Consonant Sound / z / as in "zoo" - American English Pronunciation

[@SoundsAmerican]

🎉Great news!🎉 Our brand new Sounds American website is up and running!🚀🎊 There's lots of content on pronunciation.🤓You can start with the article about the /z/ sound: soundsamerican.net/article/consonant_sound_z_as_in_zoo

[@ivangibaja4070]

This is by far the best channel to learn English pronunciation on KZbin. You guys have truly changed my life!! No other English Channel, teacher, or school has contributed to my English fluency quite as much as you've done. I owe you everything!

[@SoundsAmerican]

Wow, thank you!

[@elianabeatrizaversa8060]

I´m a Spanish speaker. I can produce the Z sound at the beginning of words (zoo, zebra...), but it becomes almost impossible to do it at the end of words. Thank you for your videos.

[@ivangibaja4070]

😂

[@alvarogarcia3200]

I'm a Spanish speaker too. I think I can produce the Z sound which is not present in my language but not with the tongue in that position.

[@wendyreyes3513]

I can't wait for the /z/ flashcard to come out! This is my favorite sound. I learned how to make it thanks to you, guys!!! 😄

[@dustin1520]

Esto es lo que buscaba y no encontraba, muy didáctico y con muchos ejemplos que es lo que importa para practicar... Excelente!

[@SoundsAmerican]

Glad you liked it!

[@TheSunshinefee]

Prior to this video, I was clueless and pronounced a lot of 'z' sounds as. I know better now and can focus on doing better. thank you

[@SoundsAmerican]

Excellent!

[@audiblewilcox9085]

Literally the best channel for learning American English.

[@SoundsAmerican]

Thank you! 🤝

[@majomondragon4870]

This channel is so underrated

[@vitonot]

thankss for these videos, they help me a lot!!!!

[@sakura5sango6]

For me, it's more difficult to pronounce the /z/ sound at the end of a word/syllabe. But I will work on it so I won't confuse it with the /s/ sound anymore, which I usually do! 😅

[@luisr6955]

girl, same

[@michellestoaevertsson3830]

Me to. I hadn’t thought much about it before today, and I hadn’t really grapes how prevalent the s pronounced as z is in English.

[@sakura5sango6]

x2! I mean, in school we learned about English phonetics, but this one sound? Nope, I don't really remember if my teachers made clear how usual it is, at least... @@michellestoaevertsson3830

[@glendasworld4125]

One of the reasons why babies are are to have a perfect accent is because they are not biased towards anything. They are able to make the z sound in words where the sound is represented by a letter s because they don’t know its spelling while us adults do know the spelling of words. If we see a word with the letter s, we will pronounce that s as an s even if it’s supposed to be pronounced as a z just due to its freaking spelling. We will do that every single time unless we’re able to detect the z ourselves which is rare

[@gabypino407]

Thanks a lot for this video! the S and Z sounds are very challenging!

[@SoundsAmerican]

Glad it was helpful!

[@luiscerda4031]

As Spanish speaker i agree. I had no idea about the tonge position to pronounce letter Z.

[@ServerNY]

I come from Taiwan , This video help me better . thank you

[@SoundsAmerican]

Glad to hear that!

[@wendyreyes3513]

/z/ 🐝 I had been waiting for this sound for a long time! Thank youuu...

[@SoundsAmerican]

+Wendy Reyes You're welcome! Stay tuned for new videos!

[@andyrodriguez5661]

I'm from México, and in México we never pronounce the " Z sound "

[@SoundsAmerican]

That's one of the reasons we made this video 😉

[@gerardomartinez3001]

Thank you so much! I love all these lessons from this channel!!

[@SoundsAmerican]

+Gerardo Martinez Glad to hear that! You're welcome!

[@kayardilla]

This is amazinnnnngg!! I am so happy I found your channel. I have a very good pronunciation but never learned the rules... Just feel like this is perfect to break some bad habits I still have.. THANK YOU!!

