip into /bɜrst/ without the final /t/, or pronounce /sr/ as a blend; make sure the final /st/ is crisp and audible. Practice by isolating the /ɜː/ and the /st/ and connecting with a quick, tight transition.
In US English, the vowel often comes out as /ɜː/ with a slightly longer, rounded quality before /st/, but still single syllable. UK/AU varieties typically feature a more centralized /ɜː/ with less rhoticity influence, so you may hear /ˈbɜːst/ in non-rhotic settings. Australians may retain a briefer /ɜː/ and a sharper /st/ cluster, resulting in a slightly more clipped finish. Across accents, the distinctive aspect is the crisp /st/ following a condensed vowel.
The challenge lies in the rapid transition from a tense, mid-back vowel /ɜː/ to the final /st/ cluster. The /ɜː/ vowel is inherently tense and can be misarticulated as /ɜ/ or as a schwa in fast speech, altering the word’s quality. Additionally, the final /st/ requires precise tongue placement at the alveolar ridge and a clean stop after the vowel. Catching the timing so the /t/ lands crisply after the /s/ is the key, especially in connected speech.
Because the standard pronunciation has a slender, single-phoneme vowel /ɜː/ followed by the /st/ cluster. Saying it as /birst/ inserts a different vowel quality and often a longer vowel sound; /burst/ would imply a different vowel nucleus (/ɜʊ/ or /ɜr/ depending on speaker). The correct form keeps the central, tense /ɜː/ or /ɜ˞/ vowel and ends with a crisp /st/. Using /burst/ with a short /ɜ/ can flatten the vowel.
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- Shadowing: Listen to a native speaker saying bursts in sentences and repeat in real-time, then 2-3 second delay. Focus on the transition into the final /st/ after the vowel. - Minimal pairs: practice with /bɜːst/ vs /bɜːst/ (contrast with /bɜːst/ in different contexts) to fix real-time vowel quality. - Rhythm: Keep a one-syllable, stress-on-one pattern; ensure you’re not adding extra syllables in connected speech. Use a metronome to pace the rate of the /ɜː/ to /st/ transition. - Stress and intonation: In sentences, bursts often occur in stressed positions; practice with phrases like “She burst into action” and “The dam burst open.” - Recording: Use your phone to record and compare with audio references, focusing on the crisp /st/ and the vowel timing.
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