How To Pronounce Cough

cough

Phonemic

/kɒf/

Phonetic

[kʰʷɒf]

Phonemic

/kɔːf/

In British English, cough is pronounced /kɒf/. The narrow phonetic transcription is [kʰʷɒf]. In American English, it is pronounced /kɔːf/.

Cough has one syllable. The British and American pronunciations are different, so listen to both.

Slashes / / show the phonemic transcription, the sounds that change meaning. Square brackets [ ] show the phonetic transcription, with the finer detail of how the sounds are actually made.

Syllables, Stress And Endings

Syllables And Stress

kɒf

Cough has one syllable in British English.

cough + -s

-s (plural, possessive or singular verb) is /s/ after a voiceless consonant.

/kɒfs/

/kɔːfs/

cough + -ed

-ed (past tense or past participle) is /t/ after a voiceless consonant.

/kɒft/

/kɔːft/

cough + -ing

-ing is always /ɪŋ/.

/ˈkɒf.ɪŋ/

/ˈkɔː.fɪŋ/

Words That Rhyme With Cough

Questions About Cough

How do you pronounce cough in British English?

In British English, cough is pronounced /kɒf/. The narrow phonetic transcription is [kʰʷɒf].

How do you pronounce cough in American English?

In American English, cough is pronounced /kɔːf/.

Do British and American English pronounce cough the same way?

No. British English has /kɒf/ and American English has /kɔːf/.

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