Easy English.with James
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The difficult sounds: TH, CH, SH, P and B.

You watched my video about the difficult sounds. Now let’s practise! First, a short summary. Then three small practices. It takes about 10 minutes.

The video: “MASTER English Pronunciation | DIFFICULT SOUNDS (TH, B, P, CH, SH)”. Watch it on YouTube ↗

What you learned

These are the sounds my students find hardest. They cause a lot of mistakes. Here they are, in the order of the video, with words to practise.

  1. 1

    /ð/

    this, that, the, there, mother, brother

    Put your tongue between your teeth. Use your voice. Can you feel a buzz?

  2. 2

    /θ/

    think, thank, three, thing, month, mouth

    Tongue between your teeth again. Now push air out, with no voice. It is not /t/, /f/ or /s/.

  3. 3

    /tʃ/

    chip, cheese, chair, church, teacher, watch

    A short, quick sound. It is like /t/ and /ʃ/ together.

  4. 4

    /ʃ/

    ship, she, shop, fish, wash, sure

    Push your lips forward. A long, soft sound, like when you ask people to be quiet.

  5. 5

    /p/

    pen, pay, happy, cup, stop, park

    Close your lips. Then open them with a little puff of air. No voice.

  6. 6

    /b/

    bad, big, book, bag, bus, job, borrow

    Close your lips, like /p/. But use your voice, and with less air.

P or B? Put your hand in front of your mouth. Say pen. You feel air. Now say Ben. You feel only a little air.

TH: this has voice, think has no voice. Put your fingers on your throat. Do you feel the buzz in this?

Practice 1 of 3

Listen and choose the sound

Press ▶ and listen to me. You can’t see the word yet. Which of these sounds do you hear? Choose one.

  1. 1

  2. 2

  3. 3

  4. 4

  5. 5

  6. 6

  7. 7

  8. 8

Practice 2 of 3

Which word has a different sound?

Two words have the same sound (TH, CH, SH, P or B). One word is different. Press ▶ to hear a word. Then tap the different word.

  1. 1

  2. 2

  3. 3

  4. 4

  5. 5

  6. 6

Practice 3 of 3

Say it and compare

Press ▶ and listen to me. Then press Record and say it. Then listen to me and to you. Do you sound the same?

  1. 1 /ð/

    There are six apples in the bag.

  2. 2 /θ/

    No ice for me, thank you.

  3. 3 /tʃ/

    Would you like some cheese and crackers?

    crackers = thin, dry biscuits. We eat them with cheese.

  4. 4 /ʃ/

    I wash my hands before lunch.

  5. 5 /p/

    I feel happy when my friends visit.

  6. 6 /b/

    Is your reading book in your bag?

  7. 7 P and B

    Could I borrow your pen?

    borrow = take something and give it back later

  8. 8 SH and CH

    I’ll have the fish and chips, please.

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Words to practise next

Hear me say these tricky words, normally and slowly.

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