LoginThe Letter H in American English
In this lesson, we will learn about all the sounds of the letter H. It is the eighth letter of the English alphabet.I'm gonna tell you all there is about it.
H is the eighth letter in the English alphabet. It is also a consonant.
Consonants are sounds that are pronounced with restriction in the vocal tract.
| Uppercase Form | H |
|---|---|
| Lowercase | h |
| Name | aitch (pronounced /ˈeɪtʃ/) |
| Main Sound | /h/ |
The Letter H: Sounds
The letter 'h' has two sounds.
Sound 1: /h/
The letter 'h' sounds /h/:
Sound 2: /∅/
1. 'h' sounds /∅/ when it precedes the letter 'o', so 'ho' sounds /ˈɑ/ in American English, in other words, 'h' is silent ∅:
2. 'ah' also sounds /ɑː/, ‘h’ is silent ∅:
d
cheet
3. 'gh' generally sounds /ɡ/, in other words, 'h' is silent /∅/:
yo
din
This word is also pronounced /ˈdɪŋi/.
4. 'gh' also sounds Ø (no sound, silent) as in:
throu
nei
ni
5. 'h' in 'rh' sounds
The Letter H: Multigraphs
The letter 'h' can be positioned before or after other letters, mainly consonants.
xh
'xh' sounds /gz/:
e
e
e
he
'he' sounds /ɜː/ or /hɜː/ in American English:
Tip
'hi' in the word
ve
ch
'c' in combination with 'h' generally represents /tʃ/:
It also has the /ʃ/ sound in French loanwords:
mousta
'c' combined with 'h' also sounds /k/:
gh
'gh' after 'u' also sounds /f/:
cou
enou
rou
'gh' also sound silent /Ø/ when they follow 'ou':
dr
d
thou
ph
'ph' sounds /f/:
dol
gra
sh
'sh' sounds /ʃ/:
fi
th
'th' sounds /θ/:
mou
tee
'th' can also sound /ð/ if it is followed by the letter 'e':
smoo
'th' also sounds /t/:
wh
'wh' sounds /w/, note that lips are rounded pronouncing this letter.
'wh' also sounds /h/, that means 'w' is silent /∅/:
The Letter H: Uses
The letter 'h' can be:
The abbreviation of hydrogen
The abbreviation of an hour (in prescriptions)
The abbreviation of hours, like
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