When you are speaking American English it is really 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 such as /z/ & /s/ and /v/ & /f/. Here are a couple of examples:
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/.
Now put your fingers lightly on your throat and say “save”. You should feel a vibration when you say the /v/.
Keep your fingers on your throat and say “safe”. You should not feel a vibration when you say the /f/.
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.
A great book for learning about voiced and voiceless sounds in American English is:
Pronunciation Pairs Student’s Book with Audio CD
Click on the link to see this fun and educational book for learning American English pronunciaton.
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Tags: american english consonants, learn american accent, learn american english pronunciation, voiced & voiceless sounds, voiced consonant sounds
