Pronunciation

How to pronounce “forced

“forced” is pronounced /fɔɹst/ (FAWRST) in American English and /fɔːst/ in British English — one syllable.
The sound

Say “forced” in one beat

Say it like this

forced

/fɔɹst/

The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /fɔːst/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.

1 beat
  1. forcedfɔɹst
IPA (American)
/fɔɹst/
IPA (British)
/fɔːst/
Respelling
FAWRST
Syllables
1 — forced
Stress
One syllable, so the whole word carries the beat — say /fɔɹst/ in one unbroken piece rather than clipping the vowel.
Part of speech
verb, adjective
Difficulty
Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/fɔɹst/

British

/fɔːst/

No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.

Meaning

What “forced” means

  1. verb

    to cause to do through pressure or necessity, by physical, moral or intellectual means :

    She forced him to take a job in the city

  2. verb

    urge or force (a person) to an action; constrain or motivate

  3. verb

    move with force,

    He pushed the table into a corner

Say it in a sentence

The heavy rain forced them to cancel the picnic.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

5 sounds, in the order you say them

Each sound has its own page: where the tongue goes, what it is usually confused with, and words to drill it on.

Questions

forced”, answered

How do you pronounce “forced”?

“forced” is pronounced /fɔɹst/ (FAWRST) in American English and /fɔːst/ in British English — one syllable. It is one unbroken piece — /fɔɹst/ — with no pause anywhere inside it.

How many syllables does “forced” have?

One, despite the 2 vowel letters in the spelling. The whole word is /fɔɹst/ — a single beat.

Is “forced” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /fɔɹst/ (FAWRST); British English says /fɔːst/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “forced” mean?

As a verb: to cause to do through pressure or necessity, by physical, moral or intellectual means : For example: “She forced him to take a job in the city” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “forced”?

One syllable, so the whole word carries the beat — say /fɔɹst/ in one unbroken piece rather than clipping the vowel.

Practise this word

Now say “forced” 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.