How to pronounce quotes in American English

IPA /kwoʊts/ Syllables 1 · kwohts Stress 1st syllable

KWOHTS

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Americans pronounce quotes as KWOHTS (/kwoʊts/). You'll hear it in sentences like "She highlights her favorite quotes and passages in the book".

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Sound by sound

Every sound in "quotes".

1 syllable, 5 sounds. Explore each sound's mouth shape and how it's made.

k/k/

Raise the back of your tongue to touch the soft palate (velum). Stop the air, then release.

w/w/

Round your lips into a tight circle. Lift the back of your tongue toward the soft palate and add voice.

oh/oʊ/

Start with your mouth slightly open, then close your jaw slightly as your lips round. Shift your tongue back slightly, then stretch the back up.

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.

s/s/

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

In real conversation

Hear "quotes" in the wild.

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

"She highlights her favorite quotes and passages in the book."

shee HAHY·lahyts her FAY·ver·uht KWOHTS and PA·suh·juhz ihn dhuh BUUK

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Questions

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