J Sound
The J sound is a voiced post-alveolar affricate. It starts like a D sound (/d/) with the tongue tip at the alveolar ridge, but then quickly releases into a ZH sound (/ʒ/) as the tongue pulls back slightly. It's the voiced counterpart to the CH sound /tʃ/.
Start by placing the tip of your tongue on the ridge behind your upper teeth (like for D). Quickly pull the tongue back slightly and release air through the narrowing while vibrating your vocal cords, creating the ZH part of the sound. It's a quick d+zh combination.
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Example Words
/dʒɑb//dʒʌmp//dʒʌdʒ//eɪdʒ//lɑrdʒ//ˈɛnərdʒi//ˈdʒɛnərəl//ˈsoʊldʒər//ˈgrædʒuət//brɪdʒ/Pronunciation Practice
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/dʒɑb//tʃɑp//dʒɛs//jɛs//eɪdʒ//æʃ//rɪdʒ//rɪtʃ/Tongue Twister
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