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The sounds of the letters S & Z are often confusing for students of American English pronunciation. Here are a few tips for pronouncing these sounds correctly.
Tongue position
The /s/ and /z/ sounds are made with the same tongue position. The tip of the tongue is behind your upper gum ridge. The tongue is pointed and slightly curved up.
Voicing
The /s/ is a voiceless sound. Your vocal chords are relaxed when you make the /s/.
Here are some common spellings for the /s/ sound.
s: some, yes, must
ss: class, discuss
c: cent, city, nice, place
sc: science, scenery
The /z/ is a voiced sound. Your vocal chords vibrate when you make the /z/.
Here are some common spellings for the /z/ sound.
z: size, prize, quiz
s: busy, because, easy, visit
se: these, cause, lose
s: plays, goes, does, girl’s
Notice that the /s/ sound is often spelled with a C. The /z/ sound is often spelled with an S.
You can read more about voiced and voiceless sounds in my Accent Reduction Classroom.
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