How to pronounce earth in American English
URTH
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Americans pronounce earth as URTH (/ɜrθ/). The R is one continuous sound with the vowel — the tongue curls back rather than rolling.
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"Gravity is the force that attracts objects toward the center of the earth."
GRA·vuh·dee ihz dhuh FORS dhuht uh·TRAKTS AHB·jehkts tuh·WORD dhuh SEHN·ter uhv dhee URTH
"Search the earth for the perfect perch."
SURCH dhee URTH fer dhuh PUR·fuhkt PURCH
"She tracked the path of the comet as it passed by Earth."
shee TRAKT dhuh PATH uhv dhuh KAH·muht uhz iht PAST bahy URTH
"The earth rotates on its axis, causing day and night."
dhee URTH ROH·tayts ahn ihts AK·suhs KAH·zuhng DAY and NAHYT
"The fourth month is the birth of the earth."
dhuh FORTH muhnth ihz dhuh BURTH uhv dhee URTH
"The theory of evolution explains the diversity of species on Earth."
dhuh THEER·ee uhv eh·vuh·LOO·shuhn uhk·SPLAYNZ dhuh duh·VUR·suh·tee uhv SPEE·sheez ahn URTH
Watch out
Common pronunciation mistakes in American English.
The textbook way isn't wrong — it's just not how anyone actually says it.
01
Pronouncing the "R" too clearly.
Americans use a relaxed retroflex R — the tongue curls back rather than rolling. The R is one continuous sound with the vowel before it, not two separate sounds.
… (no R)→… r (curl the tongue)
Questions
Questions people ask about this.
How do I pronounce the R in "earth"?
Americans use a relaxed retroflex R: the tongue curls back rather than rolling, and the R is one continuous sound with the vowel before it — not two separate sounds. Don't try to pronounce a separate vowel followed by a separate R. Treat them as a single shape.
Is the American pronunciation of "earth" 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 "URTH" reflects the casual American form; British dictionaries typically print a citation form with crisper consonants and different vowel choices.
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