dh/ð/
Place your tongue tip between or behind your front teeth, turn your vocal cords on, and push air through the gap.
How to pronounce there in American English
DHAIR
Start here
Americans pronounce there as DHAIR (/ðɛr/). The TH in "there" can be produced with the tongue tip pressing just behind the upper teeth rather than coming all the way through — an easier, faster articulation. This is called the Quick TH (the, this, that), how Americans collapse little words. It comes out as DHAIR. You'll hear it in sentences like "The air is fresh there" or "They went there together" — more examples below.
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Sound by sound
Every sound in "there".
1 syllable, 2 sounds. Explore each sound's mouth shape and how it's made.
air/ɛr/
Start with the 'eh' vowel mouth position. Pull the tongue back and up while flaring the lips for the 'r'.
In real conversation
Hear "there" in the wild.
Click any sentence to see the full breakdown — every link, every reduction, every flap-T.
"Are there any other grocery stores around here?"
ar DHAIR EH·nee UH·dher GROH·suh·ree STORZ uh·ROWND HEER
"Breathe together and gather your thoughts there."
BREEDH tuh·GEH·dher and GA·dher yer THAHTS DHAIR
"Can you bring me that thing over there?"
kuhn yuh BRIHNG mee dhat thihng OH·ver DHAIR
"Could you put this over there, please?"
kuud yoo PUUT DHIHS OH·ver DHAIR PLEEZ
"I cannot help but think there might be a better alternative."
ahy KA·naht HEHLP buht thihngk DHAIR mahyt bee uh BEH·der ahl·TUR·nuh·tuhv
"I heard there is a chance of thunderstorms this afternoon."
ahy HURD DHAIR ihz uh CHANS uhv THUHN·der·stormz dhihs af·ter·NOON
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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 "there"?
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 "there" 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 "DHAIR" reflects the casual American form; British dictionaries typically print a citation form with crisper consonants and different vowel choices.
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