How to pronounce cut in American English

IPA /kʌt/ Syllables 1 · kuht Stress 1st syllable

KUHT

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Americans pronounce cut as KUHT (/kʌt/). You'll hear it in sentences like "Cut the bun" or "I'm trying to cut down on coffee" — more examples below.

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Sounds

75%

Clarity

68%

Stress

78%

Intonation

65%

Fluency

62%

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72% Noticeable accent

Common mistakes

Releasing the final consonant with a puff of air.

In "cut", the "t" 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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Sound by sound

Every sound in "cut".

1 syllable, 3 sounds. Explore each sound's mouth shape and how it's made.

k/k/

Raise the back of your tongue to touch the soft palate (velum). Stop the air, then release.

uh/ʌ/

Relax your lips, jaw, and tongue completely. Drop your jaw slightly and keep the tongue neutral.

t/t/

Touch the tip or front edge of your tongue to the roof of your mouth just behind your teeth. Keep your jaw relaxed. Stop the air, then release with a puff.

In real conversation

Hear "cut" in the wild.

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

"Cut the bun."

KUHT dhuh BUHN

"I'm trying to cut down on coffee."

ahym TRAHY·uhng tuh KUHT DOWN ahn KAH·fee

"She cut the apple right down the middle."

shee KUHT dhee A·puhl RAHYT DOWN dhuh MIH·duhl

"The butcher recommended this cut of meat for the recipe."

dhuh BUU·cher reh·kuh·MEHN·duhd dhihs KUHT uhv meet fer dhuh REH·suh·pee

"The budget for the construction was suddenly cut."

dhuh BUH·juht fer dhuh kuhn·STRUHK·shuhn wuhz SUH·duhn·lee KUHT

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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 "cut", the "t" 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.

cut→KUHT

Questions

Questions people ask about this.

Is the American pronunciation of "cut" 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 "KUHT" reflects the casual American form; British dictionaries typically print a citation form with crisper consonants and different vowel choices.

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Overall assessment

Common mistakes

Releasing the final consonant with a puff of air.

Every sound in "cut".

Hear "cut" in the wild.

Words that work the same way.

Looking for a different word or sentence?

Common pronunciation mistakes in American English.

Releasing the final consonant with a puff of air.

Questions people ask about this.

Stop reading about "cut". Start saying it.