The "th" sound is the single feature that most often gives away an accent. Native speakers don't think about it — for everyone else, it's the hardest consonant in English. Good news: there are only two sounds, and they follow one simple physical rule.
The two "th" sounds
English spells two different sounds with the same letters:
- Voiced /ð/ — this, that, mother, breathe
- Unvoiced /θ/ — think, three, bath, Thursday
The mouth position is identical. The only difference is whether your vocal cords vibrate. Place your fingers on your throat and say this — you'll feel a buzz. Now say think — no buzz.
አዳምጡ እና ያወዳድሩ
The rule
Stick the tip of your tongue between your teeth. Lightly. Then push air past it.
Common substitutions by first language
- French and German speakers often use /s/ or /z/ — zis instead of this
- Spanish speakers tend to use /d/ or /t/ — dat instead of that
- Japanese, Korean, and Mandarin speakers usually use /s/ for /θ/ — sink instead of think
- Russian speakers often use /t/ or /f/
These don't sound like "th" to a native ear. Once you train the tongue position, the muscle memory kicks in within a week or two.
Drill these five words today
- this (voiced)
- three (unvoiced)
- think (unvoiced)
- mother (voiced)
- Thursday (unvoiced)
Slowly first, with your tongue clearly between your teeth. Then at normal speed.