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The force of the air is stronger for the K sound than the G sound. The G sound is voiced while the K
sound is voiceless.
The G sound is a voiced sound because the vocal cords vibrate when you make the sound.
The K sound is a voiceless or unvoiced sound because the vocal cords do not vibrate when you make
the sound. Instead, we use air to make the sound.
The voiceless (unvoiced) K sound (IPA symbol: k) can be found in English words such as cat, kid,
black, box, cake, quit, and chorus
Practice the voiceless K sound
There are six spellings of the K sound: k, ck, c, ch, x, qu/que.
k spelling
kid
kitten
ck spelling
back
ducks
sick
Now practice the voiced G sound
The voiced G sound (IPA symbol: g) can be found in English words such as girl, go, egg, big, single, and
dog.
The G consonant can also make a softer j sound that is found in words such as Germany and gym
(IPA symbol: dʒ).
Words are pronounced with the softer j sound when the g spelling is followed by e, i, or, y
(giant, gym, large). All other spellings should be pronounced with the hard G sound
good
great
big
bigger
ng spelling
bring
sing
anger
gue spelling - These are challenging words.
When the gue spelling is at the end of the word, it is usually pronounced as a G sound only.
league
dialogue
Finally, practice the sounds side-by-side
Remember to voice the G sound and use only air for the K sound!
G K
go cool
bag back
hang cake
green queen
sing sink