hurt · heart7/20
Which word did you hear?
Real clips from the app. Turn your sound on.
Hear both words in 10 voices
Each row is one speaker saying both words. Play one, then the other, and switch to slow when the difference hides.
hurt
US IPA: /hɝt/
heart
US IPA: /hɑrt/
Speed
- American woman, younger
- American woman, older
- American man, younger
- American man, older
- British woman, younger
- British woman, older
- British man, younger
- British man, older
- Australian woman
- Australian man
What's different
Listen to the h. It is the following vowel said on breath alone, so each word gives itself away before its vowel is fully voiced: heart starts on a wide, open "hah", hurt on a muffled, half-closed breath.
The spelling of heart is a trap, since the ear in it has nothing to do with the word ear. Rhymes are a safer guide: hurt goes with shirt and dirt, heart with start and part.
Studies: Lambacher et al. 2002 · Lambacher et al. 2005
Listen for
ɜː (heard) is a muffled, central sound. ɑː (hard) is open and clear.
More word pairs with these sounds
Hearing heard and hard apart: all 12 pairs →Start hearing the difference.
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