Pronunciation practice. Consonants p-b, t-d, k-g

In this article I’m going to talk about plosive consonants, which are made by creating a closure at a certain place of the vocal tract, increasing air pressure behind the closure and then releasing the air explosively. Don't worry, it just sounds scary; in reality it’s quite simple, and I'll provide videos to guide you.

 

p vs b

This is the first pair of plosive consonants that we’re going to look at. To make the sound [p], you need to close your lips and sharply push the air through them. [p] is called an unvoiced sound because you only use your breath to create it and don’t use your vocal cords. As for the sound [b], it is produced in the same way as [p] with the only difference that you’ll need to add voice to it, for which reason the sound [b] is called a voiced consonant.

Note: Usually non-native English speakers make a lot of pronunciation mistakes when plosive sounds come at the end of a word. For most words, all you’ve got to know is one simple fact: vowel sounds (like [e], [i:], etc.) and diphthongs (like [əʋ], [ɔɪ], etc.) are longer before voiced consonants (b, d, g) than they are before unvoiced consonants (p, t, k). So, for example, in word pairs cap-cab, pat-pad, lock-log the difference between the words is ‘hidden’ not in the correct pronunciation of the final consonant sounds, but in the different lengths of the preceding vowel sounds: the middle vowel sound is shorter in cap, pat, lock and longer in cab, pad, log.

Please, see the video below for more information on these sounds, and pay attention to the length of the vowel sound in words with final [p] and [b] (the video was posted with kind permission by Anna Tyrie, the head vocal coach at www.elocutiononline.com).

t vs d

These two sounds are produced using the alveolar ridge, which is the ridge behind your front teeth. To make the sound [t], close the air passage in your mouth by touching the alveolar ridge with the tip of your tongue and then sharply push the air through that closure. You’re not going to use your vocal cords for this sound, which makes it unvoiced. Follow the same directions and add some voice to create the voiced sound [d]. In the video below you can find further explanation of these sounds; don’t forget to pay your attention to the length of the vowel sound in words with final [t] and [d] (the video was posted with kind permission by Anna Tyrie, the head vocal coach at www.elocutiononline.com).

k vs g

The sounds [k] and [g] are created by pressing the back of your tongue to the soft palate. If you’re not sure what I mean, try to imitate a cough, and notice how the root of your tongue touches the soft palate at the back of your mouth. Try to reproduce this movement, make the back of tongue touch the soft palate and sharply push the air through the closure to make the sound [k]. Adding some voice to the same sequence, you’ll produce the sound [g]. Please see the video below and practice these sounds; again, mind the difference in the length of the vowel sound in words with final [k] and [g] (the video was posted with kind permission by Anna Tyrie, the head vocal coach at www.elocutiononline.com).

If you experience some difficulties with any of the sounds described above, you're welcome to have more practice using the videos below (all videos posted with kind permission by Anna Tyrie, the head vocal coach at www.elocutiononline.com).