Confusing English pronunciation: voiceless stops

The other day I was watching an Instagram live of a well-known guy in the marketing field. He was sharing his business strategy and talking about how he pitched to clients. The only thing is, instead of “pitching” he was saying “bitching.” Now, pitching to clients and bitching to clients are two very different things 😅.

After I realized what had just happened, I smiled to myself because I knew the exact reason for this mispronunciation. But many nonnative speakers are still unaware that voiceless stops in English (/p/, /t/, /k/) sound voiced (/b/, /d/, /g/) if the speaker’s voice is activated too early. That is, although the vocal cords are not activated when we pronounce /p/, /t/, and /k/, if we don’t push out enough air while producing them in the beginning of a word or a stressed syllable, they might end up sounding like /b/, /d/, and /g/.

I first noticed this phenomenon when I was an ESL student many years ago. I would hear my Somali and Ethiopian classmates say that they couldn’t find a “barking lot” but I didn’t understand why they just can’t say parking with a /p/. Then our teacher explained to us that for them and many Arabic speakers, there is no difference between /p/ and /b/. But it turns out, even people whose native languages have a clear distinction between these two consonants, can make /p/ sound like a /b/ (especially to Americans) if they don’t aspirate the /p/ that comes in the beginning of a word or a stressed syllable.

Voiceless and voiced stops

Below is a list of all six stops in English and their official linguistic names. Their full names tell you how and where in the mouth they are produced.

• /p/ voiceless bilabial stop
• /b/ voiced bilabial stop

• /t/ voiceless alveolar stop
• /d/ voiced alveolar stop

• /k/ voiceless velar stop
• /g/ voiced velar stop

Remember the following pronunciation rules:

• Voiceless stops are aspirated ([pʰ], [tʰ], [kʰ]) when they appear at the beginning of a word or a stressed syllable
• Voiceless stops are nonaspirated ([p], [t], [k]) in all other positions
• Voiced stops are never aspirated ([b], [d], [g])

What is aspiration?

In linguistics, aspiration is a strong release of breath that comes with the release of a sound. The good news is that in English there are only three sounds that need to be accompanied by such bursts of air. These sounds are the voiceless stop consonants /p/, /t/, and /k/. Beware though that these sounds shouldn’t always be pronounced in the same way. They need to be aspirated only when they come in the initial position (the beginning of the word) or appear as the first sound of a stressed syllable. For example, the “t” in the word “top” needs to be aspirated ([tʰ]; [tʰɒp]). That is, it has to be accompanied by a puff of air when released to sound a bit more like t(h)op. But in the word “stop” [stɒp], this air is not needed because the “t” doesn’t’ appear in the beginning of a word or a stressed syllable.

Learning how to aspirate the voiceless stops in English takes some getting used to, but it could potentially eliminate some misunderstandings and uncomfortable situations (like the pitching-bitching example above).

Props for practicing aspiration

Understanding all this is only the first step, but learning how to and remembering when to aspirate will require some diligent practice. To make sure that you are doing it right, you can use some props like a tissue, a piece of light fabric, or even your hair (if your hair is long enough 🙂). Put your chosen tool a few inches away from your mouth and say “p” [pʰ], “t” [tʰ] and “k” [kʰ] several times. If the paper moves away from your face, you are on the right path.

You can start with the voiceless stops in the initial position and gradually proceed to the ones that come in the beginning of a stressed syllable. Remember to compare them to their voiced counterparts – [b], [d], and [g] – to really see the difference. The paper or fabric (or any other tool you choose to use) should move more when you produce the voiceless consonant stops.

Although the manner of articulation (the HOW: voiceless stop (/p/, /t/, /k/) voiced stop (/b/, /d/, /g/)) of these three sounds is the same, the place of articulation (the WHERE: bilabial (/p/, /b/), alveolar (/t/, /d/), velar (/k/, /g/)) they are produced is different. So, you might notice that your prop moves further away from your face when you pronounce “p” [pʰ] because it’s produced by the lips and hence is a little stronger and closer to the paper or fabric than “k” [kʰ] and “t” [tʰ].

