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    The /d/ sound: d as in day

    • Consonant
    • Voiced
    • Medium priority

    Hear it

    in day

    Lips
    Relaxed
    Tongue
    Tip on the ridge behind the top teeth
    Voice
    On: feel your throat buzz
    Air
    Stopped, then released in a small burst

    The sound on its own: recording by Wikimedia Commons contributor, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons. Credits

    How to make /d/

    1. 1

      Touch your tongue tip to the ridge behind your top teeth.

    2. 2

      Release with your voice on; the throat vibrates.

    3. 3

      Keep the voicing at word ends: 'need', not 'neat'.

    /ð/ vs /d/: they vs day

    Every pair

    Let the air FLOW for /ð/; tongue between the teeth, continuous buzz. /d/ blocks the air completely. Practise 'the' on its own until the buzz is automatic; it is the most common word in English.

    1 / 8

    Which word do you hear?

    How /d/ is spelled

    • d
    • dd
    • ed

    The usual mistake

    Devoicing final d so 'bed' sounds like 'bet' and 'card' like 'cart', a meaning-changing habit for many learners.

    Hardest for speakers of

    Words to practise

    Say it and get scored

    Read day, ladder, need, idea, decide aloud. Free, no account.

    Check my /d/

    Questions

    How do you pronounce the /d/ sound?
    Touch your tongue tip to the ridge behind your top teeth. Release with your voice on; the throat vibrates. Keep the voicing at word ends: 'need', not 'neat'.
    What is the most common mistake with /d/?
    Devoicing final d so 'bed' sounds like 'bet' and 'card' like 'cart', a meaning-changing habit for many learners.
    Which spellings make the /d/ sound?
    Common spellings include “d”, “dd”, “ed”, as in day /deɪ/, ladder /ˈlædə/, need /niːd/.
    Does /d/ matter for IELTS?
    It matters moderately. Errors are noticeable but only sometimes affect understanding. Fix the high-priority vowel contrasts and final consonants first, then polish this one.