often
adverb · many times, frequently
- OFFɑːf (stressed)
- unən
- OFFɒf (stressed)
- unən
- US /ˈɑːf.ən/OFF-un Recorded voice
- UK /ˈɒf.ən/OFF-un Your device’s voice
Also said: US /ˈɑːf.tən/ or /ˈɔːf.ən/ or /ˈɔːf.tən/; UK /ˈɒf.tən/.
How to pronounce often
Often is usually pronounced OFF-un, with a silent T. Saying the T, OFF-tun, is also correct in both American and British English. It has two syllables with the stress on the first.
- 2 syllables
- Stress on OFF
- US and UK IPA
- Checked in Cambridge and Oxford
IPA checked in the Cambridge Dictionary and Oxford Learner’s Dictionaries. Both dictionaries also list OFF-tun with the T. Oxford gives /ˈɔːf.ən/ for American English. The recording is American English.
Often, sound by sound
Each sound in the IPA, with a word you already know that has it.
US American English/ˈɑːf.ən/
OFFstressed
- /ɑː/as in father
- /f/as in fall
un
- /ə/as in about
- /n/as in now
UK British English/ˈɒf.ən/
OFFstressed
- /ɒ/as in hot (UK)
- /f/as in fall
un
- /ə/as in about
- /n/as in now
Say often yourself
Press the microphone and say it once. Your browser writes down what it hears: if it writes often, you were understood. If it writes another word, you see which sound changed.
Tip. Most people don't say the T: OFF-un. OFF-tun is also correct.
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Common often pronunciation mistakes
What people often say instead, and how to fix it. Say OFF-un.
Not
OH-fenThe o is not the o in go. It is the vowel in off.
Not
OFF-TENIf you say the T, keep the second syllable weak: OFF-tun, not a clear ten like the number.
Not
of-TENStress the first syllable, not the second.
Often in a sentence
Hear each one, slow it down, then say it. Words change a little when they join others, so practise them in sentences too.
How often do you go to the gym?
We often eat dinner on the balcony in summer.
It doesn't often snow here in March.
Is the t in often silent?
Usually, yes. The T is silent in most speech, as it is in soften, listen and fasten. Cambridge and Oxford both list OFF-un first, in both accents.
The word has an unusual history. Old English had oft, a form that still lives on in phrases like oft-repeated. In Middle English an -en ending was added, probably by analogy with selden, an old form of seldom. Over time the T in the middle fell silent.
Saying it again, OFF-tun, is a spelling pronunciation: it comes from seeing the letter. Cambridge and Oxford now list that form too. Pick one and say it with confidence.
Words that sound like often
Rhymes and words that share its tricky sound. Open any of them in the checker and say it.
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