3 syllables: ex, ec, utes. Stress on ex.
/ˈɛk.sɪ.kjuːts/
Say it backExecutes is a verb meaning to carries out or performs a task or action, especially with precision or force. It can also refer to putting something into effect or carrying out a legal sentence in a formal context. In everyday use it often appears as a third-person singular present tense: he executes the plan.
"The CEO executes the strategic vision with careful budgeting and timing."
"The robot executes the programmed sequence with remarkable accuracy."
"During the trial, the court rules that the defendant is enough to execute the sentence."
It’s pronounced /ˈɛɡ.zɪ.kjuːts/ in US English, with the primary stress on the second syllable: EX-e-cutes. Break it into three phonemes: /ɛɡ/ (start with a voiced velar stop /ɡ/ after /ˈɛ/), /zɪ/ (voiced Z with a short i), and /kjuːts/ (the 'kyoots' cluster). The second syllable carries the stress, and the final /ts/ is a crisp voiceless consonant blend. In UK English it’s /ɪkˈsek.juːts/ or /ɪɡˈzek.tjuːts/ with the same three-syllable rhythm. For Australian English it remains /ɪˈsek.juːts/ with a closer front vowel in the first syllable but same stress pattern.
Common errors: (1) Stress misplacement, saying ex-EC-utes with wrong main stress moving to the first syllable; (2) Slurring the /zɪ/ into /zɪk/ or dropping the /j/ before /uː/ as in 'exec-oots'. Correction: keep three distinct syllables and place primary stress on the middle syllable (ek- ZI-uts). Practice by isolating /ɡ/ to /z/ assimilation, and keep the /juː/ as a clear /juː/ before the final /ts/. (3) Vowel quality errors: use a lax /ɛ/ or /ɪ/ in the first vowel; aim for a mid-open /ɛ/ as in 'set', then a short /ɪ/ in the second syllable.
US: /ˈɛɡ.zɪ.kjuːts/ with stronger rhotic and clearer /ɡ/ and /z/; UK: /ɪɡˈsek.juːts/ or /ɪkˈsek.tjuːts/, tends to a crisper /t/ or /d/ release in some speakers; AU: /ɪˈsek.juːts/ with a slightly flatter intonation and vowel sounds closer to /e/ in the first syllable. The key differences are vowel quality in the first syllable (short mid vowel in US vs UK variants), and whether the second syllable is reduced or fully pronounced. All retain three syllables and the mid-stress pattern.
The difficulty lies in the multi-syllabic rhythm and the consonant cluster at the end: /kjuːts/. You need to smoothly transition from /z/ to /kj/ into the /ts/ final cluster, while maintaining the stress on the middle syllable. The right jaw and tongue posture requires lifting the tongue for the /j/ in /kjuː/ without creating a vowel elongation that drags into the final /ts/. Also, the preceding /ɡ/ and following /z/ must remain distinct; practice helps each sound stay crisp.
executes has three pronounced syllables with a pronounced middle-stress: ex-EC-utes. There are no silent letters; the letter sequence 'x' acts as /ɡz/ in many pronunciations, combining with the following /e/ vowel, so you articulate /ɡz/ quickly as one unit before the /ɪ/ of the second syllable. The stress pattern is strong on the middle syllable, ensuring the word has a definite beat in connected speech.
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Executes comes from Latin execute, from ex- 'out' + audire 'to hear' (through the sense of carrying out, carrying into effect). The Latin root is ex- meaning 'out' and subsequentially secuere meaning 'to follow' (not directly in the Latin form, but from the French exécuter, from Latin exsecutus, past participle of exsequī 'to carry out, finish, perform'. The word entered English in the 15th century via Old French exécuter, which carried the sense of carrying out or performing a duty or sentence. In English, it broadened to include executing commands, plans, and actions, and eventually legal contexts. The key semantic shift centers on turning intention into action, or enforcing a mandate, whether practical or legal. Through the centuries, execute has retained its sense of action, precision, and completion, implying that an intended strategy or sentence is brought to its final, effective realization. The modern sense often emphasizes precision, control, and formal authority, especially in professional or judicial domains.
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Words that rhyme with "executes"
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