How to pronounce “bought”
Say “bought” in one beat
bought
/bɔt/
The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /bɔːt/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.
- boughtbɔt
- IPA (American)
- /bɔt/
- IPA (British)
- /bɔːt/
- Respelling
- BAWT
- Syllables
- 1 — bought
- Stress
- One syllable, so the whole word carries the beat — say /bɔt/ in one unbroken piece rather than clipping the vowel.
- Part of speech
- verb
- Difficulty
- Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
American and British are not the same here
/bɔt/
/bɔːt/
No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.
Where “bought” goes wrong
- Often heard
“BOH-t”
the ough here is the vowel of law, and the gh is silent
What “bought” means
- verb
obtain by purchase; acquire by means of a financial transaction
“The family purchased a new car”
- verb
make illegal payments to in exchange for favors or influence
“This judge can be bought”
- verb
be worth or be capable of buying
“This sum will buy you a ride on the train”
Say it in a sentence
“She bought the house before she had even seen the garden.”“bought”, answered
How do you pronounce “bought”?
“bought” is pronounced /bɔt/ (BAWT) in American English and /bɔːt/ in British English — one syllable. It is one unbroken piece — /bɔt/ — with no pause anywhere inside it.
How many syllables does “bought” have?
One, despite the 2 vowel letters in the spelling. The whole word is /bɔt/ — a single beat.
Is “bought” said differently in British English?
Yes. American English says /bɔt/ (BAWT); British English says /bɔːt/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.
What does “bought” mean?
As a verb: obtain by purchase; acquire by means of a financial transaction For example: “The family purchased a new car” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.
Where is the stress in “bought”?
One syllable, so the whole word carries the beat — say /bɔt/ in one unbroken piece rather than clipping the vowel.
Now say “bought” and see every sound
Record it once and sayit lines your audio up against the target sound by sound — what landed, what slipped, and what it sounded like instead.