2 syllables: Re, serve. Stress on serve.
riz-URV
/ɹɪˈzɝv/
Reserve is pronounced riz-URV (/ɹɪˈzɝv/). It has two syllables (Re-serve), with the stress on "serve". Reserve (noun) refers to a quantity kept back for future use, a supply that is saved for a particular purpose, or a area set aside. It can also describe restraint or self-control in behavior. In contexts like finance, management, or inventory, a reserve denotes a protected surplus. The term can also function as a verb meaning to retain or withhold something for later use.
nounReserve (noun) refers to a quantity kept back for future use, a supply that is saved for a particular purpose, or a area set aside. It can also describe restraint or self-control in behavior. In contexts like finance, management, or inventory, a reserve denotes a protected surplus. The term can also function as a verb meaning to retain or withhold something for later use.
"The company maintains a cash reserve to weather economic downturns."
"She spoke with reserve, choosing her words carefully."
"There is a reserve of vaccines stored in cold storage."
You pronounce it with the stress on the second syllable: ri-ZERVE for both noun and verb forms. In IPA US: /rɪˈzɜːrv/; UK: /rɪˈzɜːv/; AU often /rɪˈsɜːv/. Keep the vowel of the second syllable tense and central to avoid flattening into REH-zerv. Start with a light initial schwa in the first syllable and lead into a clear rhotacized second syllable.
Common errors: pronouncing the second syllable as a short /ɪ/ or /ɪə/ instead of /ɜːr/; tensing the first syllable /rend/ instead of a reduced /rɪ/; and not clearly linking the /z/ to the following /ɜːr/ by a brief phonetic boundary. Correction: use a short, reduced first syllable /rɪ/ and emphasize the /zɜːr/ with a crisp /z/ followed by the rounded /ɜː/ and rhotic /r/ in US. Practice with minimal pairs like re-ZERV vs re-SERVE to feel the shift.
US typically rhymes the second syllable with /ɜːr/ and maintains rhotic /r/ after the vowel (ri- zɜːrv). UK often has non-rhotic tendency in educated speech, reducing post-vocalic /r/ to a vowel-like coda, giving /rɪˈzɜːv/ with weaker rhoticity. Australian generally aligns with US vowels but can have a slightly flatter /ɜː/ and subtler rhoticity. In all, the second syllable retains /z/ but exact vowel quality and rhotic realization vary: US /ɜːr/, UK /ɜː/ with potential non-rhoticity, AU somewhere between. IPA references: US /rɪˈzɜːrv/, UK /rɪˈzɜːv/, AU /rɪˈsɜːv/.
Two main challenges: the stressed second syllable and the /z/ cluster leading into a rhotic or non-rhotic vowel. The /z/ must be clearly released before the central vowel /ɜː/ and optional rhotic /r/ in US. In non-rhotic accents, the trailing /r/ can be subtle, making the vowel before it longer. Voice onset time and tongue tension must be balanced to avoid an uncircumflex look. Focus on a crisp /z/ + /ɜː/ + optional /r/ sequence.
Curiously, in technical contexts, 'reserve' often behaves as a compound of re- + serve, emphasizing the act of setting something aside or restoring it. In phonetics, the re- prefix can slightly shift the stress, but for the noun and verb forms of reserve, the primary stress remains on the second syllable (ri-ZERVE, re-SERVE). The nuance is more about meaning than pronunciation, though careful pause after the prefix in rapid speech helps clarity.
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Reserve comes from Old French resserve, from late Latin reservire, from Latin reservare meaning to keep back, keep in store. The root res- means back or again, and servare means to save, protect, or keep. In English, the noun senses of keeping something in store or setting something aside emerged in the 14th century, with early uses tied to military and financial contexts (a reserve of provisions, a reserve fund). By the 16th–18th centuries, the term broadened to include figurative meanings like restraint of words (with reserve) and the notion of keeping a player in reserve. The verb form reserve developed to mean to keep back or to store rather than immediate use, aligning with the noun’s sense of a safeguarded quantity. Over time, reserve has also acquired specialized uses in legal, military, and sports contexts, but the core idea remains the deliberate withholding of resources or discretion.
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "Reserve" and can often be used interchangeably.
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Words that rhyme with "Reserve"
-rve sounds
Practice with these rhyming pairs to improve your pronunciation consistency:
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