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.
How to pronounce term in American English
TURM
Start here
Americans pronounce term as TURM (/tɜrm/). You'll hear it in sentences like "Her work on the term paper was perfect" or "She set financial goals for the short term and the long term" — more examples below.
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Sound by sound
Every sound in "term".
1 syllable, 3 sounds. Explore each sound's mouth shape and how it's made.
ur/ɜr/
Flare your lips and push them away from the face. Lift the middle of your tongue toward the roof of the mouth.
m/m/
Press your lips together. Air flows through your nose. Vocal cords vibrate.
In real conversation
Hear "term" in the wild.
Click any sentence to see the full breakdown — every link, every reduction, every flap-T.
"Her work on the term paper was perfect."
HUR WURK ahn dhuh TURM PAY·per wuhz PUR·fuhkt
"I encourage you to consider the long-term benefits we have discussed."
ahy uhn·KUR·ihj yoo tuh kuhn·SIH·der dhuh lahng TURM BEH·nuh·fuhts wee huhv duh·SKUHST
"She set financial goals for the short term and the long term."
shee SEHT fuh·NAN·shuhl GOHLZ fer dhuh SHORT TURM and dhuh lahng TURM
"The incumbent is seeking reelection for a second consecutive term."
dhee uhn·KUHM·buhnt ihz SEE·kuhng ree·uh·LEHK·shuhn fer uh SEH·kuhnd kuhn·SEH·kyuh·tuhv TURM
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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 "term"?
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 "term" 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 "TURM" reflects the casual American form; British dictionaries typically print a citation form with crisper consonants and different vowel choices.
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