LoginHow to Pronounce the /t/ Sound
Learn about the /t/ sound in English, its articulation, and its role in different words and contexts, focusing on pronunciation and basic phonological features.
In this lesson, we are going to learn about how we can produce the /t/ sound using the proper articulatory organs.
What Type of Sound Is /t/?
/t/ is a consonant sound in the English language.
How to Produce /t/?
Mouth and Vocal Tract Configuration for /t/
As you can see in picture (b), the tongue plays an important role here. It raises a bit and its tip is placed on the rooftop right behind the upper front teeth. Also, the uvula has blocked the air from going through to the nose. So, the air is stopped by the tongue. Then, when we lower our tongue, the air is released through the mouth. As you can see, the circle in the throat is grey which shows that we do not need to vibrate our vocal cords in the production of this sound. So, this sound is voiceless.
As you can see in picture (a), the lips and the teeth are parted slightly so as to let the air outside.
In picture (c), you can easily understand where exactly you can put the tip of your tongue. It is touching the roof of the mouth, just behind the upper front teeth.
Which Letters are Pronounced as /t/?
Warning!
Note that many people mistake the /t/ sound with /θ/ and /ð/. In the two sounds mentioned, we put the tip of the tongue either between the upper and lower teeth or just behind the upper front teeth whereas, in the /t/ sound, the tip of the tongue touches the roof of the mouth. Compare:
/t/ Sound in the Most Common World Languages
As you can see in the table below, nearly all languages spoken around the world have this sound. Although the sound may vary slightly in some languages. Look:
| Existence | Example | |
|---|---|---|
| Mandarin | ✔ | 太 (tài ) |
| Spanish | ✔ | tango |
| Hindi | ✔ | तालाब |
| Bengali | ✔ | তমাল |
| Portuguese | ✔ | tempo |
| Russian | ✔ | толстый |
| Japanese | ✔ | 特別 (tokubetsu) |
| Vietnamese | ✔ | tuần |
| Turkish | ✔ | at |
| French | ✔ | tordu |
| German | ✔ | Tochter |
| Italian | ✔ | tale |
| Persian | ✔ | توت |
| Standard Arabic | ✔ | تين |
| Korean | ✔ | 대숲 |
| Indonesian | ✔ | tabir |
| Filipino | ✔ | tawag |
| Hungarian | ✔ | tari |
| Dutch | ✔ | taal |
| Polish | ✔ | tom |
| Romanian | ✔ | tare |
| Swedish | ✔ | tåg |
| Czech | ✔ | toto |
| Greek | ✔ | τρία |
| Ukrainian | ✔ | брат |
| Urdu | ✔ | تین |
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