Pronunciation guide

How to pronounce the th sound

Rest your tongue tip lightly between your front teeth and blow. No voice: /θ/ in think. Voice on: /ð/ in this. Tongue behind the teeth turns "think" into "sink".

/θ/ think: the tongue comes forward

Same tongue, one switch

Voiceless /θ/ and voiced /ð/

/θ/ voiceless

Air only

Air over the tongue tip, no buzz.

soft hiss

thinbaththinkbirthdaymouth

/ð/ voiced

Air + voice

Same place, vocal cords buzzing.

throat buzz

thismotherbreathetheysmooth

5 steps to /θ/

Slide your tongue tip forward until it sits gently between your front teeth.
Blow a soft, steady stream of air over the tip. The sound is quieter and duller than /s/.
Keep your throat silent: no buzz anywhere.
Check in a mirror that you can see a sliver of tongue between your teeth.
Now say: thin, bath, think.

For /ð/: same position, then switch your voice on and hold a buzzing "thhh" for two seconds before moving into this, mother, breathe.

What goes wrong

Where the tongue should not go

thin✓ th

sin✗ tongue behind the teeth

thin✓ th

tin✗ tongue taps, air stops

thin✓ th

fin✗ lip instead of tongue

they✓ th

day✗ air blocked, like /d/

breathe✓ th

breeze✗ buzzing /z/ behind the teeth

Say each pair aloud. If both words sound the same, your tongue is not coming forward.

Check yourself in 10 seconds

Illustration: fingertips resting on the throat to feel the voice buzz

Mirror check · /θ/

"thin" then "sin"

In thin you can see a sliver of tongue and the hiss is soft. In sin the tongue hides and the hiss is sharp.

Hand on throat · /ð/

"they" then "day"

Both buzz, so watch the mirror: in they the air keeps flowing; in day the tongue taps and the air stops.

Why th is hard

Most languages have no "th"

So speakers swap in the nearest sound they already have.

Koreanthink→sinkthis→dis
Japanesethink→shinkthink→sink
Mandarinthink→sinkthis→zis
Vietnamese, Thaithink→tinkthis→dis
French, German, Russianthink→sinkthis→zis
Portuguese, Italian, Turkishthink→tinkthis→dis
Hindiθ→hard dental tð→dental d

Your first language shapes the rest of your English too: see the accent test guide (한국어: 한국인 영어 발음 특징).

In the app

Practise th with feedback

Read a short passage, see which sounds you miss, then practise each one with its mouth and tongue guide, in American (46 sounds) or British (44) English.

Accenty sound map: vowels placed by tongue position — Every English sound, mapped

Accenty home: today's sound and daily sentence practice — 3 minutes a day

Accenty linking: how words join in connected speech — Link words like a native

I think Thursday is her birthday.My mother and father like this weather.Breathe in and breathe out slowly.

Questions

What is the difference between voiced and voiceless th?

The tongue position is the same: tip lightly between the front teeth. Voiceless /θ/ (think, bath) is only air, with no buzz in the throat. Voiced /ð/ (this, mother) adds your voice, so you feel a buzz with a hand on your throat.

Why do I say "sink" instead of "think"?

Many languages, including Korean, Mandarin, French and German, have no "th", so the tongue stays behind the teeth and the sound comes out as /s/ or /t/. The fix is visible: your tongue tip has to come forward between your teeth.

Do I have to stick my tongue out to say th?

Only a little. The tip rests lightly between the upper and lower front teeth, so a sliver of tongue shows in a mirror. You do not need to push it far out or bite down.

Is "th" pronounced the same in American and British English?

Yes. /θ/ and /ð/ are the same in General American and British RP; both sound sets in the Accenty app include them.

More guides

What's my accent?How an AI accent test works, and the sounds that give each accent away.

Best pronunciation appsSeven apps compared: price, accents and what each is best at.

한국인 영어 발음r/l, f/p, th: 한국어 화자가 가장 자주 틀리는 소리 5개와 교정법.

Find the sounds you miss