Pronunciation

How to pronounce “north

“north” is pronounced /nɔɹθ/ (NAWRTH) in American English and /nɔːθ/ in British English — one syllable.
The sound

Say “north” in one beat

Say it like this

north

/nɔɹθ/

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

1 beat
  1. northnɔɹθ
IPA (American)
/nɔɹθ/
IPA (British)
/nɔːθ/
Respelling
NAWRTH
Syllables
1 — north
Stress
One syllable, so the whole word carries the beat — say /nɔɹθ/ in one unbroken piece rather than clipping the vowel.
Part of speech
noun, adjective, adverb
Difficulty
Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/nɔɹθ/

British

/nɔːθ/

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

Meaning

What “north” means

  1. noun

    the region of the United States lying to the north of the Mason-Dixon line

  2. noun

    the United States (especially the northern states during the American Civil War)

    he has visited every state in the Union

  3. noun

    the cardinal compass point that is at 0 or 360 degrees

Say it in a sentence

The cabin sits just north of the small mountain town.
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

north”, answered

How do you pronounce “north”?

“north” is pronounced /nɔɹθ/ (NAWRTH) in American English and /nɔːθ/ in British English — one syllable. It is one unbroken piece — /nɔɹθ/ — with no pause anywhere inside it.

How many syllables does “north” have?

One, despite the 1 vowel letters in the spelling. The whole word is /nɔɹθ/ — a single beat.

Is “north” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /nɔɹθ/ (NAWRTH); British English says /nɔːθ/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “north” mean?

As a noun: the region of the United States lying to the north of the Mason-Dixon line For example: “The cabin sits just north of the small mountain town.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “north”?

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

Practise this word

Now say “north” 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.