Consonants

In English, consonants can be distinguished by whether they are 'sounds' or 'letters'. Sometimes they overlap. From the sharp 's' sound to the gentle 'm' hum, consonants are the backbone of English speech. Explore our examples of English consonants and ways to identify them!

The meaning of 'consonant'

A consonant is a speech sound made by either completely or partially obstructing breath. This is done by creating contact between two articulators.

List of English consonants letters and examples

There are 24 consonant sounds in Englush. Some examples of how you use consonants in English are as follows:

Fig. 1 - Vowel and consonant sounds are produced differently.

How are consonant sounds made?

Consonants have three characteristics:

1. Voicing
2. Place of articulation
3. Manner of articulation

Let's have a look at them all in more detail.

Voicing

Voicing refers to the activity of the vocal cords. The organs related to voicing are:

• The vocal cords.

• The glottis.

• The larynx.

There are two types of voicing:

• Voiceless - When the vocal folds are wide apart and not vibrating, consonants are voiceless. For example, the consonant sounds of / p /, / t / and / s /.
• Voiced - When the vocal folds are close together and vibrating, consonants are voiced. For example, the consonant sounds of / b /, / d / and / z /.

Place of articulation

The place of articulation is where the airstream is obstructed to form consonant sounds. There are two types of articulators:

1. The active articulators are the parts that you can move, like your tongue or your lips.

2. The passive articulators are the immovable parts of your vocal tract that can be brought together, like the teeth or the palate.

These are the 8 places of articulation (with letters corresponding to the image below):

Fig. 2 - The eight places of articulation range from the lips to the glottis

Manner of articulation

The manner of articulation refers to how the airstream is obstructed to produce consonant sounds. There are six different 'manners of articulation':

Differences between vowels and consonants

Consonants are speech sounds produced by the obstruction or constriction of the airflow in the vocal tract, involving either the lips, the glottis, or the tongue.

Vowels are speech sounds made when the mouth is open and the air is expelled freely through the vocal tract without being blocked in the mouth or larynx.

Let's summarise:

• A consonant sound is produced with a complete or partial closure of the vocal tract.
• A vowel is produced with a complete opening of the vocal tract.
• Consonants are described according to voicing, place of articulation, and manner of articulation.
• Vowels are described according to height, frontness or backness, and roundness.
• There are 24 consonant sounds and 20 vowel sounds in English.

Examples of consonants and vowels

Now play a game to understand the examples of how to pronounce a vowel and how to pronounce a consonant:

• Make the vowel sound / u /. While you are making the sound, move your lips and your jaw. Even though there is a movement of the articulators, you can sustain the same sound. Do the same exercise with some other vowel sounds.
• Now try to make the consonant sound / b / without moving your mouth, lips, or tongue. It is impossible to do because to pronounce a consonant, you have to move the articulators.