INCLUDE_DATA
American English Pronunciation Blog Rotating Header Image

How to Pronounce Voiced & Voiceless Consonant Sounds

Welcome back! Have you checked out my Accent Reduction classes yet?

When you are speaking English it is important to recognize the difference between voiced sounds and voiceless sounds. A voiced sound causes your vocal chords to vibrate. A voiceless sound does not cause your vocal chords to vibrate.

American English has 8 voiced/voiceless consonant pairs. All of the vowel sounds are voiced. Try this so you can see what I mean.

Put your fingers lightly on your throat and say “zoo”. You should feel a vibration when you say the/z/.

Keep your fingers on your throat and say “Sue”. You should not feel a vibration when you say the/s/.

When you are speaking English it is very important to recognize the difference between voiced sounds and voiceless sounds. If you say these sounds incorrectly it will both mark your grammar as incorrect and contribute to your foreign accent.

You can view this one minute pronunciation video on voiced and voiceless sounds to see what I mean.

Related posts:

  1. American English Pronunciation: The Importance of Voiced and Voiceless Sounds
  2. American English Pronunciation:The Voiced & Voiceless Th Sounds
  3. Pronouncing the Voiced th Sound
  4. Voiced & Voiceless Sounds in American English
  5. American English Pronunciation for Portuguese Speakers

Leave a Reply

Anti-Spam Protection by WP-SpamFree