How to Pronounce the /h/ Sound

consonant sounds voiceless sounds

In this lesson, we're gonna learn all about the /h/ sound. Well, have you heard anything about it before? C'mon in and let's learn together.

In this lesson, we are going to learn about how we can produce the sound /h/ using the appropriate articulatory organs.

What Type of Sound Is /h/?

/h/ is a consonant in the English language.

How to Produce /h/?

how to pronounce /h/

As you can see in the picture (a), the lips are parted and the teeth are close, but not touching. The lips play a major part in the production of the /h/ sound. Gently, let the air flow out from your mouth. Immediately after this sound, we must produce the next sound which will most definitely be a vowel.
In picture (b), note that the uvula has blocked the air from passing through the nose. So, the air is released from the mouth. As it is clear, the tongue remains in its place. Also, the circle of the vocal cords is grey, indicating that the /h/ sound is voiceless.
In picture (c), you can easily understand that only the lips are used in the production of this sound because the tongue makes no contact with the mouth. Below, you can find the letters that represent this sound:

High /haɪ/

Hispanic /hɪˈspæn.ɪk/

Horrific /həˈrɪf.ɪk/

/h/ Sound in 17 Most Common World Languages

As you can see in the table below, most of the languages in the world have the /h/ sound. There are some languages that do not have it, though. However, with all the instructions provided to you and a bit of practice, you can easily learn how to produce this sound. Look:

The Languages	Do You Have It?	Examples
Mandarin	X	-
Spanish	X	-
Hindustani	X	-
Bengali	✔	হাওয়া
Portuguese	✔	Honda
Russian	X	-
Japanese	✔	すはだ
Vietnamese	✔	hiểu
Marathi	X	-
Turkish	✔	halı
French	X	-
German	✔	Hass
Italian	X	-
Persian	✔	هفت
Arabic (Standard)	✔	هائل
Korean	✔	하루

Listening

Below, there is an audio file that helps you learn the proper pronunciation of the /h/ sound:

Comments

What Type of Sound Is /h/?
How to Produce /h/?
/h/ Sound in 17 Most Common World Languages
Listening

How to Pronounce the /z/ Sound

In this lesson, we're going to learn about the details of the /z/ sound. Even if you do not have it in your mother tongue, it's alright.

How to Pronounce the /ʒ/ Sound

This time, we're going to work on the details of the /ʒ/ sound. Are you ready? Do you wanna improve your English language proficiency?

How to Pronounce the /ʃ/ Sound

Here, we're gonna learn about the /ʃ/ sound. I know that it looks a bit weird, but trust me, it's as easy as a piece of cake.

How to Pronounce the /tʃ/ Sound

In this lesson, I'm gonna teach you all about the /tʃ/ sound. How we can pronounce it, which languages have it, etc. So, make sure to join me.

How to Pronounce the /dʒ/ Sound

Do you want to learn about the /dʒ/ sound? What letters represent it? How we can pronounce it? Which languages have this sound?

How to Pronounce the /m/ Sound

In this lesson, we're gonna learn all the details about the /m/ sound. Even if you don't have it in your language, you will learn all about it.

Download LanGeek app

Langeek