English pronunciation

How to pronounce “rough

Phonetic spelling

RUFF

IPA /ˈɹəf/

Syllable stress

ruff

Stress falls on the highlighted syllable.

How do you spell “rough”?

r o u g h

rough” is spelled R-O-U-G-H. It is pronounced RUFF, so the spelling and the sound do not match letter for letter. Listen to the audio above and say it aloud while you read the letters.

Hear it in a sentence

  • The rough surface of the rock scraped my hand.

  • It's been a rough day at work.

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