Pronunciation – consonants

In the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), the consonant sounds of a language are represented using a set of symbols that represent the different consonant sounds that occur in spoken language. These symbols are arranged in a chart known as the IPA consonant chart, which organizes the consonant sounds according to the manner and place of articulation.

There are 24 consonant sounds represented in the IPA consonant chart:

/p/ as in “pat”
/b/ as in “bat”
/t/ as in “tap”
/d/ as in “dad”
/k/ as in “cat”
/g/ as in “gap”
/f/ as in “fat”
/v/ as in “vat”
/θ/ as in “think”
/ð/ as in “this”
/s/ as in “sat”
/z/ as in “zap”
/ʃ/ as in “shy”
/ʒ/ as in “measure”
/h/ as in “hat”
/m/ as in “mat”
/n/ as in “nat”
/ŋ/ as in “sing”
/l/ as in “lap”
/r/ as in “rat”
/w/ as in “wet”
/j/ as in “yet”

Each consonant sound is represented by a single symbol in the IPA, and the position of the symbol on the chart reflects the manner and place of articulation during pronunciation. For example, the consonant sound /p/ is pronounced with the lips in a tight closure and the air released explosively, while the consonant sound /m/ is pronounced with the lips in a tight closure and the air released through the nose.