/teɪks/
takes is pronounced /teɪks/. Takes is the third-person singular present tense of take, meaning to acquire, seize, or assume possession or responsibility. It is also used in phrases to denote duration or pace, like ‘takes time.’ In pronunciation, it is a single-syllable word typically stressed lightly in connected speech, often reduced in casual speech when preceding a following verb or noun.
Say it backTakes is the third-person singular present tense of take, meaning to acquire, seize, or assume possession or responsibility. It is also used in phrases to denote duration or pace, like ‘takes time.’ In pronunciation, it is a single-syllable word typically stressed lightly in connected speech, often reduced in casual speech when preceding a following verb or noun.
"She takes the bus to work every morning."
"That argument takes a surprising amount of patience."
"He takes his coffee black, no sugar."
Pronounce as /teɪks/. The primary stress is on the syllable onset; the vowel is a crisp diphthong /eɪ/, formed with the tongue rising from a mid to high position. The final consonants are a voiceless stop /k/ followed by /s/. Keep the /k/ release clean and avoid adding an extra vowel after /k/. In connected speech, you may hear assimilation toward the following word, but the basic form remains /teɪks/.
Common errors include saying /tæks/ with a flat vowel (mistaking /eɪ/ for /æ/), and producing a heavy or delayed /s/ after /k/ (giving /keɪks/ or /keɪkss/). Another frequent slip is inserting an extra vowel before /s/ in rapid speech. To correct, relax your jaw and use the /eɪ/ diphthong by starting at mid position and gliding toward a higher tongue position while keeping lips slightly rounded; finish with a crisp /k/ release directly into the /s/ without additional vowel.
Across US/UK/AU, the core /eɪ/ vowel is consistent, but rhoticity and consonant timing shift. US and AU typically maintain a rhotic /r/ influence in surrounding vowels, though not in 'takes' itself; the vowel is largely non-rhotic in word-final environments; the /t/ may be flapped in casual US speech before a vowel following (e.g., 'takes it' sounds like /ˈteɪksɪt/ with quick vowel reduction). UK English tends to a slightly longer /eɪ/ and crisper /t/ release; final /s/ is clear. In rapid speech, vowel energy reduces in connected speech, with /eɪ/ sometimes shortened toward /e/.
The difficulty lies in timing the /eɪ/ diphthong precisely before the voiceless /k/ and ensuring the /s/ is not elided. In fast speech, the /k/ can be unreleased or coalesced with following consonants, causing a /t/–/k/ blend or a lenited stop. Another challenge is avoiding an unnecessary extra vowel between /eɪ/ and /k/; keep the glide tight and the /k/ release immediate before /s/.
The word ends with a consonant cluster /ks/, which can be challenging in connected speech when linking to the next word. You should keep the /k/ release clean and allow the /s/ to remain voiceless while ensuring there’s no intrusive vowel. In some dialects, you may hear reduced final consonants in very fast speech, but careful speakers maintain a clear /ks/ to preserve the word's integrity.
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Takes derives from Old English tacian? No: actually from take, from Old English tacian (tacan) meaning ‘to seize, grasp, capture.’ Over time, take existed in Proto-Germanic *takkjaną with related forms across Germanic languages. The modern form 'take' shifts through Middle English as taken, taking, takes. The word broadened in usage during the late Middle Ages into senses like to carry away, to accept, and to assume. The third-person singular -s ending attaches in Early Modern English, aligning with standard present-tense verb conjugation patterns. Semantic expansion included phrases like ‘takes time’ and ‘take into account,’ where ‘take’ becomes an operator verb to denote duration, action initiation, or consideration. First attestations are scattered inOld English texts, with robust usage by the 13th-14th centuries ensuring standardization in the verb paradigm that yields ‘takes’ for third-person singular present tense.
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Words that rhyme with "takes"
-kes sounds
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