[@SoundsAmerican]

+ Karina Ardizzi 😊👋

[@ivanyaurima2564]

I have only one question. Thank you for the video. I really appreciate your job. My question is, the "z" consonant is always pronounced with the "z" sound? Or it can have an "s" sound sometimes? =)

[@SoundsAmerican]

It almost always represents the /z/ sound, there are only a few words where it's pronounced as /s/: pizza, paparazzi. We mentioned this in this post, check it out, if you're interested: kzbin.infoUgyghxIQnm9PNPwEe9N4AaABCQ

[@ivanyaurima2564]

@@SoundsAmerican Thank you, muchas gracias por su ayuda =)

[@ivonitacorrea]

The best teacher!!

[@jonathanandrade7378]

Amazing video, thank you guys!❤ Do you guys have any video contrasting "ʤ", "ʃ", "ʧ" and "ʒ"? It would be helpful as usual! 😊

[@marquitomd]

Jonathan Andrade I agree. A video like that would be so helpful!

[@SoundsAmerican]

+Jonathan Andrade Thank you for your suggestion! We'll add it to our plan!

[@jonathanandrade7378]

@@marquitomd Yes that will save my life, hahaha!

[@jonathanandrade7378]

@@SoundsAmerican Thank you, guys! Greetings from Costa Rica!🇨🇷

[@SoundsAmerican]

+Jonathan Andrade😊🖖

[@Luxury_vagabond]

Best in KZbin !

[@debralyn10]

Acurate

[@marquitomd]

I knew how to pronounce this sound but I didn't realize that so many words written with "S" were pronounced with it. Thank you for letting us know. It will be very hard to get used to pronounce it but I'll work on this. Got one question, sometimes even American people devoice it in some words from the video's list, right? For example the word "as". I'm pretty sure I've heard Americans saying it with /s/

[@SoundsAmerican]

+Marquito L As we say in this video, Americans NEVER devoice the /z/ sound in words. If we ever devoice the /z/ in the word "as," we may get in trouble 😄. Especially at work :), hard to imagine what the HR department will say :).

[@marquitomd]

Sounds American hahahahahah you are right 😂😂 I didn't notice that detail. I must have misheard, or maybe my ear wasn't enough trained to hear the difference. I'll pay more attention from now on. Greetings! And amazing video, as always 😃👏 👋

[@SoundsAmerican]

+Marquito L Don't worry, it's one of the most frequent mistakes. Yes, it does take a lot of practice, but we know, you'll get there! Thank you, glad to hear you liked this video. Appreciate your feedback, as always!

[@marcoenrique8309]

You are right, Rachel has a video talking about it, that video might help you a lot.

[@marcoenrique8309]

The name is ending voiced vs unvoiced consonants.

[@DiegoMedina-ov2vg]

Guys I love you so much!. Thank you for your amazing job!!!!

[@SoundsAmerican]

We love you too!

[@personalJoke]

I noticed that frequently, plurals are pronounced with the /z/ sound at the end of the word, as in "others". However, it is not always the case, as in the word "tourists", which ends with the /s/ sound. Is there any rule to know when to go voiced and when to go voiceless? Thanks again!!!!!!!

[@SoundsAmerican]

Yes, there is! We talk about these rules in this video, check it out: kzbin.info/www/bejne/npXIaoadbJqBpJY

[@victorhernandez4613]

Dear Friend, I have a BIG question: did you already make the video about when "S" sound like "Z"? That is a very important video. And you have a very clear information. ...... Please!!!

[@SoundsAmerican]

Not yet, unfortunately, but we have this video, which may be very helpful: kzbin.info/www/bejne/npXIaoadbJqBpJY

[@victorhernandez4613]

@@SoundsAmerican I am very anxious for that video. Now, I understand you have a very clear knowledge about English. And that knowledge is useful and priceless. I am from Venezuela and, now, I know that the English information sometimes is NOT reliable. I say: like a patchwork quilt.

