How to pronounce the letter G
This week, one of my accent reduction coaching clients was a bit surprised to realize that when the letter G occurs at the beginning of a word, it can have a soft sound or a hard sound.
The sounds of the letter G
In American English pronunciation the letter G sometimes has a soft /ʤ/ sound .
The letter G sometimes has a hard /g/ sound.
Here are the rules
The letter G has a soft /ʤ/ sound at the beginning of these words:
- giant
- genuine
- gym
- generous
Listen here
The letter G has a hard /g/ sound at the beginning of these words:
- go
- gave
- get
- gone
- gigabyte
Listen here
Why does the G have different sounds?
Some of the reasons for the different sounds are historic.
- Most words of Germanic origin (gift, get, got) begin with a hard /g/ sound.
- Most words of Greek origin (gymnasium, gymnastics) begin with a soft /ʤ/ sound.
- Most words of Romance origin (geography, giant, general) begin with a soft /ʤ/ sound.
BTW~ if you work in technology, the word gigabyte is pronounced with two hard Gs. The prefix, “giga” comes from a Greek word meaning “giant.”
Arabie, Spanish, Korean, Japanese, Bengali, Telegu & Gujarati Speakers
In my experience as an accent reduction coach, Spanish speakers, Arabic speakers, French speakers, Japanese speakers, Korean speakers and some Indian English speakers have problems articulating the soft g sound /ʤ/.
Learn more
To learn more about the sounds of the letter G, follow the link below to read an entertaining article about this sound.
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