One syllable: Dough.
doh
/doʊ/
Dough is pronounced doh (/doʊ/). It has one syllable (Dough), with the stress on "Dough". Dough is a mass of flour-based mixture ready for shaping and baking, usually containing water and sometimes yeast or salt. As a noun, it denotes the unbaked substance used for pastries and bread, and it can also metaphorically refer to money in informal contexts. In phonetics, the word is a single-syllable, long-diphthong vowel that blends with a voiced alveolar or velar stop in certain phonetic environments.
nounDough is a mass of flour-based mixture ready for shaping and baking, usually containing water and sometimes yeast or salt. As a noun, it denotes the unbaked substance used for pastries and bread, and it can also metaphorically refer to money in informal contexts. In phonetics, the word is a single-syllable, long-diphthong vowel that blends with a voiced alveolar or velar stop in certain phonetic environments.
"I kneaded the dough for ten minutes until it was smooth."
"The dough rose a little after sitting in a warm spot."
"He kept the dough in a sealed bowl to prevent drying out."
Dough is pronounced with a long /oʊ/ diphthong: /doʊ/ in US and similar in UK/AU. The initial consonant is a voiced alveolar or velar onset depending on speaker, but the dominant sound is a simple, single syllable with stress on the whole word. Maintain a smooth gliding from /d/ to /oʊ/, with the mouth opening slightly then rounding for the diphthong. IPA: US /doʊ/, UK /dəʊ/, AU /dəʊ/; keep the vowel as a flowing pair of sounds rather than a clipped vowel. Audio reference: you can compare with the word 'doe' or 'doughnut' to hear the /oʊ/ glide.
Common mistakes: (1) pronouncing it with a short /ɔ/ or /ɒ/ vowel (daw) instead of /oʊ/; (2) overemphasizing the /d/ or stopping the diphthong too abruptly; (3) inserting an extra consonant like a /ɡ/ or /f/ if thinking of 'dog' or 'do' together. Corrections: keep a clean onset /d/ then a smooth /oʊ/ glide, avoid hardening the vowel, and practice a single-syllable, fluid production by saying 'doh' with a short start and gradual glide. Use minimal pair practice with /doʊ/ vs /dɒ/ or /dɔː/ to stabilize the right vowel length and rounding.
In US English, /doʊ/ with a clear, rounded diphthong and no rhotic influence on the vowel. In UK English, /dəʊ/ often features a schwa-initial release with a more centralized onset, and the diphthong is more open and rounded toward /ʊ/ like /əʊ/. In Australian English, /dəʊ/ typically has a clearer, longer /ə/ followed by /ʊ/-like rounding, with a less prominent rhoticity and a tendency toward a more centralized vowel. Accent differences can affect vowel quality and vowel length, but the core is a single-syllable, rounded diphthong. IPA: US /doʊ/, UK /dəʊ/, AU /dəʊ/.
Dough challenges include the diphthong /oʊ/, a glide that can slide too quickly or be misproduced as a pure /o/ or /ɔ/. For some speakers, the initial /d/ blends with the following vowel, making the transition feel abrupt if the tongue doesn’t lift smoothly. The lack of final consonants (it's just one syllable) makes it easy to add a silent or extra sound unintentionally. Focus on a controlled onset /d/ + smooth /oʊ/ glide with steady jaw relaxation and minimal lip tension.
Dough is unique in that the final gh is historically a consonant letter but today silent in modern English for this word; the stress is on the only syllable, so there is no multi-syllabic stress pattern to manage. The key is mastering the /d/ onset and the long /oʊ/ diphthong with rounded lips. The historical spelling with gh does not imply a consonant sound; your articulation should reflect the current pronunciation without trying to voice the gh. IPA: /doʊ/.
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Dough originates from Old English dougha, related to the Dutch deeg and German Teig, all tracing to Proto-Germanic *daigiz. The word referred to a mixing of ingredients, especially flour and water, in bread-making. In Middle English, dough evolved to denote the unbaked mass for bread and other pastries, distinct from the baked product. By the 15th century, dough had formed a more specific culinary meaning, while metaphorical uses like “money” began to emerge in various dialects as slang or euphemism, likely due to dough’s status as a staple, portable resource. The progression reflects broader shifts: the material basis of bread-making became a cultural symbol of value, labor, and sustenance. First known written uses appear in culinary and household records of medieval Europe, where bakers documented recipes and dough handling in guilds. Over centuries, dough maintained its core meaning as a malleable mixture, but English speakers increasingly used it in idiomatic expressions about earnings and wealth, underscoring its everyday, practical significance in life and work.
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Words that rhyme with "Dough"
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