3 syllables: ha, sten, ing. Stress on ha.
HAY-suh-ning
/ˈheɪsənɪŋ/
hastening is pronounced HAY-suh-ning (/ˈheɪsənɪŋ/). It has three syllables (ha-sten-ing), with the stress on "ha". Hastening is the act of causing something to happen more quickly or of moving forward in time or action with urgency. It denotes acceleration or speeding up, often used in contexts describing events, processes, or decisions that are made sooner than they otherwise would be. The term carries a nuance of intent and movement toward a quicker outcome.
Hastening is the act of causing something to happen more quickly or of moving forward in time or action with urgency. It denotes acceleration or speeding up, often used in contexts describing events, processes, or decisions that are made sooner than they otherwise would be. The term carries a nuance of intent and movement toward a quicker outcome.
- Common phonetic challenges include maintaining the correct stress pattern HAS-ten-ing, ensuring the middle /ə/ remains light rather than pronounced as full /æ/ or /ɪ/ and avoiding a hard, explosive /t/. - Correction tips: practice with a slow tempo to lock the stress on the first syllable, then gradually increase speed while keeping /s/ and /ən/ connected; in minimal pairs, compare hasten vs hastening, focus on the transition from /eɪ/ to /sə/ to /nɪŋ/ to avoid inserting extra vowels. Use intentional recordings to hear where you add or drop sounds and adjust to a more compact chain of phonemes.
"The rain hastening the crowd to seek shelter."
"Her remarks hastened the negotiations to a close."
"A renewed sense of urgency hastened the project’s completion."
Pronounce it as /ˈheɪ.sən.ɪŋ/. The primary stress falls on the first syllable: HEY-sən-ing. Start with the diphthong /eɪ/ as in 'hay,' then use a light /s/ followed by a reduced schwa /ə/ in the second syllable, and end with /ɪŋ/. Keep the /t/ sound soft: the /t/ blends quickly into the /ən/ portion. A quick, precise articulation is typical in fluent speech. You can listen for natural pronunciation in recordings of the word in context to confirm the rhythm.
Two common errors: (1) Overemphasizing the middle /sə/ as /sæ/ or /səː/ leading to HEY-SAN-ING; (2) Plosive-t misarticulation where /t/ is released too strongly. Correction: keep the middle vowel light as /ə/, not a full vowel; lightly articulate /t/ into the following /ən/ so it sounds like /ˈheɪ.dən.ɪŋ/ with a soft onset instead of a hard release. Practice with a metronome to maintain even tempo and avoid adding extra syllables. Also ensure you don’t reduce the final /ɪŋ/ to a nasalized sound; keep it as a clean /ɪŋ/.
Across US/UK/AU, the word retains /ˈheɪ.sən.ɪŋ/ in most dialects, but rhoticity affects surrounding vowels in broader sentences: US speakers may have a more rhotic quality on surrounding words, UK speakers keep non-rhoticity with potentially crisper /t/ release, and Australian speakers often have a more centralized /ə/ in the second syllable and slightly more vowel reduction. The primary stress on the first syllable remains constant. Listen for subtle differences in the first vowel quality and the speed of the /t/ release in connected speech.
It combines a stressed initial syllable with a light, fast second syllable and a nasal ending. The challenge lies in balancing the /ˈheɪ/ diphthong with a quick /sən/ transition and ensuring the /t/ doesn’t create an intrusive vowel. You must maintain a crisp syllable boundary, but not overly separate; aim for a smooth glide from /eɪ/ into /sən/ and then into /ɪŋ/. IPA-guided practice helps you feel the subtle timing between sounds.
A distinctive aspect is the short, unstressed middle schwa /ə/ in /sən/. It’s easy to overemphasize it or substitute with /æ/ or /ɪ/. Keeping it light and quick ensures the word maintains a natural cadence, especially in fluent speech. Also, ensure the final /ɪŋ/ is not swallowed or replaced by a nasal vowel; keep the nasal plus velar release clean to avoid clipping the ending.
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- US: rhotic influence on surrounding words; ensure non-velarized /r/ usage does not affect hastening; keep /heɪ/ with a clear diphthong and short /ə/ in /sən/. IPA: /ˈheɪ.sən.ɪŋ/. - UK: non-rhotic tendency; slightly crisper /t/ release; maintain final /ɪŋ/ without extra vowel; IPA: /ˈheɪ.sən.ɪŋ/. - AU: more centralized /ə/; smoother, less precise vowel quality; keep /ˈheɪ/ as a crisp diphthong; IPA: /ˈheɪ.sən.ɪŋ/. Focus on the soft /t/ and the narrow /ən/ transition. - Shared: primary stress on HAS-, maintain brief middle schwa; monitor weak syllable reduction in rapid speech.
Hastening comes from the verb hasten, itself from Old French hastiner, hastiner (modern French hastiner). The root has Germanic origins in the sense of making quick or urgent movement, reflecting practical action. In Middle English, hasten appeared as hastene and hastinen, aligned with haste and hastiness. The suffix -ing marks the present participle, indicating ongoing action. The concept broadened in English to cover both literal speed (to hasten someone’s steps) and figurative acceleration (hastening events or decisions). Early attestations in English literature appear in the 14th–15th centuries, often in religious or moral exhortations to hasten to repentance or to hasten the delivery of goods and news. Over time, the word acquired its modern nuance implying deliberate or natural speed increase, sometimes with a sense of inevitability or urgency. In contemporary usage, hastening is common in formal or semi-formal discourse, especially in legal, administrative, and literary contexts. The -ing form is versatile in gerundial and participial roles, allowing phrases such as hastening the process or serves as a noun, as in the hastening of events.
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "hastening" and can often be used interchangeably.
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Words that rhyme with "hastening"
-ing sounds
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