[@vandang1805]

amazing video. I love this channel.

[@hector_barrios]

I needed this video so much

[@SoundsAmerican]

+Hector Barrios Glad we could help! 😊👋

[@sunderverma5018]

Thanks teacher!

[@SoundsAmerican]

+sunder verma You're welcome!

[@antonios5680]

Great video, as usual. Thanks a lot!!!

[@SoundsAmerican]

+Antonio S You're welcome. Stay tuned for our new videos!

[@keymergoitia3117]

There are words in the English language that are spelled with 's,' but sometimes they are pronounced with the sound /s/ or /z/. I understand that. But in the case of words that are spelled with 'z,' do they always pronounce them with /z/? Thanks!

[@diana.a6651]

I'm looking forward to the release of your app! It looks amazing! Thank you so much for the great explanation

[@SoundsAmerican]

+Dian A. A Thank you! We're working hard to make it happen soon! Stay tuned! 😊👋

[@SunggukLim]

very informative! I thought 's' letter should be always pronounced as 's' sound. but `24%` of them should be pronounced as `z` sound!

[@BruhPessagno]

Me suscribo! excelente video!

[@Ivan_Saul]

Hey there! I was in Uni when I saw the notification for this video; I've been waiting for hours just to watch it! Excellent job! What's next? :) ¡Saludos!

[@SoundsAmerican]

+Saúl Iván Hello there! Happy to "see" you! So, you had to wait to watch our video 😊... We're going to publish a video on the '-s' and '-es' endings next, but don't tell anyone, it's a secret 😂. BTW, what's your major?

[@Ivan_Saul]

@@SoundsAmerican Exactly, I was in my classroom when I saw the notification, but I watched it when I got home, in the afternoon jaja Oh it sounds fantastic! Don't worry, I won't tell anyone ;) jajajaja Thanks for asking me! My major is teaching languages, I want to teach English, to be more specific But I also will be able to teach Spanish; I'm not just watching this videos to learn how to pronounce properly, but to teach student how Americans pronounce; I'm looking forward to teach Phonetic and Phonology and also grammar, and morphology I'll be able to teach the same but in Spanish :) That's why these videos are so important! Nice jobs, guys :) Esperaré el próximo video con ansias :D

[@SoundsAmerican]

+Saúl Iván Teaching languages! That's cool! So, we're colleagues, then. :). 👍

[@Ivan_Saul]

@@SoundsAmerican well, I'm a first-year student yet, I'm just 19, so I wouldn't call myself as your colleague, you're more experienced than me, but probably one day I could know as much as you do (Yeah, right 😂)

[@mariacarlaorellana4791]

Thanks for the video

[@SoundsAmerican]

😊👋

[@ajaypandey6979]

Love you so much sir you are the best teacher

[@SoundsAmerican]

😊👋

[@MrVaijay]

Thank you so much.

[@SoundsAmerican]

+vijay verma You're welcome!

[@sagitta2012]

/z/ vs /dz/, can you tell them apart? For example, "rose and roads", "grades and graze". I hope someone could elaborate on the difference between /z/ and /dz/ which are two separate phonems according to the oxford dictionary (using Daniel Jones Phonetic Symbols). Try to say “maids in the maze", then you might feel the subtle difference between "maids" and "maze"! There're a lot of common words like these, and I just find it a bit weird to pronounce "kids" like "kiz", or "beds" like "bez", there seems to be a distinction that defies explanation...

[@s888r]

The 'dz' is an affricate while the 'z' is a fricative. For the 'dz', touch the palate before pronouncing the 'z' and that's it, it's a 'dz'!!

[@berthap9756]

I love this channel!!!

[@victorhernandez4613]

Maybe, that is because the letter Z in Spanish is said by place the tongue between the front teeth.

[@LindsiA]

Ok this is awesome. The video you show, with the ipa symbols, is this an app or just like a video you created? I searched for the app in google play and I didn't see it. I need to know! Thanks.

