7 letters · 4 sounds · updated 15 Aug 2026

How to pronounce
"drought"

"drought" is pronounced with 4 sounds across 4 phonics chunks: d · r · ough · t. Tap each box below to hear the sound, then blend them to read the word.

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Even though 'drought' has 7 letters, it has only 4 sounds — the grapheme 'ough' — a notoriously irregular English pattern.

How do you pronounce "drought"?

To pronounce "drought" correctly, say each of the 4 sounds in order, then blend them smoothly. This technique — Elkonin sound boxes — is used in thousands of US classrooms following the Science of Reading approach. Here's the step-by-step phonics method:

  1. 1 Say the sound for "d" — then pause
  2. 2 Say the sound for "r" — then pause
  3. 3 Say the sound for "ough" — then pause
  4. 4 Say the sound for "t" — final sound
  5. ✓ Blend all 4 sounds together: "drought"

Words that rhyme with "drought"

boutdoubtcloutoutwithoutdevoutthroughout

Frequently asked questions about "drought"

How do you pronounce "drought"?
To pronounce "drought", say each of its 4 phonics sound chunks in order — d, r, ough, and t — then blend them smoothly. Tap the sound boxes above to hear each chunk.
How many sound chunks are in "drought"?
"drought" has 4 phonics sound chunks: d · r · ough · t. Breaking a word into chunks helps kids decode it one sound at a time using the Science of Reading approach.
What are the phonics sounds in "drought"?
The phonics sounds in "drought" are d, r, ough, and t. Each chunk represents one distinct sound; together they spell the 7-letter word "drought".
How many letters are in "drought"?
"drought" has 7 letters and 4 phonics sound chunks.
What words rhyme with "drought"?
Words that rhyme with "drought" include "bout", "doubt", "clout", "out", "without". These are listed in the "Words that rhyme with..." section above.

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