How to position the tip of the tongue when pronouncing /s/ & /z/?












1















This website says, when making /s/ & /z/ sound, the tip of the tongue should be close to the upper backside of the top front teeth.



But this video says, when making /s/ & /z/ sound, the tip of the tongue is down, slightly touching behind the bottom front teeth.



So who is right?



I personally think that the 2nd is right because I feel more comfortable when letting the tip of my tongue behind the bottom front teeth & I feel uncomfortable when letting the tip of my tongue behind the top front teeth.



It could be there are many way to make the sound. Maybe the tip of the tongue in this case does not play a very critical role in making /s/ & /z/










share|improve this question
















bumped to the homepage by Community 1 hour ago


This question has answers that may be good or bad; the system has marked it active so that they can be reviewed.
















  • You can make something which sounds very much like the English /s/ and /z/ sounds both ways—I just did—and I expect some English speakers use each of them (which is why you get contradictory advice). Just don't stick it between your teeth (in which case you get a /θ/ or /ð/. The "official" way is to put it behind your top teeth.

    – Peter Shor
    Feb 29 '16 at 20:23


















1















This website says, when making /s/ & /z/ sound, the tip of the tongue should be close to the upper backside of the top front teeth.



But this video says, when making /s/ & /z/ sound, the tip of the tongue is down, slightly touching behind the bottom front teeth.



So who is right?



I personally think that the 2nd is right because I feel more comfortable when letting the tip of my tongue behind the bottom front teeth & I feel uncomfortable when letting the tip of my tongue behind the top front teeth.



It could be there are many way to make the sound. Maybe the tip of the tongue in this case does not play a very critical role in making /s/ & /z/










share|improve this question
















bumped to the homepage by Community 1 hour ago


This question has answers that may be good or bad; the system has marked it active so that they can be reviewed.
















  • You can make something which sounds very much like the English /s/ and /z/ sounds both ways—I just did—and I expect some English speakers use each of them (which is why you get contradictory advice). Just don't stick it between your teeth (in which case you get a /θ/ or /ð/. The "official" way is to put it behind your top teeth.

    – Peter Shor
    Feb 29 '16 at 20:23
















1












1








1








This website says, when making /s/ & /z/ sound, the tip of the tongue should be close to the upper backside of the top front teeth.



But this video says, when making /s/ & /z/ sound, the tip of the tongue is down, slightly touching behind the bottom front teeth.



So who is right?



I personally think that the 2nd is right because I feel more comfortable when letting the tip of my tongue behind the bottom front teeth & I feel uncomfortable when letting the tip of my tongue behind the top front teeth.



It could be there are many way to make the sound. Maybe the tip of the tongue in this case does not play a very critical role in making /s/ & /z/










share|improve this question
















This website says, when making /s/ & /z/ sound, the tip of the tongue should be close to the upper backside of the top front teeth.



But this video says, when making /s/ & /z/ sound, the tip of the tongue is down, slightly touching behind the bottom front teeth.



So who is right?



I personally think that the 2nd is right because I feel more comfortable when letting the tip of my tongue behind the bottom front teeth & I feel uncomfortable when letting the tip of my tongue behind the top front teeth.



It could be there are many way to make the sound. Maybe the tip of the tongue in this case does not play a very critical role in making /s/ & /z/







pronunciation phonetics






share|improve this question















share|improve this question













share|improve this question




share|improve this question








edited Feb 23 '16 at 6:20









sumelic

49.3k8116223




49.3k8116223










asked Feb 23 '16 at 5:05









TomTom

2,004134792




2,004134792





bumped to the homepage by Community 1 hour ago


This question has answers that may be good or bad; the system has marked it active so that they can be reviewed.







bumped to the homepage by Community 1 hour ago


This question has answers that may be good or bad; the system has marked it active so that they can be reviewed.















  • You can make something which sounds very much like the English /s/ and /z/ sounds both ways—I just did—and I expect some English speakers use each of them (which is why you get contradictory advice). Just don't stick it between your teeth (in which case you get a /θ/ or /ð/. The "official" way is to put it behind your top teeth.

    – Peter Shor
    Feb 29 '16 at 20:23





















  • You can make something which sounds very much like the English /s/ and /z/ sounds both ways—I just did—and I expect some English speakers use each of them (which is why you get contradictory advice). Just don't stick it between your teeth (in which case you get a /θ/ or /ð/. The "official" way is to put it behind your top teeth.

