{"id":273579,"date":"2026-09-26T03:00:26","date_gmt":"2026-09-26T08:00:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/langcom.org\/?p=273579"},"modified":"2026-09-26T03:00:26","modified_gmt":"2026-09-26T08:00:26","slug":"english-s-pronunciation-a1-a1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/langcom.org\/zh\/blog\/english-s-pronunciation-a1-a1\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Pronounce &#8216;S&#8217; in English: Three Sounds for A1 Learners"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"lc-answer\"><strong>The letter &#8216;s&#8217; in English has three main sounds: \/s\/, \/z\/, and \/\u026az\/.<\/strong> Mastering these sounds is key to clear English pronunciation, especially for A1 learners. The <span data-no-translation>\/s\/<\/span> sound is voiceless, meaning your vocal cords do not vibrate, like the sound in <span data-no-translation>snake<\/span> \u6216 <span data-no-translation>cats<\/span>. The <span data-no-translation>\/z\/<\/span> sound is voiced, which means your vocal cords vibrate, similar to the sound in <span data-no-translation>zoo<\/span> \u6216 <span data-no-translation>dogs<\/span>. Finally, the <span data-no-translation>\/\u026az\/<\/span> sound is used after specific sounds, often heard in words like <span data-no-translation>boxes<\/span> \u6216 <span data-no-translation>watches<\/span>. Learning when to use each sound correctly will significantly improve how native speakers understand you, particularly when forming plurals or using verbs in the third person singular. This guide will help you understand these essential pronunciation rules.<\/div>\n<h2>What are the main sounds of &#8216;S&#8217; in English?<\/h2>\n<p>The letter &#8216;s&#8217; in English can sound different depending on the word. It has three main pronunciations:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\"(\u300a\u4e16\u754c\u4eba\u6743\u5ba3\u8a00\u300b) <span data-no-translation>\/s\/<\/span> sound, like in <span data-no-translation>sun<\/span>. This is a voiceless sound.<\/li>\n<li>\"(\u300a\u4e16\u754c\u4eba\u6743\u5ba3\u8a00\u300b) <span data-no-translation>\/z\/<\/span> sound, like in <span data-no-translation>zoo<\/span>. This is a voiced sound.<\/li>\n<li>\"(\u300a\u4e16\u754c\u4eba\u6743\u5ba3\u8a00\u300b) <span data-no-translation>\/\u026az\/<\/span> sound, like in <span data-no-translation>boxes<\/span>. This sound is also voiced.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>A voiceless sound means your vocal cords do not vibrate when you make the sound. A voiced sound means your vocal cords vibrate.<\/p>\n<div class=\"lc-cta lc-cta-blended\" style=\"border-radius:14px;padding:30px;margin:30px 0;text-align:center;color:#fff;background:linear-gradient(135deg,#0E63C4,#0A2540);\"><h3 style=\"color:#fff;font-size:22px;font-weight:800;margin:0 0 8px;\">\ud83c\udf93 \u91c7\u7528\u6df7\u5408\u5f0f\u6559\u5b66\u6cd5\u5b66\u4e60\u82f1\u8bed<\/h3><p style=\"margin:0 0 10px;opacity:.95;\">\u5c0f\u73ed\u6388\u8bfe \u00b7 7\u00d724\u5c0f\u65f6AI\u8f85\u5bfc \u00b7 \u5251\u6865\u8003\u8bd5\u5907\u8003<\/p><p style=\"margin:0 0 16px;font-size:18px;\">\u6765\u81ea <strong><span class=\"woocommerce-Price-amount amount\"><bdi><span class=\"woocommerce-Price-currencySymbol\" translate=\"no\" dir=\"auto\">$<\/span>39<\/bdi><\/span><\/strong> <s style=\"opacity:.6;\"><span class=\"woocommerce-Price-amount amount\"><bdi><span class=\"woocommerce-Price-currencySymbol\" translate=\"no\" dir=\"auto\">$<\/span>79<\/bdi><\/span><\/s> \u6bcf\u6708<\/p><a href=\"\/zh\/\" style=\"display:inline-block;margin-top:8px;padding:13px 30px;border-radius:8px;font-weight:700;text-decoration:none;background:#fff;color:#0E63C4;\">\u9884\u8ba2\u8bfe\u7a0b<\/a><\/div>\n<h2>When does 'S' sound like \/s\/ (as in \"snake\")?