How to pronounce must in American English

IPA /mʌst/ Syllables 1 · muhst Stress 1st syllable

MUHST

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Americans pronounce must as MUHST (/mʌst/). You'll hear it in sentences like "It must be getting close to noon" or "Every student must complete the assignment" — more examples below.

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Sound by sound

Every sound in "must".

1 syllable, 4 sounds. Explore each sound's mouth shape and how it's made.

m/m/

Press your lips together. Air flows through your nose. Vocal cords vibrate.

uh/ʌ/

Relax your lips, jaw, and tongue completely. Drop your jaw slightly and keep the tongue neutral.

s/s/

Place your tongue tip near the roof of your mouth behind your top teeth. Push air through the narrow gap. No voicing.

t/t/

Touch the tip or front edge of your tongue to the roof of your mouth just behind your teeth. Keep your jaw relaxed. Stop the air, then release with a puff.

In real conversation

Hear "must" in the wild.

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

"All contractors must comply with our safety standards while on site."

AHL KAHN·trak·terz muhst kuhm·PLAHY wihth ar SAYF·tee STAN·derdz WAHYL ahn SAHYT

"Democratic institutions must be protected from authoritarian tendencies."

deh·muh·KRA·tuhk ihn·stuh·TOO·shuhnz muhst bee pruh·TEHK·tuhd fruhm uh·thor·uh·TAIR·ee·uhn TEHN·duhn·seez

"Every kernel must be perfect for the famous colonel."

EHV·ree KUR·nuhl muhst bee PUR·fuhkt fer dhuh FAY·muhs KUR·nuhl

"Every student must complete the assignment."

EHV·ree STOO·duhnt muhst kuhm·PLEET dhee uh·SAHYN·muhnt

"I must admit that I had not thought about it that way."

ahy muhst uhd·MIHT dhuht ahy huhd NAHT THAHT uh·BOWT iht DHAT WAY

"I must have packed the wrong bag by accident."

ahy MUHST huhv PAKT dhuh RAHNG BAG bahy AK·suh·duhnt

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Questions

Questions people ask about this.

Is the American pronunciation of "must" 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 "MUHST" reflects the casual American form; British dictionaries typically print a citation form with crisper consonants and different vowel choices.