Pronunciation

How to pronounce “forte

“forte” is pronounced /fɔɹt/ (FORT) in American English and /fɔːt/ in British English, and /ˈfɔɹteɪ/ is also accepted — one syllable.
The sound

Say “forte” in one beat

Say it like this

forte

/fɔɹt/

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

1 beat
  1. fortefɔɹt
IPA (American)
/fɔɹt/
IPA (British)
/fɔːt/
Also accepted
/ˈfɔɹteɪ/
Respelling
FORT
Syllables
1 — forte
Stress
One syllable, so the whole word carries the beat — say /fɔɹt/ in one unbroken piece rather than clipping the vowel.
Part of speech
noun, adjective, adverb
Difficulty
Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/fɔɹt/

British

/fɔːt/

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

Also accepted

/ˈfɔɹteɪ/
Watch out

Where “forte” goes wrong

  • Often heard

    FOR-tay

    for a personal strength it is one syllable, FORT; FOR-tay is the musical term

Meaning

What “forte” means

  1. noun

    an asset of special worth or utility

    cooking is his forte

  2. noun

    (music) loud

  3. noun

    the stronger part of a sword blade between the hilt and the foible

Say it in a sentence

Numbers are not my forte, so I asked my sister to check.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

4 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

forte”, answered

How do you pronounce “forte”?

“forte” is pronounced /fɔɹt/ (FORT) in American English and /fɔːt/ in British English, and /ˈfɔɹteɪ/ is also accepted — one syllable. It is one unbroken piece — /fɔɹt/ — with no pause anywhere inside it.

How many syllables does “forte” have?

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

Is “forte” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /fɔɹt/ (FORT); British English says /fɔːt/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “forte” mean?

As a noun: an asset of special worth or utility For example: “cooking is his forte” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “forte”?

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

Practise this word

Now say “forte” 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.