How to pronounce "slough" in EnglishVerb
slaʊ
SLOW
Primary stress: SLOW
Hear native speakers say slough in context across real video clips
Linguistic Pronunciation Masterclass: “slough”
Phonetic mechanics, syllable architecture, and conversational cadence
Syllable Architecture & Stress Distribution
SLOW
Gliding diphthong with sustained vocal resonance.
As a single-syllable word, "slough" receives full primary stress when spoken in isolation, though it may take a reduced weak form in connected speech when acting as a function word.
Common Pronunciation Traps & Learner Mistakes
The Trap: Single-syllable words like "slough" carry primary acoustic prominence in isolation, but can be swallowed in rapid connected speech.
How Native Speakers Say It: Sustain vowel clarity without rushing into the trailing consonant. Elevate pitch slightly when "slough" carries the primary contrast or new information in a sentence.
Connected Speech & Natural Conversational Flow
When "slough" is followed by a word starting with a vowel, glide the final consonant into the opening vowel (e.g. "slough is" sounds like "slough-iz").
In natural sentences, avoid over-stressing "slough" unless it conveys the core contrast or focal point of your message.
Authentic Spoken Quotes from Native Video Context
“As they form teeth, odontoblasts move inward, while ameloblasts move out and slough off when they hit the surface.”— TED-EdWatch clip
“And because our skin is covered with microbes, when we slough off that skin, the microbes come off too.”— WIREDWatch clip
“Whales and dolphins who live in more temperate places can slough off their skin continuously.”— SciShowWatch clip
“Just one year removed from this accident and yet another incident to my face, I had a doctor tell me that my surgically repaired lip would likely slough off and”— TEDx TalksWatch clip
“tensor to slough my indices around.”— MIT OpenCourseWareWatch clip
“They are not going to cause hair to fall out of the intestinal lining to slough off.”— YaleCoursesWatch clip
Practice Speaking “slough”
Listen to native pronunciation, record yourself repeating the sentence into your microphone, and receive real-time word-by-word accuracy scoring.
As they form teeth, odontoblasts move inward, while ameloblasts move out and slough off when they hit the surface.
Hear it in context: “slough”
20 clipsThe English word “slough” is transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) as slaʊ (phonetic respelling: SLOW). Phonologically, it consists of 1 syllable (SLOW), pronounced as a single stressed monosyllable. Grammatically, “slough” functions as a noun, verb and acts as an English heteronym where syllable stress shifts between noun (initial-syllable stress) and verb (second-syllable stress) usage. SayItVid indexes 20 authentic English video clips demonstrating how native speakers articulate “slough” in natural connected speech across American (US: 8 sampled), British (UK), and Australian (AUS) accents, including verified broadcasts from TED-Ed, WIRED, SciShow.
Spoken Video Transcripts & Contextual Quotes (5 Verified Clips)
- 🇺🇸 USTED-EdClip #1 · @1:14
“and odontoblasts that secrete dentin. As they form teeth, odontoblasts move inward, while ameloblasts move out and slough off when they hit the surface. while ameloblasts move out and slough off when they hit the surface.”
- 🇺🇸 USWIREDClip #2 · @15:17
“The one source is us, our skin constantly sloughs off. And because our skin is covered with microbes, when we slough off that skin, the microbes come off too. when we slough off that skin, the microbes come off too.”
- 🇺🇸 USSciShowClip #3 · @2:06
“But skin kind of needs that blood supply to churn out new skin cells and refresh itself. Whales and dolphins who live in more temperate places can slough off their skin continuously. But in cold water, that might mean too much heat loss.”
- 🇺🇸 USTEDx TalksClip #4 · @1:29
“Still hadn't figured out the helmet thing. Just one year removed from this accident and yet another incident to my face, I had a doctor tell me that my surgically repaired lip would likely slough off and had a doctor tell me that my surgically repaired lip would likely slough off and”
- 🇺🇸 USMIT OpenCourseWareClip #5 · @66:07
“and take advantage of some symmetries of the Riemann tensor to slough my indices around. OK, so this board's kind of a disaster,”
Definition & Meaning: “slough”
- The skin shed by a snake or other reptile.
- Dead skin on a sore or ulcer.
- To shed skin or outer layers.
- To slide off or flake off, as an outer layer, such as skin, might do.
Example Sentences (3)
- “That is the slough of a rattler; we must be careful.”
- “This is the slough that came off of his skin after the burn.”
- “As they form teeth, odontoblasts move inward, while ameloblasts move out and slough off when they hit the surface.”
Common Phrases & Collocations
Pronounce: “slough”
- Pronunciation:
- SLOW
- Syllables:
- SLOW
- Written Hyphenation:
- slough
- Primary stress:
- SLOW
- IPA:
- slaʊ
- Hear it in context
- slough
Words that Rhyme with “slough”
-aʊWords that Sound Identical (Homophones)
Unique Sound"slough" (⁄slaʊ⁄) has no true homophones in standard English — there are no other words with identical pronunciation. Unlike sound-alike pairs like there / their or peace / piece, "slough" has a completely distinct phonetic identity.
Frequently asked questions about slough
How do you pronounce “slough”?
“slough” is pronounced ⁄slaʊ⁄ (SLOW). Listen to the native-speaker clips above to hear it in real conversation.
Where is the stress in “slough”?
The primary stress in “slough” is on “SLOW”. Listen for that stressed syllable in the clips above.
What does “slough” mean?
The skin shed by a snake or other reptile.
How can I hear “slough” used in real sentences?
This page has 20 real-world video examples of “slough” with synchronized subtitles. Use Previous / Next (or ← / → keys) to hear each one at the exact moment it is spoken.
What is the most common pronunciation mistake when saying “slough”?
Single-syllable words like "slough" carry primary acoustic prominence in isolation, but can be swallowed in rapid connected speech. Sustain vowel clarity without rushing into the trailing consonant. Elevate pitch slightly when "slough" carries the primary contrast or new information in a sentence.