How to pronounce broke in American English

IPA /broʊk/ Syllables 1 · brohk Stress 1st syllable

BROHK

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Americans pronounce broke as BROHK (/broʊk/).

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Sounds

75%

Clarity

68%

Stress

78%

Intonation

65%

Fluency

62%

Overall assessment

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72% Noticeable accent

Common mistakes

Releasing the final consonant with a puff of air.

In "broke", the "" is not released — the articulators get into position but hold without the burst of air. Air stops but there's no release burst — the articulators hold position.

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Why it sounds different

Why "broke" sounds like BROHK.

In "broke", the "" is not released — the articulators get into position but hold without the burst of air. This is called the Unreleased Stops, and it's why Americans sound more relaxed than the textbook. It comes out as BROHK.

In real conversation

Hear "broke" in the wild.

Click any sentence to see the full breakdown — every link, every reduction, every flap-T.

"He broke his own personal record in the hundred-meter sprint."

hee BROHK hihz ohn PUR·suh·nuhl REH·kerd ihn dhuh HUHN·druhd MEE·der SPRIHNT

"I broke down large assignments into smaller manageable tasks."

ahy BROHK DOWN LARJ uh·SAHYN·muhnts ihn·too SMAH·ler MA·nuh·juh·buhl TASKS

"My brother broke the new vase."

mahy BRUH·dher BROHK dhuh noo VAYS

"She broke a sweat after only ten minutes on the treadmill."

shee BROHK uh SWEHT AF·ter OHN·lee TEHN MIH·nuhts ahn dhuh TREHD·mihl

"The air conditioner broke down right in the middle of summer."

dhee AIR kuhn·DIH·shuh·ner BROHK DOWN RAHYT ihn dhuh MIH·duhl uhv SUH·mer

"The big blue bus broke down on the bridge."

dhuh BIHG BLOO BUHS BROHK DOWN AHN dhuh BRIHJ

Watch out

Common pronunciation mistakes in American English.

The textbook way isn't wrong — it's just not how anyone actually says it.

Releasing the final consonant with a puff of air.

In "broke", the "" is not released — the articulators get into position but hold without the burst of air. Air stops but there's no release burst — the articulators hold position.

broke→BROHK

Questions

Questions people ask about this.

Is the American pronunciation of "broke" different from British English?

American English uses different vowel shapes, a relaxed retroflex R, and connected-speech tricks like flap-T and glottal-stop T that British Received Pronunciation generally avoids. The respell "BROHK" reflects the casual American form; British dictionaries typically print a citation form with crisper consonants and different vowel choices.

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Common mistakes

Releasing the final consonant with a puff of air.

Why "broke" sounds like BROHK.

Hear "broke" in the wild.

Words that work the same way.

Common pronunciation mistakes in American English.

Releasing the final consonant with a puff of air.

Questions people ask about this.

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