日本語表示
PRONUNCIATION: BASIC SOUNDS
The S Sound and the Z Sound
/s/ and /z/

GOAL

I can make the S sound and the Z sound.

TRY IT!

Read the sentence below.

That school’s entrance test is really hard.

SOUNDS

Learn how to pronounce today's sounds.
Sound Profile

/s/

Voicing

no

Mouth

slightly open

Lips

Teeth

Tongue

the tip of the tongue close to but not touching behind the top front teeth

Jaw

Steps

  1. Slightly open your mouth.

  2. Put the tip of your tongue close to but not touching behind your top front teeth.

  3. Exhale.

Katakana Otoshiana

English words with the S sound are written in katakana in many different ways.

 

sad ➡ saddo (サッド)

soup ➡ suupu (スープ)

sick ➡ shikku (シック)

seaside ➡ shiisaido (シーサイド)

 

However, in English, the S sound is always formed the same way, regardless of the vowel that follows it.

/z/

Voicing

yes

Mouth

slightly open

Lips

Teeth

Tongue

the tip of the tongue close to but not touching behind the top front teeth

Jaw

Steps

  1. Slightly open your mouth.

  2. Put the tip of your tongue close to but not touching behind your top front teeth.

  3. Make a voiced sound.

Katakana Otoshiana

English words with the Z sound are written in katakana in many different ways.

 

Zack ➡ zakku (ザック)

zone ➡ zoon (ゾーン)

business ➡ bijinesu (ビジネス)

Brazil ➡ burajiru (ブラジル)

 

However, in English, the Z sound is always formed the same way, regardless of the vowel that follows it.

Steps

  1. Slightly open your mouth.

  2. Put the tip of your tongue close to but not touching behind your top front teeth.

  3. Exhale.

Steps

  1. Slightly open your mouth.

  2. Put the tip of your tongue close to but not touching behind your top front teeth.

  3. Make a voiced sound.

Katakana Otoshiana

English words with the S sound are written in katakana in many different ways.

 

sad ➡ saddo (サッド)

soup ➡ suupu (スープ)

sick ➡ shikku (シック)

seaside ➡ shiisaido (シーサイド)

 

However, in English, the S sound is always formed the same way, regardless of the vowel that follows it.

Katakana Otoshiana

English words with the Z sound are written in katakana in many different ways.

 

Zack ➡ zakku (ザック)

zone ➡ zoon (ゾーン)

business ➡ bijinesu (ビジネス)

Brazil ➡ burajiru (ブラジル)

 

However, in English, the Z sound is always formed the same way, regardless of the vowel that follows it.

WORDS

Practice today’s sounds in the words below.

/s/

soy sauce

sea

sink

sick

kiss

ice

/z/

zucchini

zebra

noisy

zig-zag

dizzy

daisy

SENTENCES

Practice today’s sounds in the sentences below.

/s/

  1. Sue is sick, so her mom made chicken soup. 
  2. Simon likes to have sausage pasta with ice cold orange juice.
  3. My best subjects are science and history.
  4. The dirty plates are in the sink.
  5. You’re sick, so don’t kiss the baby.

/z/

  1. Zack went to Zombie Zone with his friends.
  2. Daisy is dizzy because of the noisy music.
  3. Liz loves zig-zag roads.
  4. Zander grows zucchinis and daisies in his garden.
  5. Zane visited the zebras at the Arizona Zoo.

/s/ + /z/

  1. Sam bought salmon and zucchini at the store near the sea.
  2. Rosy’s class is so noisy!
  3. Sissy drew zig-zag patterns in the sand.
  4. Zach got a zero on his science test.
  5. The zipper on Sonny’s bag is broken.

DIALOGUES

Practice today’s sounds in the dialogues below.

/s/

Student:

Sally made seaweed soup.
Tutor:

How nice! That looks delicious!
Student:

Yeah! It’s really good. The seaweed tastes so nice.
Tutor:

Did she put some soy sauce in the soup?
Student:

Yes. She added sesame seed oil too.

/z/

Student:

I watched the new zombie movie with Zack.
Tutor:

Zombies at the Zoo? How was it?
Student:

Zack liked it. He really loves zombie movies. But I didn’t.
Tutor:

Why not? Liz and Zane also liked it.
Student:

It was boring, and the music was horrible!

/s/ + /z/

Tutor:

Zane passed the entrance test for the Arizona School of Music.
Student:

Wow! Zane’s amazing! That school’s entrance test is really hard.
Tutor:

I know! But he has such a nice voice.
Student:

Yeah! He’s great! I’ll do my best next year, so I can pass the music test too!

TRY IT AGAIN!

Reread the sentence below.

That school’s entrance test is really hard.