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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.
How to pronounce wrote in American English
ROHT
Start here
Americans pronounce wrote as ROHT (/roʊt/). You'll hear it in sentences like "Whoever wrote the work was wise indeed" or "The writer wrote a letter to the editor" — more examples below.
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Sound by sound
Every sound in "wrote".
1 syllable, 3 sounds. Explore each sound's mouth shape and how it's made.
oh/oʊ/
Start with your mouth slightly open, then close your jaw slightly as your lips round. Shift your tongue back slightly, then stretch the back up.
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.
In real conversation
Hear "wrote" in the wild.
Click any sentence to see the full breakdown — every link, every reduction, every flap-T.
"He wrote a negative review about the movie's confusing plot."
hee ROHT uh NEH·guh·tuhv ruh·VYOO uh·BOWT dhuh MOO·veez kuhn·FYOO·zuhng PLAHT
"He wrote a one-act play that was performed at the fringe festival."
hee ROHT uh wuhn AKT PLAY dhuht wuhz per·FORMD uht dhuh FRIHNJ FEH·stuh·vuhl
"The doctor wrote a prescription for the allergy medication."
dhuh DAHK·ter ROHT uh pruh·SKRIHP·shuhn fer dhee A·ler·jee meh·duh·KAY·shuhn
"The writer wrote a letter to the editor."
dhuh RAHY·der ROHT uh LEH·der tuh dhee EH·duh·der
"Whoever wrote the work was wise indeed."
hoo·EH·ver ROHT dhuh WURK wuhz WAHYZ uhn·DEED
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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
Releasing the final consonant with a puff of air.
In "wrote", the "t" is not released — the articulators get into position but hold without the burst of air. Air stops but there's no release burst — the articulators hold position.
wrote→ROHT
Questions
Questions people ask about this.
Is the American pronunciation of "wrote" 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 "ROHT" reflects the casual American form; British dictionaries typically print a citation form with crisper consonants and different vowel choices.
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