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Consonant

F

The F sound is a voiceless labiodental fricative consonant. It is made by pressing your upper teeth against your lower lip and forcing air out between them.

f
Phonetic System (Merriam-Webster):f

Watch the Sound

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Example Words

Main Example

fun
Phonetic: /fʌn/

Common Words

fun/fʌn/
food/fud/
fish/fɪʃ/
face/feɪs/
life/laɪf/
laugh/læf/
coffee/ˈkɔfi/

Minimal Pairs

Listen and compare similar sounds

f
fan
/fæn/
Compare with
F
van
/væn/
f
fine
/faɪn/
Compare with
F
vine
/vaɪn/
f
safe
/seɪf/
Compare with
S
save
/seɪv/

Tongue Twister

Five fresh fish for faithful friends.

Try it yourself

Practice saying this tongue twister

Technical Details

  • CategoryConsonant
  • VoicingVoiceless
  • Place of ArticulationLabiodental
  • Manner of ArticulationFricative
  • Mouth PositionPlace your upper teeth lightly on your lower lip. Push air out between them, creating a friction sound. Your vocal cords should not vibrate.