WEE-kuhnz
/ˈwikənz/
weakens is pronounced WEE-kuhnz (/ˈwikənz/). Weakens is a verb meaning to lessen or reduce in strength, impact, or intensity. It denotes a process of becoming weaker or more feeble, often gradually or due to external pressure. In usage, it can describe physical weakness, credibility, or resolve, and is commonly followed by prepositional phrases like 'in' or 'with' to indicate what is being weakened.
Weakens is a verb meaning to lessen or reduce in strength, impact, or intensity. It denotes a process of becoming weaker or more feeble, often gradually or due to external pressure. In usage, it can describe physical weakness, credibility, or resolve, and is commonly followed by prepositional phrases like 'in' or 'with' to indicate what is being weakened.
"The rain weakens the soil until it becomes mud and slippery."
"His argument weakens as new evidence emerges."
"A protracted illness weakens the body over time."
Pronounce it as WEAK-ens with primary stress on WEAK. IPA US/UK/AU: /ˈwiː.kənz/. Start with a long /iː/ as in 'we', then a soft /k/ stop, followed by an unstressed /ənz/ where the 'e' is schwa-like. Think 'WEAK' + 'enz' but with a light, quick ending. Mouth: lips spread for /iː/, tongue high and back for /iː/ then the tongue taps the soft palate for /k/, and finally the schwa /ə/ followed by /nz/.
Common mistakes: (1) Pronouncing as ‘weak-ens’ with a short /i/ or a clipped /kinz/; (2) Deleting the /k/ making it /wiːənz/ or merging /k/ with /ən/; (3) Rendering the final /z/ as a voiceless /s/. Correct by: holding the /iː/ a touch longer to maintain the long vowel, clearly articulating the /k/ as a hard stop, then relaxed /ənz/ with voiced /z/. Practicing rapid sequences helps ensure the phonemes stay distinct.
All three accents share /ˈwiː.kənz/, but rhoticity can affect adjacent sounds in connected speech; non-rhotic accents may drop r sounds in surrounding words but not in the target. UK and US typically maintain a clear /k/ and /z/; Australian tends to a slightly more centralized vowel and a crisp /k/ with strong voicing on /z/. Intonation patterns may influence perceived stress, but the phonemic core remains /ˈwiː.kənz/ across accents.
The difficulty lies in balancing a long high-front vowel /iː/ with a plosive /k/ followed by a voiced final cluster /ənz/. The sequence requires quick timing: hold the /iː/ long enough, execute the /k/ as a clean stop, then release into a fast /ənz/. Non-native speakers often reduce the schwa or merge /ən/ into a syllable, making it sound like /ˈwiː.zənz/ or /ˈwiː.kən/. Practicing slow-to-fast drills helps stabilize the cluster.
The word has a two-syllable structure with a stress on the first syllable; the final /nz/ cluster is a voiced nasal followed by a voiced alveolar fricative. A unique nuance is ensuring the /k/ is fully released and the /ən/ is not reduced too aggressively to /ən/ or /ən/ blended with /z/. Keep the vowel length in the first syllable consistent even when speaking rapidly.
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Weakens derives from the base adjective weak, derived from Old English wæc, linked to Proto-Germanic wakan? and PIE root wē- meaning ‘to be lacking or lacking in strength.’ The verb form likely formed in Middle English by adding the -en suffix to the adjective to produce ‘weaken’ (c. 13th century). Historically, the sense conflated physical frailty with figurative diminishment (credibility, immunity, resolve). The marketplace of the early modern period saw ‘weakens’ used in political and physical metaphor—“to weaken a fortress,” and “to weaken a ruler’s position”—progressing to modern usage where the word frequently collocates with nouns like ‘strength,’ ‘resolve,’ ‘defense,’ and prepositions such as ‘in/with/out.’ The growth of scientific usage in the 19th–20th centuries extended ‘weaken’ to describe processes in physiology and materials science, while contemporary English favors the simple, two-syllable pronunciation /ˈwiː.kənz/. First known use of the verb form is attested in Middle English writings, with variant spellings reflecting the period’s inconsistent orthography. Over time, the semantic range expanded from physical weakness to broad diminution of effectiveness or force, making ‘weaken’ a versatile analytic verb in both everyday and technical contexts.
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Words that rhyme with "weakens"
-ens sounds
-aks sounds
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