The spelling of the word "POUGH" may seem odd to many English speakers, but it can be explained through phonetic transcription. The first two letters "PO" are pronounced as /pəʊ/, like the word "bow". The last three letters "UGH" represent the sound /ʌf/, similar to how "enough" is pronounced. Therefore, the word "POUGH" is pronounced as /pəʊʌf/. While it may be unusual to see this spelling, it demonstrates the complexity of English pronunciation and the importance of phonetic transcription in understanding it.