English pronunciation
How to pronounce “tough”
Phonetic spelling
TUHF
IPA /ˈtəf/
Syllable stress
tuhf
Stress falls on the highlighted syllable.
How do you spell “tough”?
t o u g h
“tough” is spelled T-O-U-G-H. It is pronounced TUHF, 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 steak was too tough to chew.
She is a tough teacher but very fair.