m/m/
Press your lips together. Air flows through your nose. Vocal cords vibrate.
How to pronounce marketing in American English
MAR·kuh·tuhng
Start here
Americans pronounce marketing as MAR-kuh-tuhng (/ˈmɑrkəɾəŋ/). In "marketing", the "t" between vowels sounds like a quick "d" — the tongue briefly taps the ridge behind the upper teeth. This is called the Flap T, the kind of sound shift that makes everyday speech feel effortless. It comes out as MAR·kuh·tuhng. Stress falls on the first syllable — keep everything else short and quick. You'll hear it in sentences like "He works in the marketing department" or "The main man managed the marketing meeting" — more examples below.
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Sound by sound
Every sound in "marketing".
3 syllables, 7 sounds. Tap a syllable to jump to its row, then explore each sound's mouth shape and how it's made.
ar/ɑr/
Open wide for the 'ah' vowel. Lift the tongue back and up while flaring the lips for the 'r'.
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/
FlapQuickly bounce the front of your tongue against the roof of your mouth. Don't stop the airflow — just a quick tap.
uh/ʌ/
Relax your lips, jaw, and tongue completely. Drop your jaw slightly and keep the tongue neutral.
ng/ŋ/
Lift the back of your tongue to the soft palate. Lower your soft palate to let air flow through your nose.
In real conversation
Hear "marketing" in the wild.
Click any sentence to see the full breakdown — every link, every reduction, every flap-T.
"He works in the marketing department."
hee WURKS ihn dhuh MAR·kuh·tuhng duh·PART·muhnt
"Her career in marketing is her first priority."
her kuh·REER ihn MAR·kuh·tuhng ihz her FURST prahy·OR·uh·tee
"The main man managed the marketing meeting."
dhuh MAYN MAN MA·nuhjd dhuh MAR·kuh·tuhng MEE·duhng
"We'll be discussing marketing, sales, and future goals."
weel bee duh·SKUH·suhng MAR·kuh·tuhng SAYLZ and FYOO·cher GOHLZ
"While you were out, someone from marketing called."
WAHYL yoo wer OWT SUHM·wuhn fruhm MAR·kuh·tuhng KAHLD
"Who's in charge of the marketing department?"
hooz ihn CHARJ uhv dhuh MAR·kuh·tuhng duh·PART·muhnt
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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.
01
Saying a hard "T" in the middle.
In "marketing", the "t" between vowels sounds like a quick "d" — the tongue briefly taps the ridge behind the upper teeth. /t/ or /d/ becomes a quick tap [ɾ] — sounds like a soft D. The tongue briefly taps the ridge behind the upper teeth.
MAR-kuh-tuhng→MAR·kuh·tuhng
02
Stressing the wrong syllable.
Stress falls on the first syllable, not the others. Stretch MAR — keep everything else short and quick.
mar·KUH·TUHNG→MAR·kuh·tuhng
03
Pronouncing the unstressed syllable too fully.
Don't pronounce the first syllable too fully. The unstressed syllable reduces to a schwa — the lazy "uh" sound — in casual speech.
MAR·KUH·tuhng→MAR·kuh·tuhng
04
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 is "marketing" stressed in American English?
Stress falls on the first syllable — say "MAR" with a longer, fuller vowel and keep every other syllable short and quick. The respell "MAR-kuh-tuhng" marks the stressed syllable in capitals so the rhythm is easy to read at a glance.
Why doesn't the T sound like a T in "marketing"?
In American English, when /t/ sits between two vowels with the second one unstressed, it turns into a quick D-like flap. So "marketing" sounds closer to "MAR-kuh-tuhng" than to a crisp-T pronunciation. This is the flap-T rule, one of the most distinctive sounds of casual American speech.
Why does the second syllable in "marketing" 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 "MAR-kuh-tuhng" shows the reduced form so you can hear the casual rhythm directly.
How do I pronounce the R in "marketing"?
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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