    – Peter Shor
    Feb 29 '16 at 20:23



















You can make something which sounds very much like the English /s/ and /z/ sounds both ways—I just did—and I expect some English speakers use each of them (which is why you get contradictory advice). Just don't stick it between your teeth (in which case you get a /θ/ or /ð/. The "official" way is to put it behind your top teeth.

– Peter Shor
Feb 29 '16 at 20:23







You can make something which sounds very much like the English /s/ and /z/ sounds both ways—I just did—and I expect some English speakers use each of them (which is why you get contradictory advice). Just don't stick it between your teeth (in which case you get a /θ/ or /ð/. The "official" way is to put it behind your top teeth.

– Peter Shor
Feb 29 '16 at 20:23












4 Answers
4






active

oldest

votes


















0














For proper articulation the tongue may remain in the same place. The s sound is produced by the air hissing through the tongue and teeth. The difference between this and the z sound is that the z is vocalized, that is to say the larynx produces a sound and the air rushes through the exact same way. You may practice this by placing the tongue in position and alternately hissing and humming.






share|improve this answer
























  • You haven't explained where the tongue should be positioned!

    – curiousdannii
    Feb 29 '16 at 21:14



















0














http://soundsofspeech.uiowa.edu/english/english.html
Click where it says "fricatives" and you'll see how /s/ and /z/ differ anatomically in English. I hope I helped.






share|improve this answer

































    0














    /s/ and /z/ are alveolar fricatives. The tip of the tongue is positioned just off the alveolar ridge, just behind your top teeth. The place of articulation, where the tongue tip is positioned, is the same as for the stop consonant /t/.



    English does not have a fricative where the tongue tip is behind the bottom teeth, but some other languages do. I think I have found some that do - it is a little bit tricky because the tip of the tongue is not very significant for these sounds, and so the tongue tip might not always be positioned in the same way. You can listen to recordings of these at Wikipedia:





    • voiceless velar fricative (this is present in Scottish English)

    • voiceless alveolo-palatal sibilant fricative


    Each of these also have corresponding voiced consonants.






    share|improve this answer





















    • 2





      Wikipedia is not necessarily a good site to use as an argument, as anyone can change the content. A site written by a professional, or an articule entry on a website describing these facts would be a better choice

      – user2277872
      Feb 23 '16 at 6:29






    • 1





      @user2277872 While Wikipedia is not always accurate, I will vouch, in my professional capacity as a linguist, for its accuracy on these pages I linked to. I linked to them primarily for their sound samples, which are not as easy to find. (Though my second link was copied wrong, fixing now.)

      – curiousdannii
      Feb 23 '16 at 6:35













    • It might be a bit misleading to say "The place of articulation, where the tongue tip is positioned, is the same as for the stop consonant /t/" whilst the point on the alveolar ridge may be the same, the part of the tongue that connects with the ridge is further back for /s, z/ and by definition the apex of the tongue cannot be making contact for these sibilants, whilst it must for /t/

      – Araucaria
      Feb 23 '16 at 17:53











    • @Araucaria The place of articulation is normally considered to be the same and the manner of articulation differs, even though that means that technically the tongue tip is not in exactly the same place.

      – curiousdannii
      Feb 23 '16 at 21:37











    • @curiousdannii Yes, completely so. That's because the official "place of articulation" is defined by the passive articulators, not the active ones. The finicky upshot of this is that where the articulation is made on the ridge is the same, but the part of the tongue is significantly different ...

      – Araucaria
      Feb 24 '16 at 0:18



















    -1














    If you sit there and do it yourself, trying to make a s sound is close to impossible when your tongue is close to your top teeth. It does not allow the air to escape, allowing for the sound to be heard.



    When your tongue is back, and close to your bottom teeth, you can hear the s sound clearly, and you can clearly feel the vibrations of the z sound as well.



    I would have to say the second option is correct.






    share|improve this answer



















    • 2





      Completely wrong sorry, the /s/ is most definitely produced with the tongue behind the top teeth. And pretty poor advice: someone who doesn't know how a sound is correctly produced can't learn that just by experimenting and trying what sounds good to them.

      – curiousdannii
      Feb 23 '16 at 6:52











    • Well, I'm sitting drinking my morning tea and hissing in disbelief... When I do a sustained SSSSS my tongue tip is near the roots of my front top teeth. If I TOUCH the teeth with my tongue, the SSSSS stops.