[@SoundsAmerican]

We're using our own app, but we haven't released it to the public yet. We're planning to do it very soon and we'll announce the release on this channel. Stay tuned!

[@rronin87]

Korean does not have a /z/ sound. Instead, it is replaced by the /dʒ/ sound.

[@n3b3d4]

Any news about application? btw thank you for lesson

[@SoundsAmerican]

+Gennady N You're welcome!

[@eneldia85]

Wow! Super good explanation!

[@enigmaticpuzzle9654]

Thanks

[@SoundsAmerican]

No problem!

[@chester-jn9rw]

Where can i find those bullet-proof rules that help identify when s becomes z?

[@SoundsAmerican]

This is still "work in progress," in the meantime you can find this link useful: soundsamerican.net/articles?tag=blog&tag=letter_s

[@ieptranmong5115]

It would be great if you have explanations about root words! Thank!

[@lissam956]

Is there a free app where you can record your voice and get corrected? I need one, if you can suggest one for me, it would be great. Thanks.

[@SoundsAmerican]

We're using our own app, but we haven't released it to the public yet. We're planning to do it very soon and we'll announce the release on this channel. Stay tuned!

[@user-vx1mw5xo3j]

감사합니다. ^^

[@danielanthony2578]

Please, how can one differentiate between the /s/ and /z/ sounds in words?

[@armandopadilla4175]

AMAZING VIDEOS...THANKS FOR SHARING THEM WITH US

[@SoundsAmerican]

Glad you like them!

[@BrianNguyen-jy3vq]

How about a bouns track with /z/ sounds? Zoe zebra is the craziest animal in the zoo.

[@charliebee2028]

thnx

[@bernaldoarnao]

gracias

[@SoundsAmerican]

🤗🤗🤗

[@miltonz.4624]

Good video so helpful, we are still waiting for the app do you know about? Thanks

[@venrawrven]

I will be teaching this lesson to my Korean students tomorrow.

[@SoundsAmerican]

Great! Say hi to them from Sounds American. 👋

[@victorhernandez4613]

Honestly, what is the main problem for Latinamerican (Spanish) speaker? Yes, your ear is more detailed. Spanish doesn't distinguish endings. For example, in Spanish the words "actitud" and "aptitud" sound the same. Sometimes, we ask: with P or C, to understand the meaning of the phrase. We need to train our ears on those details. :-)

[@nguyenDuong-nx3dw]

I have a question: whether voiced consonants (v, z...) at the end of word vibrate in throat like at the begin and middle?

[@sriratdecha8809]

Thank​ you​

[@alokmourya6664]

It is very important for us

[@carloscorona3143]

Great video I still have one more question though Do plural nouns and third person verbs are pronunced with the "z" too ?

[@SoundsAmerican]

It depends on the preceding sound. The '-s' ending is pronounced as /s/ after the voiceless consonant /t/ in the word “cats”. The ‘-s’ ending is pronounced as /z/ after the voiced consonant /g/ in the word "dogs" and after the vowel /ə/ in the word "zebras." And finally, the '-s' ending is pronounced as /ɪz/ after the /s/ sound in the word "horses." We have a video on this topic, check it out: kzbin.info/www/bejne/npXIaoadbJqBpJY

[@jesuslanderos.2442]

Alright, I still don't know how to make the /z/ sound at the end of words just as native English speakers do at natural speaking rate. It still sounds the same as an /s/ sound to me; for example in words like: «Kids», «Words» or «Bothers». I don't know if there's another weaker /z/ sound form for when this very sound isn't behind a vowel.

[@nocoten2913]

same

[@marcoantoniomoralescruz2645]

Interesting video! Although I practice and practice with my students. They make mistakes, they need more practice on their own.

[@rahulnaruka9117]

thank you very much

[@nails.1978]

Can you make a video to illustrate when the sounds are in the word, how should the tongue position be?

