One syllable: leaks.
/liks/
Say it backLeaks is a plural noun and verb form referring to the escape of liquids or gases through a hole or crack, or to the disclosure of secret information. In everyday use it often denotes unintended seepage, or a disclosure that becomes public. The word centers on a simple, crisp /iː/ vowel followed by the voiceless /s/ or /z/ depending on grammatical function and surrounding sounds.
"A leaky faucet caused a wet kitchen floor, so I called a plumber."
"The company faced leaks of sensitive data after years of lax security."
"Water leaks through the wall after the storm."
You pronounce leaks as /liːks/. The word is a single syllable with stress on the cue word unit, ending in a clear /ks/ cluster. Your mouth starts with a high front tense vowel /iː/ as in see, then the /l/ leads into the /iː/ vowel and finally a hard /k/ followed by the /s/. In connected speech, you’ll often hear the final /s/ be crisp; avoid letting it drift into a zibilization. IPA: /liːks/. Mouth position: lips spread or neutral, tongue high at the front of the mouth, jaw relatively closed, voice on the vowel and the /k/ is unaspirated before /s/ in careful speech.
Common errors: (1) Substituting /l/ with a darker or more back onset, (2) mispronouncing the final /ks/ as /k/ or /s/ only, (3) not maintaining the long /iː/ and shortening it to /ɪ/ in rapid speech. Correction: keep the vowel as a tense, long /iː/; articulate /l/ clearly without vowel intrusion; close the velar stop tightly into /k/ and release directly into /s/ without extra vowel between them. Practice with slow, stepwise articulation: l - iː - k - s, then connect.
Across accents, the core /liːks/ vowel remains long in most varieties. In some American dialects, you may hear a slightly shorter or more reduced /liːks/ with faster consonant blending; in some UK dialects the /iː/ can be slightly tighter and shorter in unstressed contexts, and Australians may display a more centralized vowel quality, closer to /liːks/ but with marginal vowel height differences. The /s/ is consistently voiceless. Rhotic differences are not a major factor here since the word does not contain /r/.
The challenge lies in the tight, rapid transition from the long /iː/ vowel to the /ks/ consonant cluster. The /k/ must be released into /s/ cleanly, with no extra vowel between them; small jaw and tongue movements must be precise to avoid smearing into /l/ or /g/. In rapid speech, final clusters can blur, so practicing deliberate slow tempo first helps. Mind the difference between a voiced /s/ (as in leaks) and a voiceless /s/ in some contexts, though the standard is voiceless here.
One unique tip: emphasize the /l/ onset with a crisp, light contact of the tongue tip to the alveolar ridge, then glide to the high front vowel /iː/ with a steady jaw and lip position; end strong with /k/ followed immediately by /s/ without letting the tongue drop. This ensures the /liːk/ portion stays tight and the final /s/ is distinctly audible, preventing a blurred /liːkə/ ending.
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IPA references: US /liːks/, UK /liːks/, AU /liːks/ (onset and vowel generally the same, minor vowel quality shifts are related to regional vowel systems).
The verb and noun leaks trace to Middle English leken, from Old English lekan meaning ‘to leak, hollow, or drain’ with related forms in Germanic languages. The modern spelling stabilized in Early Modern English, aligning with related terms like leak and leaky. The metaphorical sense of leaking information emerged later, influenced by Latinized legal and nautical vocabularies where ‘leak’ denoted the seepage of fluids or air in objects like hulls. By the 17th–18th centuries, leak as a noun described both physical seepage and the act of letting information slip out, with usage expanding into data security and journalism in the 20th century. First known uses appear in Middle English medical and nautical texts, but the distinct sense of unauthorized disclosure coalesced with industrial espionage literature and 20th-century mass media, making leaks a common, everyday term across contexts.
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Help others use "leaks" correctly by contributing grammar tips, common mistakes, and context guidance.
💡 These words have similar meanings to "leaks" and can often be used interchangeably.
🔄 These words have opposite meanings to "leaks" and show contrast in usage.
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Words that rhyme with "leaks"
-eks sounds
-aks sounds
Practice with these rhyming pairs to improve your pronunciation consistency:
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