Pronunciation

How to pronounce “taught

“taught” is pronounced /tɔt/ (TAWT) in American English and /tɔːt/ in British English — one syllable.
The sound

Say “taught” in one beat

Say it like this

taught

/tɔt/

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

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

American and British are not the same here

American

/tɔt/

British

/tɔːt/

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

Meaning

What “taught” means

  1. verb

    impart skills or knowledge to

    I taught them French

  2. verb

    accustom gradually to some action or attitude

    The child is taught to obey her parents

Say it in a sentence

She taught mathematics in the same school for thirty years.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

2 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

taught”, answered

How do you pronounce “taught”?

“taught” is pronounced /tɔt/ (TAWT) in American English and /tɔːt/ in British English — one syllable. It is one unbroken piece — /tɔt/ — with no pause anywhere inside it.

How many syllables does “taught” have?

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

Is “taught” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /tɔt/ (TAWT); British English says /tɔːt/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “taught” mean?

As a verb: impart skills or knowledge to For example: “I taught them French” It carries 1 other sense as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “taught”?

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

Practise this word

Now say “taught” 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.