Consonant Stop: d sound /d/

Listen to the d sound

How to pronounce the d sound

The d sound is voiced (the vocal cords vibrate while producing it), and is the counterpart to the unvoiced t sound.

To create the d sound, air is briefly prevented from leaving the vocal tract when the tip of the tongue presses against the tooth ridge while the sides of the tongue press against the upper side teeth. The sound is aspirated when the air is released. The aspiration for a d sound is less than the aspiration for a t sound.

Advanced ESL/ELL pronunciation students should be aware that when the d sound is followed by an l sound or an n sound, the aspiration of the d sound is not released in the same manner as before other sounds. Instead, a lateral aspiration is used in the d sound+l sound combination, and a nasal aspiration is used in the d sound+n sound combination.

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Common d sound spellings

spelling	example		other pronunciations for spelling
d/dd	down ladder sad		none

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The d sound in suffixes

spelling	example		other pronunciations for spelling
-ed[1]	cried saved included		t sound short i+d sound
-ade	invade persuade barricade		none

[1]: -ed ending
The pronunciation of the -ed ending depends on the final sound before the suffix.

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Non-phonetic d sound words

none

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Pronuncian Lessons

  

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Letter x Pronunciation: k+s or g+z

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