      – David Garner
      Feb 23 '16 at 7:28











    • @curiousdannii: It's clear from the discussion some people use their bottom teeth. And I can make perfectly passable /s/ and /z/ sounds that way.

      – Peter Shor
      Feb 29 '16 at 20:28












    protected by Mitch Feb 29 '16 at 19:47



    Thank you for your interest in this question.
    Because it has attracted low-quality or spam answers that had to be removed, posting an answer now requires 10 reputation on this site (the association bonus does not count).



    Would you like to answer one of these unanswered questions instead?














    4 Answers
    4






    active

    oldest

    votes








    4 Answers
    4






    active

    oldest

    votes









    active

    oldest

    votes






    active

    oldest

    votes









    0














    For proper articulation the tongue may remain in the same place. The s sound is produced by the air hissing through the tongue and teeth. The difference between this and the z sound is that the z is vocalized, that is to say the larynx produces a sound and the air rushes through the exact same way. You may practice this by placing the tongue in position and alternately hissing and humming.






    share|improve this answer
























    • You haven't explained where the tongue should be positioned!

      – curiousdannii
      Feb 29 '16 at 21:14
















    0














    For proper articulation the tongue may remain in the same place. The s sound is produced by the air hissing through the tongue and teeth. The difference between this and the z sound is that the z is vocalized, that is to say the larynx produces a sound and the air rushes through the exact same way. You may practice this by placing the tongue in position and alternately hissing and humming.






    share|improve this answer
























    • You haven't explained where the tongue should be positioned!

      – curiousdannii
      Feb 29 '16 at 21:14














    0












    0








    0







    For proper articulation the tongue may remain in the same place. The s sound is produced by the air hissing through the tongue and teeth. The difference between this and the z sound is that the z is vocalized, that is to say the larynx produces a sound and the air rushes through the exact same way. You may practice this by placing the tongue in position and alternately hissing and humming.






    share|improve this answer













    For proper articulation the tongue may remain in the same place. The s sound is produced by the air hissing through the tongue and teeth. The difference between this and the z sound is that the z is vocalized, that is to say the larynx produces a sound and the air rushes through the exact same way. You may practice this by placing the tongue in position and alternately hissing and humming.







    share|improve this answer












    share|improve this answer



    share|improve this answer










    answered Feb 29 '16 at 19:41









    ThorThor

    16715




    16715













    • You haven't explained where the tongue should be positioned!

      – curiousdannii
      Feb 29 '16 at 21:14



















    • You haven't explained where the tongue should be positioned!

      – curiousdannii
      Feb 29 '16 at 21:14

















    You haven't explained where the tongue should be positioned!

    – curiousdannii
    Feb 29 '16 at 21:14





    You haven't explained where the tongue should be positioned!

    – curiousdannii
    Feb 29 '16 at 21:14













    0














    http://soundsofspeech.uiowa.edu/english/english.html
    Click where it says "fricatives" and you'll see how /s/ and /z/ differ anatomically in English. I hope I helped.






    share|improve this answer






























      0














      http://soundsofspeech.uiowa.edu/english/english.html
      Click where it says "fricatives" and you'll see how /s/ and /z/ differ anatomically in English. I hope I helped.






      share|improve this answer




























        0












        0








        0







        http://soundsofspeech.uiowa.edu/english/english.html
        Click where it says "fricatives" and you'll see how /s/ and /z/ differ anatomically in English. I hope I helped.






        share|improve this answer















        http://soundsofspeech.uiowa.edu/english/english.html
        Click where it says "fricatives" and you'll see how /s/ and /z/ differ anatomically in English. I hope I helped.







        share|improve this answer














        share|improve this answer



        share|improve this answer








        edited Mar 11 '16 at 18:39

























        answered Feb 29 '16 at 18:58







        user163008






























            0














            /s/ and /z/ are alveolar fricatives. The tip of the tongue is positioned just off the alveolar ridge, just behind your top teeth. The place of articulation, where the tongue tip is positioned, is the same as for the stop consonant /t/.



