Lips
Spread your lips slightly, like the start of "ee".
Other consonants
/j/as in yes
Voiced glide. Tongue high-front, then open to the vowel.
Example words: yes, you, yellow, year, music
Accent
Mouth
How do you pronounce the /j/ sound?
Tongue
Raise your tongue high and to the front, very close to the hard palate, as if about to say "ee". Then glide quickly away into the next vowel. It is movement, not a held sound.
Video lesson
Try it
- Spread your lips slightly and raise your tongue to the "ee" position.
- Switch your voice on for a split second in that high-front spot.
- Glide fast and smoothly into the following vowel.
- Feel the quick slide at the start of: yes, you, yellow.
Check
Say "year" then "ear". They must sound different: "year" starts with a quick "ee"-like glide, "ear" starts straight on the vowel. If they match, your glide is missing.
Common trap
Do not drop the glide. Without that quick "ee" start, "year" collapses into "ear" and "yes" loses its first sound. Start high and front, then move.
Practice: /j/
Words
yesjˈɛs
youju
yellowjˈɛloʊ
yearjˈɪɹ
musicmjˈuzɪk
Sentences
Yes, you can use my yellow pen.jˈɛs, ju kæn jˈuz maɪ jˈɛloʊ pˈɛn.
Last year we listened to music together.lˈæst jˈɪɹ wi lˈɪsənd tə mjˈuzɪk təɡˈɛðəɹ.
Did you enjoy the music yesterday?dˈɪd ju ɪndʒˈɔɪ ðə mjˈuzɪk jˈɛstəɹdˌeɪ?
The young boy said yes to us.ðə jˈʌŋ bˈɔɪ sˈɛd jˈɛs tʊ ˌʌs.
You used your computer for a year.jˌu jˈuzd jʊɹ kəmpjˈuɾəɹ fɔɹ ɐ jˈɪɹ.
Words
yesjˈɛs
youjuː
yellowjˈɛləʊ
yearjˈɪə
musicmjˈuːzɪk
Sentences
Yes, you can use my yellow pen.jˈɛs, juː kan jˈuːz maɪ jˈɛləʊ pˈɛn.
Last year we listened to music together.lˈɑːst jˈɪə wiː lˈɪsənd tə mjˈuːzɪk təɡˈɛðə.
Did you enjoy the music yesterday?dˈɪd juː ɪndʒˈɔɪ ðə mjˈuːzɪk jˈɛstədeɪ?
The young boy said yes to us.ðə jˈʌŋ bˈɔɪ sˈɛd jˈɛs tʊ ˌʌs.
You used your computer for a year.jˌuː jˈuːzd jɔː kəmpjˈuːtə fɔː ɐ jˈɪə.
🔊 plays the app's native voice. 🎤 records you so you can play it back next to it. Your recording stays in your browser.
Sounds in the same group
Is /j/ one of yours?
Accenty listens to you speak and shows the sounds you miss, in American or British English.
