2 syllables: lease, s. Stress on lease.
/ˈlisɪz/
Say it backLeases is a plural noun or verb form meaning agreements granting use of property for a period in exchange for payment; as a verb, it means to grant such an agreement. In finance, it can refer to rental arrangements or lease agreements as objects of the contract. The word is pronounced with a long e sound and a plural s ending, with attention to vowel quality and final sibilant.
"The tenants signed several leases for commercial space."
"The company leases office equipment through a three-year contract."
"She leases a car every two years to avoid maintenance costs."
/liːzɪz/ in most dialects?US: /liːzɪz/, UK: /liːzɪz/, AU: /liːzɪz/. The word has two phonemes: a long E vowel followed by the L sound, then a voiced z at the end. The plural s is voiced as z in standard pronunciation. Position your tongue high for the /iː/, keep lips spread, and finish with a light but audible /z/ before the final /ɪz/ segment. In fast speech you may hear /liːzɪz/ with minimal vowel reduction.
Common errors include shortening the vowel to a lax /ɪ/ or making the final /z/ into a voiceless /s/ in rapid speech. Some speakers may misplace stress or insert an extra vowel between /l/ and /iː/, saying /lɪːzəs/. The correction is to sustain the long /iː/ for the first syllable, keep the /z/ voice clear before the final /ɪz/ sequence, and avoid devoicing the final consonant in careful speech.
In US/UK/AU, the initial vowel remains /iː/. US tends to be rhotic but does not change /liːzɪz/. UK typically keeps non-rhoticity in some regions but the word is pronounced with the same vowel; AU tends toward similar vowel quality with a clear /iː/. The main difference lies in intonation and connected speech: in rapid speech US may reduce syllable boundaries; UK may exhibit tighter articulation; AU often maintains clear vowel duration and a slightly broader mouth opening.
The difficulty comes from maintaining the long /iː/ quality in a short word, ensuring the /z/ voice is not devoiced, and transitioning smoothly to the trailing /ɪz/ segment. Keeping the tongue high for /iː/ and delivering the /z/ as a voiced fricative before the /ɪz/ can be tricky in fast speech, where people may merge to /liz/ or /liːz/. Practice with slow syllable drilling to stabilize the two-syllable structure: /liːz-ɪz/.
Yes. The spelling indicates a /z/ ending, but many non-native speakers fear it’s a hard /s/; in reality it’s a voiced /z/ in standard dialects. Ensure you voice the final s; avoid devoicing. Also watch for /iː/ length; in some fast speech, listeners may hear /liz/ or /liːz/ with reduced trailing vowel. Correct technique: hold /iː/ for the first syllable, then glide into /zɪz/ clearly.
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- US: maintain rhoticity as needed by context; keep /iː/ clear and avoid reducing to /i/ before /z/; pay attention to final /z/ voice. - UK: maintain long /iː/; ensure the /z/ is voiced; the vowel quality should be slightly tenser in careful speech; rhythm tends to be more clipped. - AU: similar to US/UK, but often with slightly broader vowel height; keep /iː/ full and accentuate the final /ɪz/ with a crisp /z/.
Leases derives from the Middle English leese, from Old French lease, leasee, via Old French leaser, meaning to grant a lease. The sense in English evolved through legal usage as the act of granting the use of land or property for a specified time in exchange for rent. The earliest attestations show lease agreements as formal instruments in medieval property law, with the term increasingly tied to the contract itself rather than the act of letting. The modern plural leases emerged as legal language expanded to include multiple such agreements or general references to rental contracts. Over time, the word shifted from a verb form meaning to let or grant to a noun signifying the document or the contract itself, and finally to a versatile form used in business and real estate to denote ongoing rental arrangements. The root verb let/lease shares semantic lineage with other Germanic words for allowing possession, while the French-derived terms reflect the period of Norman influence on English property law. First known use as a legal term appears in Middle English texts around the 13th–14th centuries.
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "leases" and can often be used interchangeably.
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Words that rhyme with "leases"
-ses sounds
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