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Consonant

N Sound

The N sound is a voiced alveolar nasal consonant. Airflow is blocked by the tongue tip touching the alveolar ridge (behind the top teeth) but escapes through the nose while the vocal cords vibrate.

n
Phonetic System (Merriam-Webster):n

Watch the Sound

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Example Words

Main Example

no
Phonetic: /noʊ/

Common Words

no/noʊ/
name/neɪm/
sun/sʌn/
now/naʊ/
fun/fʌn/
run/rʌn/
friend/frɛnd/
man/mæn/
ten/tɛn/
win/wɪn/

Minimal Pairs

Listen and compare similar sounds

n
nine
/naɪn/
Compare with
N
line
/laɪn/
n
net
/nɛt/
Compare with
N
let
/lɛt/
n
knee
/ni/
Compare with
K
lee
/li/
n
know
/noʊ/
Compare with
K
low
/loʊ/
n
run
/rʌn/
Compare with
R
rung
/rʌŋ/
n
sin
/sɪn/
Compare with
S
sing
/sɪŋ/

Tongue Twister

Nine nimble noblemen nibbled nuts nicely.

Try it yourself

Practice saying this tongue twister

Technical Details

  • CategoryConsonant
  • VoicingVoiced (Placeholder)
  • Place of ArticulationAlveolar (Placeholder)
  • Manner of ArticulationNasal (Placeholder)
  • Mouth PositionPlace the tip of your tongue against the ridge behind your upper front teeth (alveolar ridge), creating a seal. Lower the soft palate (velum) to allow air to flow out through the nose. Vibrate your vocal cords.