            English does not have a fricative where the tongue tip is behind the bottom teeth, but some other languages do. I think I have found some that do - it is a little bit tricky because the tip of the tongue is not very significant for these sounds, and so the tongue tip might not always be positioned in the same way. You can listen to recordings of these at Wikipedia:





            • voiceless velar fricative (this is present in Scottish English)

            • voiceless alveolo-palatal sibilant fricative


            Each of these also have corresponding voiced consonants.






            share|improve this answer





















            • 2





              Wikipedia is not necessarily a good site to use as an argument, as anyone can change the content. A site written by a professional, or an articule entry on a website describing these facts would be a better choice

              – user2277872
              Feb 23 '16 at 6:29






            • 1





              @user2277872 While Wikipedia is not always accurate, I will vouch, in my professional capacity as a linguist, for its accuracy on these pages I linked to. I linked to them primarily for their sound samples, which are not as easy to find. (Though my second link was copied wrong, fixing now.)

              – curiousdannii
              Feb 23 '16 at 6:35













            • It might be a bit misleading to say "The place of articulation, where the tongue tip is positioned, is the same as for the stop consonant /t/" whilst the point on the alveolar ridge may be the same, the part of the tongue that connects with the ridge is further back for /s, z/ and by definition the apex of the tongue cannot be making contact for these sibilants, whilst it must for /t/

              – Araucaria
              Feb 23 '16 at 17:53











            • @Araucaria The place of articulation is normally considered to be the same and the manner of articulation differs, even though that means that technically the tongue tip is not in exactly the same place.

              – curiousdannii
              Feb 23 '16 at 21:37











            • @curiousdannii Yes, completely so. That's because the official "place of articulation" is defined by the passive articulators, not the active ones. The finicky upshot of this is that where the articulation is made on the ridge is the same, but the part of the tongue is significantly different ...

              – Araucaria
              Feb 24 '16 at 0:18
















            0














            /s/ and /z/ are alveolar fricatives. The tip of the tongue is positioned just off the alveolar ridge, just behind your top teeth. The place of articulation, where the tongue tip is positioned, is the same as for the stop consonant /t/.



            English does not have a fricative where the tongue tip is behind the bottom teeth, but some other languages do. I think I have found some that do - it is a little bit tricky because the tip of the tongue is not very significant for these sounds, and so the tongue tip might not always be positioned in the same way. You can listen to recordings of these at Wikipedia:





            • voiceless velar fricative (this is present in Scottish English)

            • voiceless alveolo-palatal sibilant fricative


            Each of these also have corresponding voiced consonants.






            share|improve this answer





















            • 2





              Wikipedia is not necessarily a good site to use as an argument, as anyone can change the content. A site written by a professional, or an articule entry on a website describing these facts would be a better choice

              – user2277872
              Feb 23 '16 at 6:29






            • 1





              @user2277872 While Wikipedia is not always accurate, I will vouch, in my professional capacity as a linguist, for its accuracy on these pages I linked to. I linked to them primarily for their sound samples, which are not as easy to find. (Though my second link was copied wrong, fixing now.)

              – curiousdannii
              Feb 23 '16 at 6:35













            • It might be a bit misleading to say "The place of articulation, where the tongue tip is positioned, is the same as for the stop consonant /t/" whilst the point on the alveolar ridge may be the same, the part of the tongue that connects with the ridge is further back for /s, z/ and by definition the apex of the tongue cannot be making contact for these sibilants, whilst it must for /t/

              – Araucaria
              Feb 23 '16 at 17:53











            • @Araucaria The place of articulation is normally considered to be the same and the manner of articulation differs, even though that means that technically the tongue tip is not in exactly the same place.

              – curiousdannii
              Feb 23 '16 at 21:37











            • @curiousdannii Yes, completely so. That's because the official "place of articulation" is defined by the passive articulators, not the active ones. The finicky upshot of this is that where the articulation is made on the ridge is the same, but the part of the tongue is significantly different ...

              – Araucaria
              Feb 24 '16 at 0:18














            0












            0








            0







            /s/ and /z/ are alveolar fricatives. The tip of the tongue is positioned just off the alveolar ridge, just behind your top teeth. The place of articulation, where the tongue tip is positioned, is the same as for the stop consonant /t/.



            English does not have a fricative where the tongue tip is behind the bottom teeth, but some other languages do. I think I have found some that do - it is a little bit tricky because the tip of the tongue is not very significant for these sounds, and so the tongue tip might not always be positioned in the same way. You can listen to recordings of these at Wikipedia:





            • voiceless velar fricative (this is present in Scottish English)

            • voiceless alveolo-palatal sibilant fricative


            Each of these also have corresponding voiced consonants.






            share|improve this answer















            /s/ and /z/ are alveolar fricatives. The tip of the tongue is positioned just off the alveolar ridge, just behind your top teeth. The place of articulation, where the tongue tip is positioned, is the same as for the stop consonant /t/.



