The Letter S

In this lesson, we will learn about all the sounds of the letter S. It is the nineteenth letter of the English alphabet. Let's begin.

S is the nineteenth letter in the English alphabet. It is a consonant.

Consonants are the letters that are produced by stopping the letter from flowing easily.

Uppercase Form	S
Lowercase	s
Name	ess (pronounced /ˈɛs/)
Common Sounds	/s/, /z/, /∅/

Pie Chart of 's' Pronunciation in American English

The Letter S: Sounds

The letter S has three sounds:

Common Sounds

Sound 1: /s/

's' mainly sounds /s/:

sun /sʌn/

skeleton /ˈskelɪtn/

mouse /maʊs/

oscar /ˈɑskɚ/

Sound 2: /z/

's' can also sound /z/:

is /ɪz/

music /ˈmjuːzɪk/

mosaic /moʊˈzeɪ.ɪk/

Sound 3: /∅/

Sometimes, the letter 's' is silent /∅/, mostly in loanwords:

isle /aɪl/

island /ˈaɪlənd/

bourgeois /ˌbʊrˈʒwɑː/

apropos /ˌæprəˈpoʊ/

Other Sounds

Sound 4: /ʒ/

's' after 'ure', 'ual' sounds /ʒ/:

casual /ˈkæʒuəl/

measure /ˈmeʒər/

treasure /ˈtreʒər/

Asia /ˈeɪʒə/

Sound 5: /ʃ/

The letter 's' also sounds /ʃ/:

sugar /ˈʃʊɡər/

expansion /ɪkˈspænʃn/

dimension /dɪˈmenʃn/

tension /ˈtenʃn/

The Letter S: Multigraphs

Letter S can also appear in combinations with other letters (mainly consonants):

ss

'ss' commonly has three sounds:

/s/
/z/
/ʃ/

1. 'ss' sounds /s/:

dress /dres/

princess /ˈprɪnses/

compass /ˈkʌmpəs/

2. 'ss' also sounds /z/:

scissors /ˈsɪzərz/

dessert /dɪˈzɜːrt/

possess /pəˈzes/

3. 'ss' also sounds /ʃ/:

assure /əˈʃʊr/

issue /ˈɪʃuː/

sh

'sh' sounds /ʃ/:

ship /ʃɪp/

shark /ʃɑːrk/

fish /fɪʃ/

sc

'sc' sounds /s/, it means 'c' is silent /∅/:

muscle /ˈmʌsl/

science /ˈsaɪəns/

scent /sent/

sci

'sci' in the middle of words sound /ʃ/:

conscious /ˈkɑːnʃəs/

luscious /ˈlʌʃəs/

conscience /ˈkɑːnʃəns/

si

'si' in 'sion' at the end of words sounds /ʃ/:

propulsion /pɹəˈpʌlʃən/

pension /ˈpɛnʃən/

ssi

'ssi' in the middle of words sounds /ʃ/:

passion /ˈpæʃən/

expression /ɪkˈspɹɛʃən/

Russia /ˈɹʌʃə/

st

'st' in the middle of words sounds /s/ and 't' is silent /∅/:

castle /ˈkæsl/

Christmas /ˈkrɪsməs/

whistle /ˈwɪsl/

Tip!

'sth' sounds /s/ in the word asthma, in other words 'th' is silent; however, in American English, 'sth' sounds /z/:

asthma /ˈæsmə/ /ˈæzmə/

ps

'ps' at the beginning of words sound /s/:

psychology /saɪˈkɑːlədʒi/

psyche /ˈsaɪki/

psychopath /ˈsaɪkəˌpæθ/

es

–es (suffix) is the usual mark of plural nouns. It is also the regular ending of English third person present tense verbs. It is mainly pronounced /'ez/ if the word ends in 'sg', 'ch', 'z', 'y', etc.:

wishes /wɪʃez/

witches /wɪtʃez/

boxes /bɑːksez/

varies /ˈværiz/

The Letter S: Uses

S can be used as
• The mark of plural nouns, like books
• The regular ending of English third person present tense verbs; like she works
• The possession 's that shows 'belonging to', like Sam's shoes
• The abbreviation of the size small
• The abbreviation of south, southern

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