S is hissed, Z is buzzed. Most S’s are pronounced as Z’s.
The sound of the letter S is s only if it follows an unvoiced consonant. Otherwise, it becomes a Z in disguise. When an S follows a vowel, a voiced consonant, or another S, it turns into a z sound. The following exercise will let you hear and practice S with its dual sound. There are many more z sounds in English than s sounds. (See also Chapters 8 and 13 for related sounds.)
Exercise 9-1: When S Becomes Z |
In the lists that follow, notice how the voiced word is drawn out, then repeat the word after the speaker. Both voiced and unvoiced diphthongs have the underlying structure of the tone shift, or the double stairstep, but the shift is much larger for the voiced ones.
nouns |
|
books |
waxes |
maps |
pencils |
months |
dogs |
hats |
trains |
pops |
oranges |
bats |
clothes |
bikes |
windows |
verbs |
|
laughs |
washes |
thanks |
arrives |
eats |
comes |
takes |
goes |
speaks |
lunches |
contractions |
|
it’s |
there’s |
what’s |
he’s |
that’s |
she’s |
possessives |
|
a cat’s eye |
a dog’s ear |
Exercise 9-2: A Surly Sergeant Socked an Insolent Sailor |
Repeat the s sounds in the paragraph below.
Sam, a surly sergeant from Cisco, Texas, saw a sailor sit silently on a small seat reserved for youngsters. He stayed for several minutes, while tots swarmed around. Sam asked the sailor to cease and desist, but he sneered in his face. Sam was so incensed that he considered it sufficient incentive to sock the sailor. The sailor stood there for a second, astonished, and then strolled away. Sam was perplexed, but satisfied, and the tots scampered like ants over to the see-saw.
Exercise 9-3: Allz Well That Endz Well |
Repeat the z sounds in the paragraph below.
A lazy Thursday at the zoo found the zebras grazing on zinnias, posing for pictures, and teasing the zookeeper, whose nose was bronzed by the sun. The biggest zebra’s name was Zachary, but his friends called him Zack. Zack was a confusing zebra whose zeal for reason caused his cousins, who were naturally unreasoning, to pause in their conversations. While they browsed, he philosophized. As they grazed, he practiced zen. Because they were Zack’s cousins, the zebras said nothing, but they wished he would muzzle himself at times.
As mentioned, like sounds follow naturally. If one consonant is voiced, chances are, the following plural S will be voiced as well (dogz). If it’s unvoiced, the following sound will be as well (cats). In the past tense, S can be both voiced z and unvoiced s in some cases.
Exercise 9-4: Voiced and Unvoiced Endings in the Past Tense |
The following will explain the differences between four expressions that are similar in appearance but different in both meaning and pronunciation.
Used to, depending on its position in a sentence, will take either a tense ū or a schwa. At the end of a sentence, you need to say, . . . more than I used tooo; in the middle of a sentence you can say, He usta live there.
Go through the paragraph and underline all of the s sounds. The first, æksent is marked for you. Next, circle all of the z sounds, no matter how the word is written (is = iz, as = æz, and so on). (Click here for Answer)
Hello, my name iz __________. I’m taking American æksent Training. There’s a lot to learn, but I hope to make it as enjoyable as possible. I should pick up on the American intonation pattern pretty easily, although the only way to get it is to practice all of the time. I use the up and down, or peaks and valleys, intonation more than I used to. I’ve been paying attention to pitch, too. It’s like walking down a staircase. I’ve been talking to a lot of Americans lately, and they tell me that I’m easier to understand. Anyway, I could go on and on, but the important thing is to listen well and sound good. Well, what do you think? Do I?
Practice reading the paragraph three times on your own, concentrating on strong Z's.
Exercise 9-6: Application Steps with S and Z |
Build up the following sentence, adding each aspect one at a time.
Always be a little kinder than necessary.
1.Intonation |
Always be a little kinder than necessary. |
2.Word Groups |
Always be a little kinder(pause) than necessary. |
3.Liaisons |
Always be(y)a little kinder tha(n)necessary. |
4.æ ä |
äweez be |
5.The American T |
Always be a liddle kinder than necessary. |
6.The American R |
Always be a little kind |
7.Combination of 1 through 6 |
äweez be(y) |
Exercise 9-7: Your Own Application Steps with S and Z |
Write your own sentence, and then build it up, adding each aspect one at a time.
1.Intonation |
2.Word Groups |
3.Liaisons |
4.æ ä |
5.The American T |
6.The American R |
7.Combination of 1 through 6 |
MID-POINT DIAGNOSTIC ANALYSIS
After three to six months, you’re ready for the follow-up analysis. If you are studying on your own, contact toll-free (800) 457-4255 or go to AmericanAccent.com for a referral to a qualified telephone analyst. The diagnostic analysis is designed to evaluate your current speech patterns to let you know where your accent is standard and nonstandard.
Think the United Auto Workers can beat Caterpillar Inc. in their bitter contract battle? Before placing your bets, talk to Paul Branan, who can’t wait to cross the picket line at Caterpillar’s factory in East Peoria. Branan, recently laid off by a rubber-parts plant where he earned base pay of $6.30 an hour, lives one block from a heavily picketed gate at the Cat complex. Now he’s applying to replace one of the 12,600 workers who have been on strike for the past five months. “Seventeen dollars an hour and they don’t want to work?” asks Branan. “I don’t want to take another guy’s job, but I’m hurting, too.”
1.saw, lost, cough
2.can, Dan, last
3.same, say, rail
4.yet, says, Paris
5.shine, time, my
6.sit, silk, been
7.seat, see, bean
8.word, girl, first
9.some, dull, possible
10.tooth, two, blue
11.look, bull, should
12.don’t, so, whole
13.how, down, around
14.appoint, avoid, boil
1.Who opened it?
2.We opened it.
3.Put it away.
4.Bob ate an orange.
5.Can it be done?
1.Who(w)oup’n did?
2.We(y)oup’n dit.
3.Pü di d
way.
4.Bä bei d’ nornj.
5.C’n’t be dn?
1.Write a letter to Betty.
2.Ride a ledder d’ Beddy.
3.tatter |
tattoo |
4.platter |
platoon |
5.pattern |
perturb |
6.critic |
critique |
7.let |
led |
8.witten |
ridden |
Track 199