How to pronounce hurt in American English

IPA /hɜrt/ Syllables 1 · hurt Stress 1st syllable

HURT

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Americans pronounce hurt as HURT (/hɜrt/). The R is one continuous sound with the vowel — the tongue curls back rather than rolling.

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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

Releasing the final consonant with a puff of air.

In "hurt", 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.

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.

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Why it sounds different

Why "hurt" sounds like HURT.

In "hurt", the "" is not released — the articulators get into position but hold without the burst of air. This is called the Unreleased Stops, a small move that separates 'classroom' from 'native'. It comes out as HURT.

In real conversation

Hear "hurt" in the wild.

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

"Beck hurt his back while riding a heavy bike."

BEHK HURT hihz BAK WAHYL RAHY·duhng uh HEH·vee BAHYK

"Certainly, the service was worthy of hurt."

SUR·tuhn·lee dhuh SUR·vuhs wuhz WUR·dhee uhv HURT

"He hurt his knee while jogging and needed to see a doctor."

hee HURT hihz NEE WAHYL JAH·guhng and NEE·duhd tuh SEE uh DAHK·ter

"I did not mean to hurt your feelings and I deeply regret it."

ahy dihd NAHT MEEN tuh HURT yer FEE·luhngz and ahy DEE·plee ruh·GREHT iht

"I realize I hurt you and I feel terrible about it."

ahy REE·uh·lahyz ahy HURT yoo and ahy FEEL TEH·ruh·buhl uh·BOWT iht

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 "hurt", 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.

hurt→HURT

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 "hurt"?

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 "hurt" 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 "HURT" 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.

Pronouncing the "R" too clearly.

Why "hurt" sounds like HURT.

Hear "hurt" in the wild.

Words that work the same way.

Common pronunciation mistakes in American English.

Releasing the final consonant with a puff of air.

Pronouncing the "R" too clearly.

Questions people ask about this.

Stop reading about "hurt". Start saying it.