θ
The /θ/ sound: th as in think
- Consonant
- Voiceless
- High priority for IELTS
Hear it
in think
- Lips
- Relaxed
- Tongue
- Tip between the teeth
- Voice
- Off: only air
- Air
- Squeezed through a narrow gap
The sound on its own: recording by Wikimedia Commons contributor, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons. Credits
How to make /θ/
- 1
Place the tip of your tongue lightly between your top and bottom teeth.
- 2
Blow air over the tongue, a soft, continuous hiss.
- 3
No voice: think, nothing, month.
- Sounds like
- a soft s made with the tongue between the teeth
/θ/ vs /s/: think vs sink
Every pairThe tongue tip must be visibly between your teeth for /θ/; check in a mirror. /s/ keeps it hidden behind the teeth. Slow, exaggerated practice rewires the habit fastest.
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Which word do you hear?
How /θ/ is spelled
th
The usual mistake
Substituting /s/ ('think' → 'sink'), /t/ ('three' → 'tree') or /f/ ('think' → 'fink'). The tongue must be visible between the teeth; check in a mirror.
Hardest for speakers of
- Mandarin speakers/θ/ becomes /s/: 'think' → 'sink' (noticeable, but fix the finals first)
- Hindi speakers/θ/ becomes an aspirated dental t; usually understood, polish later
- Urdu speakers/θ/ → dental t, /ð/ → dental d; understood, but noticeable
- Vietnamese speakers/θ/ becomes /t/ or /s/; noticeable but secondary to finals
- Thai speakers/θ/ becomes /t/: 'three' → 'tree' (fix finals first)
- Japanese speakers/θ/ → /s/: 'think' → 'sink' (noticeable, lower priority)
- Korean speakers/θ/ → /s/ or dental t; secondary to f and z
- French speakers/θ/ → /s/, /ð/ → /z/: 'think' → 'sink', 'this' → 'zis'
- Portuguese speakers/θ/ → /t/ or /f/; secondary priority
- Russian speakers/θ/ → /s/, /ð/ → /z/, noticeable, lower priority
- Turkish speakers/θ/ → /t/, /ð/ → /d/; polish after the items above
- Farsi speakers/θ/ → /t/ or /s/; visible but secondary
- Indonesian speakers/θ/ → /t/, /ð/ → /d/; address after endings and v/z
Words to practise
Say it and get scored
Read think, nothing, month, three, author, health aloud. Free, no account.
Questions
How do you pronounce the /θ/ sound?
Place the tip of your tongue lightly between your top and bottom teeth. Blow air over the tongue, a soft, continuous hiss. No voice: think, nothing, month.
What is the most common mistake with /θ/?
Substituting /s/ ('think' → 'sink'), /t/ ('three' → 'tree') or /f/ ('think' → 'fink'). The tongue must be visible between the teeth; check in a mirror.
Which spellings make the /θ/ sound?
Common spellings include “th”, as in think /θɪŋk/, nothing /ˈnʌθɪŋ/, month /mʌnθ/.
Does /θ/ matter for IELTS?
Yes. This is a high-priority sound. Errors here frequently change one word into another, which examiners hear as reduced clarity (the exact Band 6 wording is “mispronunciation … reduces clarity at times”).