What are the 24 consonants sounds?

Answered by Phillip Nicastro

Well, I can tell you that there are 24 consonant sounds in the English language. These sounds can be categorized into two groups: voiced and voiceless pairs.

Let’s start with the voiced and voiceless pairs. The first pair is /p/ and /b/. The /p/ sound is voiceless, meaning there is no vibration in the vocal cords when producing it, while the /b/ sound is voiced, with vibration in the vocal cords.

Next, we have the pair /t/ and /d/. The /t/ sound is voiceless, like a puff of air, and the /d/ sound is voiced, with the vocal cords vibrating.

Moving on to the next pair, we have /k/ and /g/. The /k/ sound is voiceless, produced by blocking the airflow at the back of the mouth, while the /g/ sound is voiced, with vibration in the vocal cords.

Now let’s look at the pair /f/ and /v/. The /f/ sound is voiceless, produced by forcing air through a narrow opening between the lips, while the /v/ sound is voiced, with vibration in the vocal cords.

Next, we have the pair /s/ and /z/. The /s/ sound is voiceless, produced by forcing air through a narrow opening between the tongue and the roof of the mouth, while the /z/ sound is voiced, with vibration in the vocal cords.

Moving on, we have the pair /θ/ and /ð/. The /θ/ sound is voiceless, produced by placing the tongue between the teeth and forcing air through, while the /ð/ sound is voiced, with vibration in the vocal cords.

Now let’s look at the pair /ʃ/ and /ʒ/. The /ʃ/ sound is voiceless, produced by forcing air through a narrow opening between the tongue and the roof of the mouth, while the /ʒ/ sound is voiced, with vibration in the vocal cords.

Lastly, we have the pair /ʈʃ/ and /dʒ/. The /ʈʃ/ sound is voiceless, produced by blocking the airflow and then releasing it with a burst of air, while the /dʒ/ sound is voiced, with vibration in the vocal cords.

Now, let’s move on to the voiced consonants. These consonants have vibration in the vocal cords. They are /h/, /w/, /n/, /m/, /r/, /j/, /ŋ/, and /l/.

The /h/ sound is produced by forcing air out of the mouth without vibration in the vocal cords. It is often considered a consonant, although it lacks the typical features of a consonant.

The /w/ sound is produced by rounding the lips and forcing air through a small opening. It is often referred to as a semi-vowel because it has both consonant and vowel qualities.

The /n/ sound is produced by placing the tip of the tongue against the alveolar ridge and allowing air to pass through the nose.

The /m/ sound is produced by closing the lips and allowing air to pass through the nose.

The /r/ sound is produced by curling the tongue back and slightly vibrating the vocal cords.

The /j/ sound is produced by raising the middle of the tongue towards the hard palate and allowing air to pass through.

The /ŋ/ sound is produced by closing the back of the tongue against the soft palate and allowing air to pass through the nose.

Lastly, we have the /l/ sound, which is produced by raising the tip of the tongue towards the alveolar ridge and allowing air to pass around the sides.

So, those are the 24 consonant sounds in English, categorized into voiced and voiceless pairs, as well as the voiced consonants.