<\/h2>\n<p>You use the <span data-no-translation>\/s\/<\/span> sound when the letter 's' comes after a voiceless consonant sound. Think of it as a 'hissing' sound.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>At the beginning of many words: <span data-no-translation>sit<\/span>, <span data-no-translation>stop<\/span>, <span data-no-translation>see<\/span>.<\/li>\n<li>After voiceless sounds like <span data-no-translation>\/p\/<\/span>, <span data-no-translation>\/t\/<\/span>, <span data-no-translation>\/k\/<\/span>, <span data-no-translation>\/f\/<\/span>, <span data-no-translation>\/\u03b8\/<\/span>. This is common for plural nouns and verbs in the third person singular.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>When does 'S' sound like \/z\/ (as in \"zoo\")?<\/h2>\n<p>You use the <span data-no-translation>\/z\/<\/span> sound when the letter 's' comes after a voiced sound or a vowel. This sound is like a 'buzzing' sound.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>At the beginning of some words: <span data-no-translation>zoo<\/span>, <span data-no-translation>zero<\/span>.<\/li>\n<li>Between two vowels: <span data-no-translation>easy<\/span>, <span data-no-translation>music<\/span>.<\/li>\n<li>After voiced sounds like <span data-no-translation>\/b\/<\/span>, <span data-no-translation>\/d\/<\/span>, <span data-no-translation>\/g\/<\/span>, <span data-no-translation>\/v\/<\/span>, <span data-no-translation>\/m\/<\/span>, <span data-no-translation>\/n\/<\/span>, <span data-no-translation>\/l\/<\/span>, <span data-no-translation>\/r\/<\/span>, and all vowel sounds. This is also common for plural nouns and verbs in the third person singular.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>When does 'S' sound like \/\u026az\/ (as in \"boxes\")?<\/h2>\n<p>You use the <span data-no-translation>\/\u026az\/<\/span> sound when the letter 's' (or 'es') comes after a 'sibilant' sound. Sibilant sounds are sounds that have a 'hissing' or 'shushing' quality.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>After sounds like <span data-no-translation>\/s\/<\/span>, <span data-no-translation>\/z\/<\/span>, <span data-no-translation>\/\u0283\/<\/span> (like in <span data-no-translation>she<\/span>), <span data-no-translation>\/\u0292\/<\/span> (like in <span data-no-translation>measure<\/span>), <span data-no-translation>\/t\u0283\/<\/span> (like in <span data-no-translation>church<\/span>)\uff0c\u6216 <span data-no-translation>\/d\u0292\/<\/span> (like in <span data-no-translation>judge<\/span>).<\/li>\n<li>This sound adds an extra syllable to the word.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<table>\n<caption>Pronunciation Rules for Plural Nouns and Third Person Singular Verbs (-s\/-es endings)<\/caption>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th>Ending Sound Before -s\/-es<\/th>\n<th>Pronunciation of -s\/-es<\/th>\n<th>Example Words<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>Voiceless sounds (<span data-no-translation>\/p\/, \/t\/, \/k\/, \/f\/, \/\u03b8\/<\/span>)<\/td>\n<td><span data-no-translation>\/s\/<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span data-no-translation>cats<\/span>, <span data-no-translation>stops<\/span>, <span data-no-translation>books<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Voiced sounds (<span data-no-translation>\/b\/, \/d\/, \/g\/, \/v\/, \/m\/, \/n\/, \/l\/, \/r\/<\/span>, and all vowels)<\/td>\n<td><span data-no-translation>\/z\/<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span data-no-translation>dogs<\/span>, <span data-no-translation>reads<\/span>, <span data-no-translation>plays<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Sibilant sounds (<span data-no-translation>\/s\/, \/z\/, \/\u0283\/, \/\u0292\/, \/t\u0283\/, \/d\u0292\/<\/span>)<\/td>\n<td><span data-no-translation>\/\u026az\/<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span data-no-translation>boxes<\/span>, <span data-no-translation>washes<\/span>, <span data-no-translation>watches<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<h2>\u793a\u4f8b<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><span data-no-translation>My sister sees six small ships.