p/p/
Press your lips together to stop the air, then release. No vocal cord vibration.
How to pronounce part in American English
PART
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Americans pronounce part as PART (/pɑrt/). You'll hear it in sentences like "The star is far from the hard part" or "I understand the last part of your plan" — more examples below.
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Sound by sound
Every sound in "part".
1 syllable, 3 sounds. 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'.
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 "part" in the wild.
Click any sentence to see the full breakdown — every link, every reduction, every flap-T.
"Are you part of the guard that guards the yard?"
ar yoo PART uhv dhuh GARD dhuht GARDZ dhuh YARD
"He conducted interviews as part of his qualitative research study."
hee kuhn·DUHK·tuhd IHN·ter·vyooz uhz PART uhv hihz KWAH·luh·tay·duhv REE·surch STUH·dee
"He enjoys the camaraderie of being part of a sports team."
hee uhn·JOYZ dhuh ka·muh·RAH·duh·ree uhv BEE·uhng PART uhv uh SPORTS TEEM
"I am honored to be part of your wedding party on your special day."
ahy am AH·nerd tuh bee PART uhv yer WEH·duhng PAR·tee ahn yer SPEH·shuhl DAY
"I auditioned for the lead role but got a part in the chorus."
ahy ah·DIH·shuhnd fer dhuh LEED ROHL buht GAHT uh PART ihn dhuh KOR·uhs
"I understand the last part of your plan."
ahy uhn·der·STAND dhuh last PART uhv yor PLAN
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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
Releasing the final consonant with a puff of air.
In "part", the "t" 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.
part→PART
02
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 "part"?
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 "part" 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 "PART" reflects the casual American form; British dictionaries typically print a citation form with crisper consonants and different vowel choices.
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