s/s/
Place your tongue tip near the roof of your mouth behind your top teeth. Push air through the narrow gap. No voicing.
How to pronounce sports in American English
SPORTS
Start here
Americans pronounce sports as SPORTS (/spɔrts/). You'll hear it in sentences like "The mouthguard protects his teeth during contact sports" or "He enjoys the camaraderie of being part of a sports team" — more examples below.
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Sound by sound
Every sound in "sports".
1 syllable, 5 sounds. Explore each sound's mouth shape and how it's made.
p/p/
Press your lips together to stop the air, then release. No vocal cord vibration.
or/ɔr/
Start with the 'aw' jaw drop and rounded lips. Pull the tongue back and up while keeping the lips rounded 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.
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 "sports" in the wild.
Click any sentence to see the full breakdown — every link, every reduction, every flap-T.
"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
"He enjoys the solitude of participating in individual sports."
hee uhn·JOYZ dhuh SAH·luh·tood uhv par·TIH·suh·pay·duhng ihn ihn·duh·VIH·joo·uhl SPORTS
"He participated in intramural sports to stay active and social."
hee per·TIH·suh·pay·duhd ihn ihn·truh·MYUUR·uhl SPORTS tuh STAY AK·tuhv and SOH·shuhl
"He suffered a sports injury and is going to physical therapy."
hee SUH·ferd uh SPORTS IHN·juh·ree and ihz GOH·uhng tuh FIH·zuh·kuhl THEH·ruh·pee
"She enjoys the pageantry and tradition of college sports."
shee uhn·JOYZ dhuh PA·juhn·tree and truh·DIH·shuhn uhv KAH·luhj SPORTS
"The mouthguard protects his teeth during contact sports."
dhuh MOWTH·gard pruh·TEHKTS hihz TEETH DUUR·uhng KAHN·takt SPORTS
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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
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 "sports"?
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 "sports" 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 "SPORTS" reflects the casual American form; British dictionaries typically print a citation form with crisper consonants and different vowel choices.
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