How to Pronounce the /n/ Sound

Explore the /n/ sound, a key element in phonology. Understand its articulation, placement, and role in speech to enhance pronunciation skills effectively.

In this lesson, we are going to work on the production of the /n/ sound using the appropriate articulatory organs.

What Type of Sound Is /n/?

/n/ is a consonant sound in the English language.

How to Produce /n/?

Mouth and Vocal Tract Configuration for /n/

As you can see in picture (b), this sound is also nasal because it is produced from the nose. In order to produce it, we must first put the tip of the tongue on the roof of the mouth. This will help block the air coming out of the mouth. Then, we start vibrating our vocal cords. So, this sound is voiced and you can see that the circle in the throat is red. Since the air cannot come out of the mouth, it travels up to the nose. Note that the uvula is participating in the production of this sound.
As you can see in the picture (a), the lips and the teeth are slightly parted. So, we cannot produce this sound if we keep our mouths closed.
For more clarification, we have provided you with a picture showing exactly where the tip of the tongue and the roof of the mouth make contact. In picture (c), the highlighted part indicates that you have to put the tip of your tongue there.

Which Letters are Pronounced as /n/?

The sound /n/ is represented by the following letters:

Pie Chart of the Letters that Make the /n/ Sound

no /noʊ/

never /nev·ər/

nuance /nuː.ɑːns/

panic /pæn.ɪk/

funny /ˈfʌni/

cannel /ˈkænəl/

/n/ Sound in the Most Common World Languages

As you can see in the table below, all of the common languages around the world have the /n/ sound. So, you can easily learn to produce it. Look:

	Existence	Example
Mandarin	✔	難 (nán)
Spanish	✔	cantar
Hindi	✔	नया
Bengali	✔	নাক
Portuguese	✔	narina
Russian	✔	наш
Japanese	✔	反対 (hantai)
Vietnamese	✔	bạn đi
Turkish	✔	neden
French	✔	connexion
German	✔	Lanze
Italian	✔	nano
Persian	✔	نان
Standard Arabic	✔	نور
Korean	✔	나라
Indonesian	✔	nakal
Filipino	✔	nasa
Hungarian	✔	nagyi
Dutch	✔	nacht
Polish	✔	poncz
Romanian	✔	alună
Swedish	✔	nu
Czech	✔	na
Greek	✔	νάμα
Ukrainian	✔	наш
Urdu	✔	نیا

Listening

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

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What Type of Sound Is /n/?
How to Produce /n/?
Which Letters are Pronounced as /n/?
/n/ Sound in the Most Common World Languages
Listening

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