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span data-no-translation>The cats sleep on the sofa.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span data-no-translation>He always plays games with his friends.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span data-no-translation>She washes the dishes every day.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span data-no-translation>The buses stop here.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>\u7ec3\u4e60<\/h2>\n<div class=\"h5p-iframe-wrapper\"><iframe id=\"h5p-iframe-2485\" class=\"h5p-iframe\" data-content-id=\"2485\" style=\"height:1px\" src=\"about:blank\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" title=\"MO03 L5 PRONUNCIATION &quot;s&quot;\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<div class=\"lc-cta lc-cta-whatsapp\" style=\"border-radius:14px;padding:30px;margin:30px 0;text-align:center;color:#fff;background:linear-gradient(135deg,#3DB16A,#1f8a4c);\"><h3 style=\"color:#fff;font-size:22px;font-weight:800;margin:0 0 8px;\">\ud83d\udcac \u9700\u8981\u4e2a\u6027\u5316\u6307\u5bfc\u5417\uff1f<\/h3><p style=\"margin:0 0 16px;opacity:.95;\">\u4f5c\u4e3a\u5251\u6865\u5b98\u65b9\u5907\u8003\u4e2d\u5fc3\uff0c\u6211\u4eec\u53ef\u4ee5\u4e3a\u60a8\u63a8\u8350\u5408\u9002\u7684\u8bfe\u7a0b\u548c\u8ba4\u8bc1\u3002\u7acb\u5373\u4e0e\u6211\u4eec\u7684\u987e\u95ee\u5728\u7ebf\u54a8\u8be2\u3002.<\/p><a href=\"https:\/\/wa.me\/51980473286?text=Hi%2C%20I%27m%20interested%20in%20Langcom%27s%20courses%20and%20would%20like%20some%20guidance%20choosing%20the%20right%20one.\" style=\"display:inline-block;margin-top:8px;padding:13px 30px;border-radius:8px;font-weight:700;text-decoration:none;background:#fff;color:#1f8a4c;\">\u5728 WhatsApp \u4e0a\u4e0e\u987e\u95ee\u804a\u5929<\/a><\/div>\n<h2>\u897f\u73ed\u7259\u8bed\u6bcd\u8bed\u8005\u5e38\u72af\u7684\u9519\u8bef<\/h2>\n<p>Many Spanish speakers often make two common mistakes with the 's' sound:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Adding an 'e' sound:<\/strong> Sometimes, words starting with <span data-no-translation>s<\/span> followed by another consonant (like <span data-no-translation>school<\/span>, <span data-no-translation>street<\/span>, <span data-no-translation>speak<\/span>) are pronounced with an extra 'e' sound at the beginning, like <span data-no-translation>eschool<\/span> \u6216 <span data-no-translation>espeak<\/span>. Remember, in English, these words start directly with the <span data-no-translation>\/s\/<\/span> sound, without an initial vowel sound.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Using only the <span data-no-translation>\/s\/<\/span> sound:<\/strong> It's common to pronounce all <span data-no-translation>-s<\/span> endings (for plurals or verbs) as <span data-no-translation>\/s\/<\/span>, even when they should be <span data-no-translation>\/z\/<\/span> \u6216 <span data-no-translation>\/\u026az\/<\/span>. For example, saying <span data-no-translation>dog-s<\/span> with an <span data-no-translation>\/s\/<\/span> \u201csound\u201d \u800c\u4e0d\u662f <span data-no-translation>dog-z<\/span> \u7528\u4e00\u4e2a <span data-no-translation>\/z\/<\/span> sound. Pay attention to the sound before the 's' to choose the correct pronunciation.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>\u5e38\u89c1\u95ee\u9898<\/h2>\n<h3>Why does the 's' sound change in English?<\/h3>\n<p>The 's' sound changes to make words easier to say. It depends on the sound that comes right before it. Your mouth naturally prepares for the next sound, which affects how the 's' is pronounced.