How to pronounce pug
Say it like PUHG. Pug is a single syllable, so the whole word carries the stress.
Click the play button next to American or British to hear how to pronounce pug. Choose Slow to hear each sound clearly.
- PUHG
- Main stress
- Lighter stress
- Unstressed
Pug pronunciation, sound by sound
Read the parts left to right, then blend them together without pausing.
- PUHGSay this part loudest and longest. The vowel is the "u" in cup.
American vs British pronunciation of pug
American and British speakers say pug in essentially the same way: /pʌɡ/ in the US and /pʌɡ/ in the UK.
British respelling: PUHG.
What does pug mean?
- A pug dog, a small dog of an ancient breed originating in China, having a snub nose, wrinkled face, squarish body, short smooth hair, and curled tail.
- A pug moth, often with a descriptive word: any geometrid moth of the tribe Eupitheciini, especially the genus Eupithecia; a geometer moth.
- In full pug engine: a small locomotive chiefly used for shunting (“moving trains from one track to another, or carriages from one train to another”).
- The footprint or pawprint of an animal; a pugmark.
- To hit or punch (someone or something); also, to poke (someone or something).
- To fill or stop up (a space) with pug (noun etymology 5, noun sense 1), clay, sawdust, or other material by tamping; (specifically) to fill in (the space between joists of a floor, a partition, etc.) with some material to deaden sound, make fireproof, etc.
- To mix and work (wet clay) until flexible, soft, and free from air pockets and suitable for making bricks, pottery, etc.“to pug clay ready for shaping”
Where does pug come from?
Etymology 1 sense 1.8 (“small demon”) was probably influenced by, though not a variant of, puck.
Similar and opposite words
Similar meaning
Words that rhyme with pug
Practicing rhymes is a quick way to lock in the vowel sound of pug.
Questions about saying pug
How do you pronounce pug?
Say PUHG. The American pronunciation is /pʌɡ/. In British English it is /pʌɡ/. Press play above to hear it at normal speed or slowly.
How many syllables are in pug?
Pug is a single syllable, so the whole word carries the stress. Broken into parts: PUHG.
Do Americans and Brits say pug the same way?
Almost exactly. The American form is /pʌɡ/ and the British form is /pʌɡ/, so you can use either pronunciation with any listener.