READ

Imagine that you are whispering to someone because you need to be very quiet. When you do this, you are not using your vocal cords or voice. You are just blowing air out of your mouth. Some English sounds are pronounced this way.

Touch your hand to your throat and whisper this sentence: I am not using my voice. You should not feel any vibration in your throat. Now, put your fingers over your ears so that you cannot hear. Say it again: I am not using my voice. You should not be able to hear yourself. This is because you are not using your vocal cords.

Touch your hand to your throat and say this sentence at your normal volume: I am using my voice. You should feel vibrations in your throat. Now, put your fingers over your ears so that you cannot hear. Say it again: I am using my voice. You should hear your voice because you are using your vocal cords.

Sounds that do not use your vocal cords are called unvoiced sounds. Sounds that use your vocal cords are called voiced sounds.

These sounds are unvoiced: /s/, /ʃ/, /t/, /ʔ/, /ʧ/, /p/, /f/, /θ/, /k/, /h/
 

These sounds are voiced: /z/, /ʒ/, /dʒ/, /b/, /v/, /ð/, /g/, /m/, /n/, /ŋ/, /l/, /r/, /j/, /w/ + all vowels

Did you notice that some of the voiced and unvoiced sounds are made using similar tongue and jaw positions? The following sounds are ìpartnerî sounds. Both sounds in each pair are formed the same way in your mouth, but one sound is voiced and the other is unvoiced.

LISTEN

Listen to the audio recording below.

PRACTICE

Practice transforming the unvoiced sounds to voiced sounds by vibrating your vocal cords. Practice each pair five times.

Practice these tongue twisters and pay attention to voiced and unvoiced sounds.
 

f (unvoiced) / v (voiced)
Five valuable vases were valued at fifteen billion.
 

s (unvoiced) / z (unvoiced)
The six sisters zipped to the city zoo.
 

p (unvoiced) / b (voiced)
Pam bans people from blasting punk beats.