How to pronounce fourth in American English

IPA /fɔrθ/ Syllables 1 · forth Stress 1st syllable

FORTH

Start here

Americans pronounce fourth as FORTH (/fɔrθ/). You'll hear it in sentences like "The fourth month is the birth of the earth".

Now you try.

Record yourself saying "fourth" and play it back. The mic stays on your device — nothing's uploaded.

Ready when you are

Tap the mic to start

Preview your accent profile

Get your accent profile and 5-axes assessment.

Sounds

75%

Clarity

68%

Stress

78%

Intonation

65%

Fluency

62%

Overall assessment

Our AI coach listens to your recording and grades 5 dimensions of pronunciation — then tells you exactly what to fix next.

72% Noticeable accent

Common mistakes

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.

Unlock the full report in the app

Sound by sound

Every sound in "fourth".

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

f/f/

Lift your bottom lip to touch the very bottom of your top front teeth. Blow air through this contact point without voicing.

or/ɔr/

Start with the 'aw' jaw drop and rounded lips. Pull the tongue back and up while keeping the lips rounded for the R.

th/θ/

Place the very tip of your tongue slightly between your teeth. Blow air gently around it without voicing.

In real conversation

Hear "fourth" in the wild.

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

"The fourth month is the birth of the earth."

dhuh FORTH muhnth ihz dhuh BURTH uhv dhee URTH

Find another

Looking for a different word or sentence?

Search the entire library

Press / anywhere to focus the search box.

Watch out

Common pronunciation mistakes in American English.

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

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 "fourth"?

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 "fourth" 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 "FORTH" reflects the casual American form; British dictionaries typically print a citation form with crisper consonants and different vowel choices.

Now you try.

Get your accent profile and 5-axes assessment.

Overall assessment

Common mistakes

Pronouncing the "R" too clearly.

Every sound in "fourth".

Hear "fourth" in the wild.

Words that work the same way.

Looking for a different word or sentence?

Common pronunciation mistakes in American English.

Pronouncing the "R" too clearly.

Questions people ask about this.

Stop reading about "fourth". Start saying it.