            English does not have a fricative where the tongue tip is behind the bottom teeth, but some other languages do. I think I have found some that do - it is a little bit tricky because the tip of the tongue is not very significant for these sounds, and so the tongue tip might not always be positioned in the same way. You can listen to recordings of these at Wikipedia:





            • voiceless velar fricative (this is present in Scottish English)

            • voiceless alveolo-palatal sibilant fricative


            Each of these also have corresponding voiced consonants.







            share|improve this answer














            share|improve this answer



            share|improve this answer








            edited Nov 5 '17 at 11:01

























            answered Feb 23 '16 at 6:17









            curiousdanniicuriousdannii

            4,54352639




            4,54352639








            • 2





              Wikipedia is not necessarily a good site to use as an argument, as anyone can change the content. A site written by a professional, or an articule entry on a website describing these facts would be a better choice

              – user2277872
              Feb 23 '16 at 6:29






            • 1





              @user2277872 While Wikipedia is not always accurate, I will vouch, in my professional capacity as a linguist, for its accuracy on these pages I linked to. I linked to them primarily for their sound samples, which are not as easy to find. (Though my second link was copied wrong, fixing now.)

              – curiousdannii
              Feb 23 '16 at 6:35













            • It might be a bit misleading to say "The place of articulation, where the tongue tip is positioned, is the same as for the stop consonant /t/" whilst the point on the alveolar ridge may be the same, the part of the tongue that connects with the ridge is further back for /s, z/ and by definition the apex of the tongue cannot be making contact for these sibilants, whilst it must for /t/

              – Araucaria
              Feb 23 '16 at 17:53











            • @Araucaria The place of articulation is normally considered to be the same and the manner of articulation differs, even though that means that technically the tongue tip is not in exactly the same place.

              – curiousdannii
              Feb 23 '16 at 21:37











            • @curiousdannii Yes, completely so. That's because the official "place of articulation" is defined by the passive articulators, not the active ones. The finicky upshot of this is that where the articulation is made on the ridge is the same, but the part of the tongue is significantly different ...

              – Araucaria
              Feb 24 '16 at 0:18














            • 2





              Wikipedia is not necessarily a good site to use as an argument, as anyone can change the content. A site written by a professional, or an articule entry on a website describing these facts would be a better choice

              – user2277872
              Feb 23 '16 at 6:29






            • 1





              @user2277872 While Wikipedia is not always accurate, I will vouch, in my professional capacity as a linguist, for its accuracy on these pages I linked to. I linked to them primarily for their sound samples, which are not as easy to find. (Though my second link was copied wrong, fixing now.)

              – curiousdannii
              Feb 23 '16 at 6:35













            • It might be a bit misleading to say "The place of articulation, where the tongue tip is positioned, is the same as for the stop consonant /t/" whilst the point on the alveolar ridge may be the same, the part of the tongue that connects with the ridge is further back for /s, z/ and by definition the apex of the tongue cannot be making contact for these sibilants, whilst it must for /t/

              – Araucaria
              Feb 23 '16 at 17:53











            • @Araucaria The place of articulation is normally considered to be the same and the manner of articulation differs, even though that means that technically the tongue tip is not in exactly the same place.

              – curiousdannii
              Feb 23 '16 at 21:37











            • @curiousdannii Yes, completely so. That's because the official "place of articulation" is defined by the passive articulators, not the active ones. The finicky upshot of this is that where the articulation is made on the ridge is the same, but the part of the tongue is significantly different ...

              – Araucaria
              Feb 24 '16 at 0:18








            2




            2





            Wikipedia is not necessarily a good site to use as an argument, as anyone can change the content. A site written by a professional, or an articule entry on a website describing these facts would be a better choice

            – user2277872
            Feb 23 '16 at 6:29





            Wikipedia is not necessarily a good site to use as an argument, as anyone can change the content. A site written by a professional, or an articule entry on a website describing these facts would be a better choice

            – user2277872
            Feb 23 '16 at 6:29




            1




            1





            @user2277872 While Wikipedia is not always accurate, I will vouch, in my professional capacity as a linguist, for its accuracy on these pages I linked to. I linked to them primarily for their sound samples, which are not as easy to find. (Though my second link was copied wrong, fixing now.)

