How to pronounce forgotten in American English

IPA /fərˈgɑʔn/ Syllables 3 · fer·gah·tuhn Stress 2nd syllable

fer·GAH·tuhn

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Americans pronounce forgotten as fer-GAH-tuhn (/fərˈgɑʔn/). The T closes off into a tiny silent pause — a glottal stop — instead of a clean release. Stress falls on the second syllable — keep everything else short and quick.

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Intonation

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Common mistakes

Releasing the T before the syllabic N.

In "forgotten", the "t" before the syllabic nasal becomes a glottal stop — a catch in the throat where the schwa drops and the nasal becomes syllabic. /t/ becomes a glottal stop [ʔ] — a catch in the throat. The schwa in the following syllable is dropped, making the nasal syllabic.

Inserting a vowel before the syllabic consonant.

In "forgotten", the short unstressed vowel before "" disappears — the schwa is absorbed and the "" becomes the syllable nucleus on its own. Schwa is absorbed — consonant becomes the syllable nucleus.

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Why it sounds different

Why "forgotten" sounds like fer·GAH·tuhn.

In "forgotten", the "t" before the syllabic nasal becomes a glottal stop — a catch in the throat where the schwa drops and the nasal becomes syllabic. This is called the Glottal T, a small move that separates 'classroom' from 'native'. It comes out as fer·GAH·tuhn.

In real conversation

Hear "forgotten" in the wild.

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

"Have you forgotten your password again?"

hav yoo fer·GAH·tuhn yer PAS·werd uh·GEHN

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 T before the syllabic N.

fer-GAH-tuhn→fer·GAH·tuhn

Inserting a vowel before the syllabic consonant.

forgotten→fer·GAH·tuhn

Stressing the wrong syllable.

Stress falls on the second syllable, not the others. Stretch GAH — keep everything else short and quick.

FER·gah·TUHN→fer·GAH·tuhn

Pronouncing the unstressed syllable too fully.

Don't pronounce the second syllable too fully. The unstressed syllable reduces to a schwa — the lazy "uh" sound — in casual speech.

fer·GAH·TUHN→fer·GAH·tuhn

Questions

Questions people ask about this.

How is "forgotten" stressed in American English?

Stress falls on the second syllable — say "GAH" with a longer, fuller vowel and keep every other syllable short and quick. The respell "fer-GAH-tuhn" marks the stressed syllable in capitals so the rhythm is easy to read at a glance.

Why does the T sound silent in "forgotten"?

It isn't fully silent — the T closes off into a tiny throat catch called a glottal stop, then the next sound comes through. The respell "fer-GAH-tuhn" reflects the audible result. Americans use this glottal-stop T whenever a /t/ sits between a stressed vowel and an N (or another /t/-like consonant) at the end of a word.

Why does the third syllable in "forgotten" reduce to "uh"?

Unstressed syllables in American English collapse toward a schwa — a lazy, neutral "uh" sound. The full vowel is what textbooks teach, but in actual American speech every unstressed vowel reduces. The respell "fer-GAH-tuhn" shows the reduced form so you can hear the casual rhythm directly.

How do I pronounce the R in "forgotten"?

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.

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Common mistakes

Releasing the T before the syllabic N.

Inserting a vowel before the syllabic consonant.

Why "forgotten" sounds like fer·GAH·tuhn.

Hear "forgotten" in the wild.

Words that work the same way.

Common pronunciation mistakes in American English.

Releasing the T before the syllabic N.

Inserting a vowel before the syllabic consonant.

Stressing the wrong syllable.

Pronouncing the unstressed syllable too fully.

Questions people ask about this.

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