‘s”, “es” are of the most used ending sounds in English but also a common pronunciation pitfall of ESL learners. This article will detail 3 easy-to-remember rules to pronounce s es in English, which you can apply in all contexts.
3 valid principles
There are 3 ways for pronouncing s es that are always correct in all cases. To apply these 3 rules, you first need to look up the phonetic transcription according to the IPA chart and determine if the word belongs to any of the following cases:
Case 1: Words ending in /f/, /t/, /k/, /p/, /θ/
For example: desks, shops, jolts
Case 2: Words ending in /s/, /z/, /∫/, /t∫/, /dʒ/, /ʒ/
Example: touches, changes
Rule 3: Words ending in the remaining syllables
Example: studies, ladies
Once you’ve categorized which group of words you need to pronounce, just follow these three simple rules to pronounce s es:
Rule 1: Pronounce s with words ending in /f/, /t/, /k/, /p/, /θ/
The ending characters -p, -k, -t, -f and -th are often used for voiceless sounds, according to the phonetic transcription would be /f/, /t/, /k/, /p/ and /θ/. If a word ends in a voiceless sound (when the larynx does not vibrate when speaking), an s sound will be placed at the end.
Some notable examples:
Từ | Nghĩa | Phát âm |
cups | Những chiếc cốc | /kʌps/ |
talks | Nói chuyện | /tɑːks/ |
cats | Những con mèo | /kæts/ |
laughs | Cười | /læfs/ |
Rule 2: Pronounce iz with words ending in /s/, /z/, /∫/, /t∫/, /dʒ/, /ʒ/
Words ending in -sh, -ce, -s, -ss, -z, -ge, -ch, -x, called voiceless consonants, often end with the following phonetic transcriptions: /s/, / z/, /∫/, /t∫/, /dʒ/, /ʒ/
Some notable examples:
Từ | Nghĩa | Phát âm |
boxes | Những chiếc hộp | /bɑːksiz/ |
houses | Những ngôi nhà | /haʊsiz/ |
riches | Giàu có | /ˈrɪtʃ.ɪz/ |
kisses | Hôn | /kisiz/ |
Rule 3: Pronounce z with the rest of the words
If the word ends in a voiced sound (you can check by looking up the IPA or touching your throat and feeling for laryngeal vibration), adding s es to the word and we will pronounce them as /z/.
For easy identification, you can use the exclusion with the above two cases. If it does not belong to both of the first two groups, the word would apply the third rule.
Some notable examples:
Từ | Nghĩa | Phát âm |
finds | Tìm kiếm | /faɪndz/ |
dreams | Mơ mộng, giấc mơ | /driːmz/ |
tags | Nhãn dán | /tæɡz/ |
lens | Ống kính | /lenz/ |
Mastering the above 3 rules to pronounce e es, you can quickly and accurately apply them in the following situations:
- Add s es to describe plural nouns: houses, shirts
- Add s es to conjugate the verb in the second person: she finds something
Along with that, let’s build yourself a motivated environment to practice continuously, you will develop the instinct to react immediately, to recognize the application situations yourself without having to review the theory in your head.
35 days mastering American English pronunciation with GOGA Pronun
GOGA Pronun is an upgraded version of the GOGA app, including a 35-day English-American pronunciation course, combining two outstanding features, Gamification and AI.
As a learning method that applies Gamification, GOGA introduces learners to a faster, more fun and less stressful way to play and learn, through pronunciation and vocabulary games with more than 167,300 learners worldwide. The specific 35-day route will guide learners to master 40 American English sounds according to the IPA chart through 72 instruction videos from native teachers and guidelines to practice the above sounds.
Along with that, the AI tutor will give instant feedback and correct errors in detail to the level of words, sentences, and conversations for learners, helping them speak clearly, accurately, and confidently.
Don’t forget to like and share this article and follow goga.ai to discover more useful English knowledge!