How to pronounce through in American English

IPA /θru/ Syllables 1 · throo

throo

Start here

Americans pronounce through as throo (/θru/). You'll hear it in sentences like "There's a path through the trees" or "I need to get through this thick book" — more examples below.

Now you try.

Record yourself saying "through" and play it back. The mic stays on your device — nothing's uploaded.

Ready when you are

Tap the mic to start

Preview your accent profile

Get your accent profile and 5-axes assessment.

Sounds

75%

Clarity

68%

Stress

78%

Intonation

65%

Fluency

62%

Overall assessment

Our AI coach listens to your recording and grades 5 dimensions of pronunciation — then tells you exactly what to fix next.

72% Noticeable accent

Unlock the full report in the app

Sound by sound

Every sound in "through".

1 syllable, 3 sounds. Explore each sound's mouth shape and how it's made.

th/θ/

Place the very tip of your tongue slightly between your teeth. Blow air gently around it without voicing.

r/r/

Curl or bunch your tongue without letting the tip touch the roof of your mouth. Brace the sides of your tongue against your upper back teeth, and round your lips slightly.

oo/u/

Round your lips into a tight circle. Let your tongue rest in the middle of your mouth, slightly raised.

In real conversation

Hear "through" in the wild.

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

"Both math and ethics are worth thinking through."

BOHTH MATH and EH·thuhks er WURTH THIHNG·kuhng throo

"Cells divide and replicate through a process called mitosis."

SEHLZ duh·VAHYD and REH·pluh·kayt throo uh PRAH·sehs KAHLD mahy·TOH·suhs

"Electricity is the flow of electrons through a conductor."

uh·leh·KTRIH·suh·tee ihz dhuh FLOH uhv ih·LEH·ktrahnz throo uh kuhn·DUHK·ter

"He improved his agility through specific drills."

hee uhm·PROOVD hihz uh·JIH·luh·tee throo spuh·SIH·fuhk DRIHLZ

"He navigated through the dense fog using a compass."

hee NA·vuh·gay·duhd throo dhuh DEHNS FAHG YOO·zuhng uh KUHM·puhs

"He observed the meteor shower through his backyard telescope."

hee uhb·ZURVD dhuh MEE·dee·or SHOW·er throo hihz BAK·yard TEH·luh·skohp

Find another

Looking for a different word or sentence?

Search the entire library

Press / anywhere to focus the search box.

Questions

Questions people ask about this.

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