How to pronounce risotto in American English
rih·ZAH·toh
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Americans pronounce risotto as rih-ZAH-toh (/rɪˈzɑɾoʊ/). The T between vowels softens into a quick D-like flap, so it sounds closer to a D than a crisp T. Stress falls on the second syllable — keep everything else short and quick.
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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
Stressing the wrong syllable.
Stress falls on the second syllable, not the others. Stretch ZAH — keep everything else short and quick.
RIH·zah·TOH→rih·ZAH·toh
Questions
Questions people ask about this.
How is "risotto" stressed in American English?
Stress falls on the second syllable — say "ZAH" with a longer, fuller vowel and keep every other syllable short and quick. The respell "rih-ZAH-toh" 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 "risotto"?
In American English, when /t/ sits between two vowels with the second one unstressed, it turns into a quick D-like flap. So "risotto" sounds closer to "rih-ZAH-toh" than to a crisp-T pronunciation. This is the flap-T rule, one of the most distinctive sounds of casual American speech.
Is the American pronunciation of "risotto" 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 "rih-ZAH-toh" reflects the casual American form; British dictionaries typically print a citation form with crisper consonants and different vowel choices.
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