Minimal pairs

Below you will find three tables with minimal pairs, pairs of words that differ only by one sound: an aspirated voiceless stop and its nonaspirated voiced counterpart. Read the words outloud and pay attention to the differences within each pair. Try to notice how much air you are puffing out while pronouncing the voiceless stops. You can record yourself and listen afterwards.

 

[pʰ] vs. [b]

 

p	[pʰ]	b	[b]
pace	[pʰeɪs]	base	[beɪs]
pack	[pʰæk]	back	[bæk]
pact	[pʰækt]	backed	[bækt]
pad	[pʰæd]	bad	[bæd]
pair	[pʰɛɹ]	bear	[bɛɹ]
pair	[pʰɛɹ]	bare	[bɛɹ]
palm	[pʰɑm]	bomb	[bɑm]
palm	[pʰɑm]	balm	[bɑm]
park	[pʰɑɹk]	bark	[bɑɹk]
pass	[pʰæs]	bass	[bæs]
patch	[pʰætʃ]	batch	[bætʃ]
path	[pʰæθ]	bath	[bæθ]
pay	[pʰeɪ]	bay	[beɪ]
pea	[pʰi]	be	[bi]
pea	[pʰi]	bee	[bi]
peach	[pʰitʃ]	beach	[bitʃ]
pear	[pʰɛɹ]	bear	[bɛɹ]
peas	[pʰiz]	bees	[biz]
peep	[pʰip]	beep	[bip]
peer	[pʰɪɹ]	beer	[bɪɹ]
peg	[pʰɛg]	beg	[bɛg]
pest	[pʰɛst]	best	[bɛst]
pet	[pʰɛt]	bet	[bɛt]
pie	[pʰaɪ]	by	[baɪ]
pier	[pʰɪɹ]	beer	[bɪɹ]
pig	[pʰɪg]	big	[bɪg]
pike	[pʰaɪk]	bike	[baɪk]
pill	[pʰɪl]	bill	[bɪl]
pin	[pʰɪn]	bin	[bɪn]
pit	[pʰɪt]	bit	[bɪt]
pitch	[pʰɪtʃ]	bitch	[bɪtʃ]
played	[pʰleɪd]	blade	[bleɪd]
plead	[pʰlid]	bleed	[blid]
pole	[pʰoʊl]	bowl	[boʊl]
poll	[pʰoʊl]	bowl	[boʊl]
pond	[pʰɑnd]	bond	[bɑnd]
preach	[pʰɹitʃ]	breach	[bɹitʃ]
pressed	[pʰɹɛst]	breast	[bɹɛst]
pride	[pʰɹaɪd]	bride	[bɹaɪd]
pro	[pʰɹoʊ]	bro	[bɹoʊ]
pull	[pʰʊl]	bull	[bʊl]
pump	[pʰʌmp]	bump	[bʌmp]
pun	[pʰʌn]	bun	[bʌn]
punch	[pʰʌntʃ]	bunch	[bʌntʃ]
push	[pʰʊʃ]	bush	[bʊʃ]

 

[tʰ] vs. [d]

 

t	[tʰ]	d	[d]
tear	[tʰɛɹ]	dare	[dɛɹ]
tense	[tʰɛns]	dense	[dɛns]
tie	[tʰaɪ]	die	[daɪ]
tied	[tʰaɪd]	died	[daɪd]
time	[tʰaɪm]	dime	[daɪm]
to	[tʰu]	do	[du]
tow	[tʰoʊ]	dough	[doʊ]
town	[tʰaʊn]	down	[daʊn]
train	[tʰɹeɪn]	drain	[dɹeɪn]
trill	[tʰɹɪl]	drill	[dɹɪl]
try	[tʰɹaɪ]	dry	[dɹaɪ]

 

[kʰ] vs. [g]

 