[@SoundsAmerican]

We're not sure what are you asking for, 🤔 could you please give an example?

[@quangvuong4089]

Seemingly, when we try to pronounce /s/ with vowel length, it will become /z/ automatically. So, we don't need to notice /z/ on purpose? For example, when we tried to lengthen 'price' sound on purpose, it will become 'prize'. this rule is also applied for /b/-/p/, /t/-/d/, /k/-/g/, etc

[@SoundsAmerican]

That's not how it works. :) You have to add your voice for voiced consonants and lengthen vowels before voiced consonants, not the other way around. :) You can shorten a vowel before voiced consonants too, but according to the Vowel Length rule, it has to be long.

[@quangvuong4089]

@@SoundsAmerican ohhh, thank you, admin :D

[@sergueiignacinskybenitovic3025]

I thought God didn't exist and then I found this channel.

[@nanyan5296]

It's very good.I like it.But thank you for lesson.

[@SoundsAmerican]

+nan yan Glad you liked it! Your welcome!

[@cynthiamejiaovando9137]

Cozy, freeze, jazz, sneeze, squeeze, zip, zone

[@artimalik1126]

I am not able to find difference between zoo and vision sound

[@maahadtahfizmanzilfurqan9117]

the best in the market

[@SoundsAmerican]

Thank you!

[@John2corner]

Where is the exact location of the alveolar ridge? The lowest part of the roof of the mouth? The bump? I know you need to touch the alveolar with the tip of your tongue (btw, is it the tip or blade of your tongue?) to make sounds such as N, D, and L. Can we touch somewhere a bit closer to the teeth? Somewhere between the upper teeth and the bump? Thanks a lot.

[@SoundsAmerican]

The alveolar ridge is located behind your upper front teeth, it's also called a tooth ridge. It's the bump you're referring to in your question. Check out this animation: kzbin.info/www/bejne/p2bEY2CBqq2eeLc To make the /n/, /d/, or /l/ sounds, you touch the alveolar ridge with the tip of your tongue. We have detailed instructions in the videos about the pronunciation of these sounds: kzbin.info/aero/PLYJV5Moz9cfwiandFbIM8-zX9WjSnfLcv

[@John2corner]

@@SoundsAmerican Thank you for the links! I have one more question. How strongly do you put your tongue against the roof of your mouth when making sounds such as N, D,T, etc? very gently touch? Thank you!

[@maisaidmiau]

I'm crying, this's very difficult to me 😭

[@SoundsAmerican]

Don't cry, please. What's the difficulty?

[@Chadowsky]

@@akawikaa yes, it may sound like /dz/ instead of /z/

[@mle9841]

It sounds weird in Spanish

[@user-vl9hl2dm3c]

What's the difference between /z/ and /dz/ ? Thanks

[@SoundsAmerican]

There's no sound /dz/ in American English, there's the /d/ sound that's followed by the /z/. For example, "card" - "cards." Most often, you may find these combinations when words take '-s' endings: kzbin.info/www/bejne/npXIaoadbJqBpJY

[@saibaba1334]

Loved❤❤❤❤❤❤ it

[@FULL_HS]

Güzel en iyi ingizce dersi tavsiye ederim

[@juanjoaozinho3583]

Melhor canal!

[@SoundsAmerican]

+juan juan Glad you liked it! 😄

[@linhadabeleza]

I have a question. I do understand about making a vowel sound longer before the voiced sound /z/ when both appear in the same syllable like in the word "lose". But I don't understand how we should make it longer when they are not in same syllable, in words like "daisy", "poison", "music", "easy", "deserve", "desire", "raisin", "season", "resort" and "reason".

[@SoundsAmerican]

The length of the vowel doesn't depend on it being in the same syllable with a consonant. It depends on if the consonant is voiced or not.

[@zshtsta4408]

Hello Thankyou

[@zhongruiwang5997]

I love this app. Where can I download it?

