Sound contrast · General American
English /θ/ vs /t//θ/ / /t/
Adds missing dental-fricative versus alveolar-stop comparison. Inventory support is separate from population-specific L2 evidence.
Practice these sounds/θ/
The unvoiced th sound
The opening noise is softer and more diffuse than the sharper hiss of /s/.
As inthin
/t/
An unvoiced tongue closure
A brief stop near the front of the mouth. The target here is the first consonant.
As intin
WHAT TO LISTEN FOR
A small change.
A different word.
Adds missing dental-fricative versus alveolar-stop comparison. Inventory support is separate from population-specific L2 evidence.
Listen for the target sound in each word.
Sound examples
Tap to hear each wordthin
/θɪn/not thickthick
/θɪk/having depththing
/θɪŋ/an object or mattertheme
/θim/a central subjectthumb
/θʌm/the short thick fingertin
/tɪn/a metallic elementtip
/tɪp/the end of something narrowten
/tɛn/the number 10town
/taʊn/a community larger than a villagetie
/taɪ/fasten with a knot10 words. Words stay hidden during practice unless you choose to reveal them.