Depressurise is a verb meaning to release or reduce pressure, especially in a closed system such as a vessel or chamber. It involves a controlled reduction of internal pressure to bring it to ambient levels, often for safety or operational reasons. The term is commonly used in engineering, aviation, and industrial contexts, and can be spelled depressurize in American English.
"The crew had to depressurise the cabin before the passengers could be evacuated."
"Engineers depressurised the pipeline to locate the leak."
"To perform maintenance safely, we depressurise the system and lock it out."
"After the fault was fixed, they depressurised the circuit to test it."
Depressurise derives from the prefix de- meaning ‘reverse’ or ‘remove’ combined with pressure, from Old French pressur, from Latin pressura, and -ise a verb-forming suffix from French -iser. The concept of reducing pressure in a system arose with the expansion of engineering and aeronautics in the 19th and 20th centuries. In British English, depressurise is used with the -ise ending (British spelling), while American English typically uses depressurize with -ize. First known uses appear in technical manuals and safety protocols in industrial engineering and aviation contexts in the early to mid-20th century, reflecting the need for safe procedures when dealing with pressurized equipment. Over time, the word has broadened slightly to cover any deliberate reduction of internal pressure in a closed system, including spacecraft, submarines, and high-pressure experiments, while retaining its technical register.
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "Depressurise" and can often be used interchangeably.
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Words that rhyme with "Depressurise"
-ise sounds
Practice with these rhyming pairs to improve your pronunciation consistency:
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Pronounce as de-PRESS-u-ryze, with primary stress on the second syllable: /dɪˈprɛʃəraɪz/. Break it into syllables: de-press-ur-ise. Start with /dɪ/ (short i), then /ˈprɛ/ (stress on /prɛ/), then /ʃə/ (schwa), and end with /raɪz/ (sounds like 'raise'). The mouth forms a small, controlled release of air through the teeth and lips, smoother than a hard 'rise'. Listen to professional pronunciations on Pronounce or Forvo for exact articulation.
Common errors include stressing the wrong syllable (putting emphasis on the first or the third syllable), mispronouncing the /ɪ/ as a long /i/ or the /ə/ as a full vowel rather than a schwa, and misplacing the /r/ or blending /rə/ too tightly. To correct: keep primary stress on the second syllable /ˈprɛ/; use a clear /ə/ (schwa) for the unstressed middle sound; and articulate the final /aɪz/ as a smooth cluster without turning it into /ɪz/ or /ərɪz/.
In US, UK, and AU accents, the core sounds are similar, but rhoticity and vowel lengths differ. US and AU are rhotic; UK often non-rhotic in many regions, which can affect the /r/ in the middle syllable. The final /aɪz/ is consistently two sounds: /aɪ/ as in 'rise' and /z/ as in 'zoo'. The main variation is how the /ɪ/ and /ə/ are realized as distinct vowels and the degree of vowel reduction in unstressed syllables. Listen to native sources to hear subtle differences in /ə/ and /ɪ/; Pronounce provides region-specific audio.
The difficulty lies in the multi-syllabic structure and the consonant cluster around the root: the pronounced /prɛ/ with a palatalized /ʃ/ followed by a soft /ə/ and the final /raɪz/ cluster. The transition from the velar /p/ to the post-alveolar /r/ and the /z/ at the end can be tricky for non-native speakers. Also the syllabic stress on the second syllable can be easy to misplace under fast speech. Focus on smoothing the /pr/ onset and keeping the /eɪ/ glide in the final portion.
Unique aspects include the stress pattern on the second syllable, the occurrence of /ʃ/ in the /ɪʃ/ portion merged with /ə/ and /raɪz/ at the end, and the subtle length difference between /ə/ and /ɪ/ in unstressed positions. The suffix -ise adds a characteristic /aɪz/ sound that is less common in everyday vocabulary. Paying attention to vowel quality in the unstressed syllables helps avoid a clipped or wrong rhythm.
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