            – curiousdannii
            Feb 23 '16 at 6:35







            @user2277872 While Wikipedia is not always accurate, I will vouch, in my professional capacity as a linguist, for its accuracy on these pages I linked to. I linked to them primarily for their sound samples, which are not as easy to find. (Though my second link was copied wrong, fixing now.)

            – curiousdannii
            Feb 23 '16 at 6:35















            It might be a bit misleading to say "The place of articulation, where the tongue tip is positioned, is the same as for the stop consonant /t/" whilst the point on the alveolar ridge may be the same, the part of the tongue that connects with the ridge is further back for /s, z/ and by definition the apex of the tongue cannot be making contact for these sibilants, whilst it must for /t/

            – Araucaria
            Feb 23 '16 at 17:53





            It might be a bit misleading to say "The place of articulation, where the tongue tip is positioned, is the same as for the stop consonant /t/" whilst the point on the alveolar ridge may be the same, the part of the tongue that connects with the ridge is further back for /s, z/ and by definition the apex of the tongue cannot be making contact for these sibilants, whilst it must for /t/

            – Araucaria
            Feb 23 '16 at 17:53













            @Araucaria The place of articulation is normally considered to be the same and the manner of articulation differs, even though that means that technically the tongue tip is not in exactly the same place.

            – curiousdannii
            Feb 23 '16 at 21:37





            @Araucaria The place of articulation is normally considered to be the same and the manner of articulation differs, even though that means that technically the tongue tip is not in exactly the same place.

            – curiousdannii
            Feb 23 '16 at 21:37













            @curiousdannii Yes, completely so. That's because the official "place of articulation" is defined by the passive articulators, not the active ones. The finicky upshot of this is that where the articulation is made on the ridge is the same, but the part of the tongue is significantly different ...

            – Araucaria
            Feb 24 '16 at 0:18





            @curiousdannii Yes, completely so. That's because the official "place of articulation" is defined by the passive articulators, not the active ones. The finicky upshot of this is that where the articulation is made on the ridge is the same, but the part of the tongue is significantly different ...

            – Araucaria
            Feb 24 '16 at 0:18











            -1














            If you sit there and do it yourself, trying to make a s sound is close to impossible when your tongue is close to your top teeth. It does not allow the air to escape, allowing for the sound to be heard.



            When your tongue is back, and close to your bottom teeth, you can hear the s sound clearly, and you can clearly feel the vibrations of the z sound as well.



            I would have to say the second option is correct.






            share|improve this answer



















            • 2





              Completely wrong sorry, the /s/ is most definitely produced with the tongue behind the top teeth. And pretty poor advice: someone who doesn't know how a sound is correctly produced can't learn that just by experimenting and trying what sounds good to them.

              – curiousdannii
              Feb 23 '16 at 6:52











            • Well, I'm sitting drinking my morning tea and hissing in disbelief... When I do a sustained SSSSS my tongue tip is near the roots of my front top teeth. If I TOUCH the teeth with my tongue, the SSSSS stops.

              – David Garner
              Feb 23 '16 at 7:28











            • @curiousdannii: It's clear from the discussion some people use their bottom teeth. And I can make perfectly passable /s/ and /z/ sounds that way.

              – Peter Shor
              Feb 29 '16 at 20:28


















            -1














            If you sit there and do it yourself, trying to make a s sound is close to impossible when your tongue is close to your top teeth. It does not allow the air to escape, allowing for the sound to be heard.



            When your tongue is back, and close to your bottom teeth, you can hear the s sound clearly, and you can clearly feel the vibrations of the z sound as well.



            I would have to say the second option is correct.






            share|improve this answer



















            • 2





              Completely wrong sorry, the /s/ is most definitely produced with the tongue behind the top teeth. And pretty poor advice: someone who doesn't know how a sound is correctly produced can't learn that just by experimenting and trying what sounds good to them.

              – curiousdannii
              Feb 23 '16 at 6:52











            • Well, I'm sitting drinking my morning tea and hissing in disbelief... When I do a sustained SSSSS my tongue tip is near the roots of my front top teeth. If I TOUCH the teeth with my tongue, the SSSSS stops.

              – David Garner
              Feb 23 '16 at 7:28











            • @curiousdannii: It's clear from the discussion some people use their bottom teeth. And I can make perfectly passable /s/ and /z/ sounds that way.