 

k	[kʰ]	g	[g]
came	[kʰeɪm]	game	[geɪm]
cane	[kʰeɪn]	gain	[geɪn]
cap	[kʰæp]	gap	[gæp]
card	[kʰɑɹd]	guard	[gɑɹd]
cave	[kʰeɪv]	gave	[geɪv]
class	[kʰlæs]	glass	[glæs]
clue	[kʰlu]	glue	[glu]
coal	[kʰoʊl]	goal	[goʊl]
coast	[kʰoʊst]	ghost	[goʊst]
coat	[kʰoʊt]	goat	[goʊt]
cold	[kʰoʊld]	gold	[goʊld]
come	[kʰʌm]	gum	[gʌm]
could	[kʰʊd]	good	[gʊd]
crab	[kʰɹæb]	grab	[gɹæb]
crane	[kʰɹeɪn]	grain	[gɹeɪn]
creek	[kʰɹik]	Greek	[gɹik]
crew	[kʰɹu]	grew	[gɹu]
crow	[kʰɹoʊ]	grow	[gɹoʊ]
curl	[kʰɝl]	girl	[gɝl]
cut	[kʰʌt]	gut	[gʌt]
K	[kʰeɪ]	gay	[geɪ]
Kate	[kʰeɪt]	gate	[geɪt]

Practice

Practice the texts below while paying attention to aspirated voiceless vs. nonaspirated voiced stops.

[pʰ] vs. [b]

Peter:              Hey Barb, do you want to grab a beer? I know a pretty cool bar nearby.

Barb:               You know, Pete? I’m up for some beer, but a bit later. I crave a piece of pie right now.

Peter:              Oh, pie sounds great. But where, Barb? I don’t think they serve pie in the bar I have in mind.

Barb:               There’s a posh bakery down the block. I haven’t been there yet. Wanna check it out?

Peter:              Sure, Barb. What’s the name of the bakery?

Barb:               Peach Pie Bakery

Peter:              Do they have a parking lot?

Barb:               Oh, come on, Pete, it’s so close. Be a big boy and walk.

Peter:              Owwkeeyy, I hope the peach pie is worth the walk.

[tʰ] vs. [d]

Tyler:               Hey, Dianne, have you seen the teddy bear I got for Tara from the toddler toy store? I can’t seem to find it.

Dianne:           I think I saw it in the trunk of your Tesla two days ago when you drove home.

Tyler:               On no! That Tesla was a temporary car I got while mine was being fixed. And I need the toy for tomorrow because it’s Tara’s birthday. What to do now?!

Dianne:           Don’t worry, Ty. You can call them and tell them you forgot the teddy bear there. Talk to them and ask them to take it out. You still have time until tomorrow. Come on, why don’t you dial the number?

Tyler:               That’s a great idea, Dianne. They are two hours away from here, so if I drive fast, I’ll get there before they close for the day.

Dianne:           Two hours? Tyler, ditch that toy and buy a new teddy bear. Time is money.

Tyler:               Well, I think I wanna see that Tesla again. I’m debating whether I should buy one. I’m dying to drive one again.

Dianne:           Tyler Daniel Turner, you are twisted, man!

[kʰ] vs. [g]

Garry:              Good morning Ms. Koll. Can I get you anything to drink? Maybe some coffee?

Ms. Koll:          Hey Garry, good to see you again. Coffee would be great, thank you. Is Kevin here already?

Garry:              Mr. Gibbs just called to say he’s running a bit late. His kid got the flu and he needs to go buy some meds. But he’s gonna come soon.

Ms. Koll:          Gosh, sick kids are not fun. You know what? Call Kevin and tell him that we can cancel today. He can take care of his kid and we could meet next week. By the way, is Kim here?

Gary:               Ms. Kingsley just got a call from a client and had to…

Ms. Koll:          Oh, there she is. Kim. Kiiimm. Kiiiiimmmmm.

★

Many nonnative speakers of English might feel that aspirating voiceless stops is not important because it’s very subtle. Some people might not even hear the difference. However, not aspirating a sound that needs to be aspirated could potentially bring about some confusion. It’s important to at least be aware of it so that you can modify a certain sound if needed.

Here are some other posts about pronunciation in English:

Confusing English pronunciation: L vs. W

Devoicing final consonants

How to sound clear in English

References:

1. Linda Grant. Well Said: Pronunciation for Clear Communication. Third edition. Heinle Cengage Learning, 2010.
2. Judy B Gilbert. Clear speech: Pronunciation and listening comprehension in North American English. Fourth Edition. Cambridge University Press, 2012.