VEN-churz
/ˈvɛntʃɚz/
ventures is pronounced VEN-churz (/ˈvɛntʃɚz/). Ventures is the plural noun or verb form of venture, meaning bold undertakings or to undertake risky journeys or activities. In business or everyday use, it often refers to speculative projects or enterprises, or to the action of taking on risks for potential gain. The word carries an active, forward-facing sense of exploration and initiative.
Ventures is the plural noun or verb form of venture, meaning bold undertakings or to undertake risky journeys or activities. In business or everyday use, it often refers to speculative projects or enterprises, or to the action of taking on risks for potential gain. The word carries an active, forward-facing sense of exploration and initiative.
- You might insert an extra vowel before the /t͡ʃ/ in the second syllable, saying /ˈven.tɜːrəz/; aim for a tight /t͡ʃə/ cluster: /t͡ʃər/. - Treating /ər/ as a hard /ɜr/; keep it lighter and shorter as /ər/ or /ə/ depending on accent; avoid a full /ɜr/ diphthong in the unstressed schwa. - Final /z/ can be devoiced in rapid speech; practice keeping it voiced with gentle breath and not turning it into /s/ or dropping it entirely. - Don’t reduce the first syllable too much; the stress must be on the first syllable and the vowel should be clear: /ˈven/ rather than /ˈvenɪ/. - In fast speech, you may merge the /n/ and /t͡ʃ/; keep the /n/ clearly before /t͡ʃ/ to avoid a misread /ˈvɛn/ˌtʃɚz.
"- The new tech start-ups entered several international ventures this year."
"- She ventures into untested markets with cautious confidence."
"- They ventured a risky investment, hoping for high returns."
Pronounced /ˈven.t͡ʃərz/ in US/UK/AU. Start with a stressed VEN-syllable: /ˈven/. The second syllable is a relaxed /t͡ʃər/ where the /t͡ʃ/ blends into a light /ə/ (schwa) and a rhotacized or reduced vowel before the final /z/. The final sound is a voiced /z/. Tip: keep the tongue high for /t͡ʃ/ and avoid a heavy /dʒ/; it’s a crisp /t͡ʃ/ + schwa + r-like vowel with z.
Common errors include saying /ˈven.tɜrɪz/ with a full vowel in the second syllable, turning /t͡ʃ/ into a /d͡ʒ/ (ve-ndu-ers), or over-shortening the final /z/ making it /s/. Correction: keep the second syllable as /t͡ʃər/ with a light schwa and reduced r-sound, and end with a clear voiced /z/. Practice with minimal pairs like vent-churs vs vent-shurs to isolate /t͡ʃ/ vs /d͡ʒ/.
In US and UK, /ˈven.t͡ʃərz/ with a rhotics or near-rhotic vowel before the z depending on speaker; the /r/ in the second syllable is often non-rhotic in many UK dialects but still present as a schwa+ r-palatalization. Australian speakers tend to maintain a more non-rhotic pattern, with /ˈven.t͡ʃəːz/ or /ˈven.t͡ʃərz/ depending on the speaker. Overall: stress on first syllable, second syllable reduced, final /z/ voiced.
Because it combines a /t͡ʃ/ consonant cluster after a stressed syllable (VEN), followed by a reduced vowel before a voiced final /z/. The /t͡ʃ/ must be crisp and not bleed into /n/; the second syllable has a schwa with r-colored or non-rhotic coloring depending on accent, which can be tricky for non-native speakers. The final /z/ requires voicing and breath control to avoid an aspirated or hissy ending.
Yes. When plural or third-person singular verb form, the ending is /z/ (voiced). Don’t add an extra syllable or pronounce it as /ɪz/ or /əz/ unless in connected speech where a brief vowel may soften before the /z/. Ensure the final /z/ is clearly voiced and not devoiced to /s/.
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- US: emphasize rhoticity in the second syllable, with a clear /ər/ and laxer vowel; end with a strong /z/. /ˈven.t͡ʃɚz/ - UK: lean toward a non-rhotic second syllable in some speakers; perceptibly less rhotic color, potential /ə/ rather than /ər/. /ˈven.tʃəːz/ or /ˈven.tʃərz/ - AU: mid-to-light rhoticity, often a reduced final vowel; maintain final voicing: /ˈven.t͡ʃəz/ or /ˈven.t͡ʃərz/ depending on region. - In all: keep stress on the first syllable, crisp /t͡ʃ/, and final /z/ clearly voiced.
Ventures comes from the Old French aventure, meaning “a dangerous or daring undertaking,” ultimately rooted in the Latin word adventurus, meaning “about to happen.” The lineage traces to the Latin advenire, “to come to, reach, arrive,” combined with ventura, “fortune, enterprise.” In Middle English, ventures solidified as both noun and verb, capturing the sense of undertaking risks for potential reward. The word’s semantic arc reflects movement into unknowns and the willingness to face potential harm for a possible benefit, a nuance that has persisted as commerce and exploration expanded across Europe and later globally. Over centuries, ventures evolved from literal journeys and explorations to abstract enterprises—business ventures, ventures into new fields, and risk-taking strategies—while retaining the core emphasis on initiative, risk, and forward momentum. First known uses surface in medieval texts referencing undertakings of uncertain outcome. By the 16th–18th centuries, venture appears in legal and commercial contexts, often describing speculative projects or joint ventures between parties. In modern English, ventures frequently pair with adjectives like bold, new, or international, and with verbs like pursue, undertake, or launch, preserving the sense of active engagement with uncertain outcomes. The plural form ventures remains common in business discourse to denote multiple undertakings or activities.
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Words that rhyme with "ventures"
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