              – Peter Shor
              Feb 29 '16 at 20:28
















            -1












            -1








            -1







            If you sit there and do it yourself, trying to make a s sound is close to impossible when your tongue is close to your top teeth. It does not allow the air to escape, allowing for the sound to be heard.



            When your tongue is back, and close to your bottom teeth, you can hear the s sound clearly, and you can clearly feel the vibrations of the z sound as well.



            I would have to say the second option is correct.






            share|improve this answer













            If you sit there and do it yourself, trying to make a s sound is close to impossible when your tongue is close to your top teeth. It does not allow the air to escape, allowing for the sound to be heard.



            When your tongue is back, and close to your bottom teeth, you can hear the s sound clearly, and you can clearly feel the vibrations of the z sound as well.



            I would have to say the second option is correct.







            share|improve this answer












            share|improve this answer



            share|improve this answer










            answered Feb 23 '16 at 5:22









            user2277872user2277872

            1152




            1152








            • 2





              Completely wrong sorry, the /s/ is most definitely produced with the tongue behind the top teeth. And pretty poor advice: someone who doesn't know how a sound is correctly produced can't learn that just by experimenting and trying what sounds good to them.

              – curiousdannii
              Feb 23 '16 at 6:52











            • Well, I'm sitting drinking my morning tea and hissing in disbelief... When I do a sustained SSSSS my tongue tip is near the roots of my front top teeth. If I TOUCH the teeth with my tongue, the SSSSS stops.

              – David Garner
              Feb 23 '16 at 7:28











            • @curiousdannii: It's clear from the discussion some people use their bottom teeth. And I can make perfectly passable /s/ and /z/ sounds that way.

              – Peter Shor
              Feb 29 '16 at 20:28
















            • 2





              Completely wrong sorry, the /s/ is most definitely produced with the tongue behind the top teeth. And pretty poor advice: someone who doesn't know how a sound is correctly produced can't learn that just by experimenting and trying what sounds good to them.

              – curiousdannii
              Feb 23 '16 at 6:52











            • Well, I'm sitting drinking my morning tea and hissing in disbelief... When I do a sustained SSSSS my tongue tip is near the roots of my front top teeth. If I TOUCH the teeth with my tongue, the SSSSS stops.

              – David Garner
              Feb 23 '16 at 7:28











            • @curiousdannii: It's clear from the discussion some people use their bottom teeth. And I can make perfectly passable /s/ and /z/ sounds that way.

              – Peter Shor
              Feb 29 '16 at 20:28










            2




            2





            Completely wrong sorry, the /s/ is most definitely produced with the tongue behind the top teeth. And pretty poor advice: someone who doesn't know how a sound is correctly produced can't learn that just by experimenting and trying what sounds good to them.

            – curiousdannii
            Feb 23 '16 at 6:52





            Completely wrong sorry, the /s/ is most definitely produced with the tongue behind the top teeth. And pretty poor advice: someone who doesn't know how a sound is correctly produced can't learn that just by experimenting and trying what sounds good to them.

            – curiousdannii
            Feb 23 '16 at 6:52













            Well, I'm sitting drinking my morning tea and hissing in disbelief... When I do a sustained SSSSS my tongue tip is near the roots of my front top teeth. If I TOUCH the teeth with my tongue, the SSSSS stops.

            – David Garner
            Feb 23 '16 at 7:28





            Well, I'm sitting drinking my morning tea and hissing in disbelief... When I do a sustained SSSSS my tongue tip is near the roots of my front top teeth. If I TOUCH the teeth with my tongue, the SSSSS stops.

            – David Garner
            Feb 23 '16 at 7:28













            @curiousdannii: It's clear from the discussion some people use their bottom teeth. And I can make perfectly passable /s/ and /z/ sounds that way.

            – Peter Shor
            Feb 29 '16 at 20:28







            @curiousdannii: It's clear from the discussion some people use their bottom teeth. And I can make perfectly passable /s/ and /z/ sounds that way.

            – Peter Shor
            Feb 29 '16 at 20:28







            protected by Mitch Feb 29 '16 at 19:47



            Thank you for your interest in this question.
            Because it has attracted low-quality or spam answers that had to be removed, posting an answer now requires 10 reputation on this site (the association bonus does not count).



            Would you like to answer one of these unanswered questions instead?



            Popular posts from this blog

            How did Captain America manage to do this?

            迪纳利

            南乌拉尔铁路局