<\/p>\n<h3>How can I practice these different 's' sounds?<\/h3>\n<p>Listen carefully to native speakers. Repeat words and sentences that have different 's' sounds. Tongue twisters, like <span data-no-translation>She sells seashells by the seashore<\/span>, are great for practice. Focus on feeling if your vocal cords vibrate or not.<\/p>\n<h3>Is the 's' in 'sugar' pronounced the same way?<\/h3>\n<p>No, the 's' in <span data-no-translation>sugar<\/span> is pronounced as <span data-no-translation>\/\u0283\/<\/span>, which is a 'sh' sound, like in <span data-no-translation>shoe<\/span>. This is different from the <span data-no-translation>\/s\/<\/span>, <span data-no-translation>\/z\/<\/span>, \u6216 <span data-no-translation>\/\u026az\/<\/span> sounds we discussed.<\/p>\n<h2>\u76f8\u5173\u8bfe\u7a0b<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/langcom.org\/zh\/?p=273025\">Pronunciation of consonants<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/langcom.org\/zh\/?p=273198\">Pronunciation of consonants<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/langcom.org\/zh\/?p=273372\">Pronunciation of consonants<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/langcom.org\/zh\/?p=273419\">Pronunciation of consonants<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The letter &#8216;s&#8217; in English has three main sounds: \/s\/, \/z\/, and \/\u026az\/. Mastering these sounds is key to clear English pronunciation, especially for A1 learners. The \/s\/ sound is voiceless, meaning your vocal cords do not vibrate, like the sound in snake or cats. The \/z\/ sound is voiced, which means your vocal cords [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":192,"featured_media":274834,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"bwfblock_default_font":"","langcom_teaches":"Pronunciation of consonants","langcom_cefr":"A1","langcom_type":"pronunciation","langcom_faq":"[{\"q\": \"Why does the 's' sound change in English?\", \"a\": \"The 's' sound changes to make words easier to say. It depends on the sound that comes right before it. Your mouth naturally prepares for the next sound, which affects how the 's' is pronounced.\"}, {\"q\": \"How can I practice these different 's' sounds?\", \"a\": \"Listen carefully to native speakers. Repeat words and sentences that have different 's' sounds. Tongue twisters, like <span data-no-translation>She sells seashells by the seashore<\/span>, are great for practice. Focus on feeling if your vocal cords vibrate or not.\"}, {\"q\": \"Is the 's' in 'sugar' pronounced the same way?\", \"a\": \"No, the 's' in <span data-no-translation>sugar<\/span> is pronounced as <span data-no-translation>\/\u0283\/<\/span>, which is a 'sh' sound, like in <span data-no-translation>shoe<\/span>. This is different from the <span data-no-translation>\/s\/<\/span>, <span data-no-translation>\/z\/<\/span>, or <span data-no-translation>\/\u026az\/<\/span> sounds we discussed.\"}]","_kiss_seo_title":"How to Pronounce 'S' in English: 3 Sounds for A1 Learners","_kiss_seo_excerpt":"The letter 's' in English has three main sounds: \/s\/, \/z\/, and \/\u026az\/. Mastering these sounds is key to clear English pronunciation, especially for A1...","_mwseo_canonical":"","_mwseo_keywords":"","_mwseo_primary_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[616],"tags":[1258,657],"formats":[],"class_list":["post-273579","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-a1-movers","tag-s","tag-pronunciation"],"dsm_author":{"name":"\u52b3\u5c14","avatar_url":"https:\/\/langcom.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/nsl_avatars\/1de86ea706740d324aaef3dd8bf0843b.png","archive_link":"https:\/\/langcom.org\/zh\/blog\/author\/raulmaguinahamann\/","biodata":""},"dsm_categories":[{"term_name":"A1 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