[@SoundsAmerican]

+ZHONGRUI WANG It's our own app, we haven't released it to the public yet, but we're working hard to make it happen. We'll announce the release on this channel. Stay tuned!

[@ednamartins6477]

Muito bom,

[@linhtung3734]

2:00 from Vietnam with love:))

[@debralyn10]

The best ever 😍😍😍😍🥰🥰🥰

[@LongNguyen-cy7xk]

I extremely loves your channel

[@SoundsAmerican]

+Pro Long Happy to hear that! We love you too! 👋😊

[@jasonr760]

I can say words beginning with the letter “Z” clearly in my mind but I can’t say them aloud

[@SoundsAmerican]

What's the major difficulty?

[@sofiavm]

This sound doesn't exist in spanish

[@ChuchologanONE]

try to pronounce "desde" you'll notice the /z/ sound

[@sofiavm]

​@@ChuchologanONE I did but I didn't notice it.

[@ChuchologanONE]

@@sofiavm It depends on your spanish dialect

[@sofiavm]

@@ChuchologanONE I agree

[@glendasworld4125]

I’m a native Spanish speaker and I have no trouble producing the sound because I remember producing it as a little child. I only have trouble recognizing the z sound in the words that have the letter s. Sometimes I’m able to recognize those words by myself but not always. For example, I have always noticed the z sound in the word Daisy but never in the word observe until now

[@cherytravels]

please include in you lists of words such as organization, realization, minimization. thank you

[@SoundsAmerican]

Thank you for your suggestion.

[@sergiogilmar8284]

oh oho oh thank´s for video i from Brazil!

[@SoundsAmerican]

No problem!

[@randomVlog555]

Does it have App version for installation? Regards.

[@SoundsAmerican]

We're using our own app, but we haven't released it to the public yet. We're planning to do it very soon and we'll announce the release on this channel. Stay tuned!

[@victorhernandez4613]

I like your joke: share this video with. ...., pets, ..... ..... That joke is very funny. Uh, my dog likes this video too. :-)

[@SoundsAmerican]

We weren't joking... 😂

[@jamesbros4667]

How can I get this app?

[@SoundsAmerican]

We're using our own app, but we haven't released it to the public yet. We're planning to do it very soon and we'll announce the release on this channel. Stay tuned!

[@personalJoke]

Is the z sound lighter at the end of the words? I hear the z sound clear and strong in the word zip but it is more like an s in the word was. Am I hearing it right? Or it is my brain just paying tricks on my hearing 😂. I see your channel every day, it is so useful to me!!!! As I always say, tou guys are the best!!!!!

[@SoundsAmerican]

Yes, you are hearing it right. In conversation, the final voiced fricatives may sound a little "weaker" compared to the same sounds at the beginning of words. They are still voiced, though!

[@personalJoke]

@@SoundsAmerican Thanks so much for your answer!!!!!

[@SoundsAmerican]

👋😀

[@ivanbenitez567]

We need that apppp 🥺😣😣😣

[@carlj3941]

what is the difference betwen /z/ and /ʒ/?

[@SoundsAmerican]

The /z/ is pronounced with the tip of your tongue near your alveolar ridge, but the /ʒ/ is made with your tongue arched to the roof of your mouth. For both sounds, there's no contact between the tongue and the alveolar ridge of the roof of the mouth.

[@angel-jimenezz]

It's like the /z/ in portuguese, yeah

[@victorhernandez4613]

Likely, people place the tongue between the front teeth when they want to say the sound 'z' because the letter Z in Spanish is pronounced that way. ..... But that is only a comment. I might be wrong about that.

[@neynazareno7603]

One question: According to this video kzbin.info/www/bejne/inOXf6p7japlldE the /Z/ sound at the end of words sounds like a very soft /S/ sound, is that true?

[@thaotuyennguyen8205]

1:53

[@handIe.]

Then why s in besides pronounced ts?

[@SoundsAmerican]

The word "besides" is pronounced as /bɪˈsaɪdz/.