Making sense of 'ough' words in English
Updated: Dec 6, 2021
Many words in English use the combination of letters 'ough' but did you know there are five different sounds that these letters make?
The /o/ sound, as is cough
The /oo/ sound, as in through
The /or/ sound, as in thought
The /ow/ sound, as in bough
The /uff/ sound, as in tough
There aren't any hard and fast rules to knowing which sound you need to pronounce. This has to come with practice in reading and spelling the words. Here are some examples of the most common English words that use 'ough', along with the sound they make.
ough words using the /o/ sound
cough - the virus left him with a chesty cough
ough words using the /oo/ sound
through - they walked through the park
breakthrough - the scientists made the breakthrough they were hoping for
ough words using the /or/ sound
bought - she bought her son son an apple
brought - she brought me the books I'd asked for
thought - that's an interesting thought
fought - he fought bravely
ought - she ought to have known better
sought - he sought her approval before sending the letter
naught - he scored naught out of ten
ough words using the /ow/ sound
although - although he was full , he kept on eating
drought - there was a severe drought across the country
plough - the horse pulled the plough across the field
ough words using the /uff/ sound
enough - she had had enough
rough - a cat has a rough tounge
tough - she made a tough decision