English Consonants
Consonants are sounds made by obstructing airflow in some way as it leaves the body. English has 24 consonant sounds that can be categorized by voicing, place, and manner of articulation.
About English Consonants
Consonants are classified by three main features: whether they are voiced (vocal cords vibrate) or voiceless (vocal cords don't vibrate), their place of articulation (where in the mouth they're formed), and their manner of articulation (how the sound is produced physically). Click on any consonant sound below to see detailed pronunciation guides, mouth position diagrams, and practice examples.
P (pea)
Voiceless bilabial stop. Made by closing both lips and then releasing air.
B (bee)
Voiced bilabial stop. Similar to "p" but with vocal cord vibration.
T (tea)
Voiceless alveolar stop. Made by placing the tongue tip against the ridge behind the teeth.
D (Dee)
Voiced alveolar stop. Similar to "t" but with vocal cord vibration.
K (key)
Voiceless velar stop. Made by pressing the back of the tongue against the soft palate.
G (go)
Voiced velar stop. Similar to "k" but with vocal cord vibration.
F (fee)
Voiceless labiodental fricative. Created by pressing the bottom lip against the upper teeth.
V (vie)
Voiced labiodental fricative. Similar to "f" but with vocal cord vibration.
Voiceless TH (thin)
Voiceless dental fricative. Created with the tongue tip between the teeth.
Voiced TH (this)
Voiced dental fricative. Similar to voiceless "th" but with vocal cord vibration.
S (see)
Voiceless alveolar fricative. Made with the tongue near the ridge behind the teeth.
Z (zoo)
Voiced alveolar fricative. Similar to "s" but with vocal cord vibration.
SH (she)
Voiceless postalveolar fricative. Made with the tongue further back than for "s".
ZH (measure)
Voiced postalveolar fricative. Similar to "sh" but with vocal cord vibration.
H (he)
Voiceless glottal fricative. Produced by pushing air through an open glottis and vocal tract.
M (me)
Bilabial nasal. Made with closed lips and air flowing through the nose.
N (knee)
Alveolar nasal. Made with the tongue against the ridge behind the teeth and air flowing through the nose.
NG (sing)
Velar nasal. Made with the back of the tongue against the soft palate and air flowing through the nose.
L (lee)
Alveolar lateral approximant. Air flows around the sides of the tongue while the tip touches the ridge.
R (read)
Alveolar approximant. The tongue approaches the ridge behind the teeth without touching it.
W (we)
Labial-velar approximant. Made with rounded lips and raised back of tongue.
Y (yes)
Palatal approximant. Made with the body of the tongue raised toward the hard palate.
CH (chin)
Voiceless postalveolar affricate. A combination of "t" and "sh" sounds.
J (gin)
Voiced postalveolar affricate. A combination of "d" and "zh" sounds.
Leia guias relacionadas a consoantes
Aprofunde articulacao, contraste e erros comuns com estes artigos.
Pronuncia
A regra secreta: por que 'bed' tem uma vogal mais longa que 'bet'
Descubra a regra de pré-fortis clipping: como as consoantes surdas seguintes encurtam a duração das vogais em inglês. Entenda por que 'bid' tem uma vogal claramente mais curta que 'big'.
Pronuncia
Consoantes duplas e vogais curtas: a regra ortografica que desbloqueia a pronuncia do ingles
Descubra como as consoantes duplas sinalizam vogais curtas em ingles. Aprenda por que "dinner" e "diner" soam completamente diferentes e domine esta regra essencial para pronunciar centenas de palavras corretamente.
Pronuncia
Regra do sopro de ar: quando /p/, /t/, /k/ são aspirados (pin vs. spin)
Falantes nativos soltam um pequeno sopro de ar em /p/, /t/, /k/ no início de sílabas tônicas. Saiba quando aspirar, quando não, e use o teste do papel.
Pratica
Pratique as consoantes do ingles
Treine contraste consonantal, articulacao e confusoes auditivas comuns.