How to pronounce the S sound in plural words in North American English.

1. Plural Word
pronunciation in
English.
By Luis Ricardo Rojas

2. Three different pronunciations
 cats dogs bridges
 The three previous words end in -s. However,
the 3 -s ending sounds are pronounced
differently.

3. -S Pronounced like /s/
 Rule 1 "when the last sound of a word is
voiceless, the ¨s¨ consonant will continue the
lack of vibration and sound like a /s/.“
 A voiceless sound is the one that does not
make your vocal cords vibrate when
producing a consonant.

4. Voiceless sounds
Phonetic Symbols Consonant Example
/p/ P Pops //
/k/ K weeks //
/t/ T bits
/f/ F briefs //

5. -s Pronounced like /s/
Helmet
Ship
bank
Helmets
Ships
banks

6. -S Pronounced like /z/
 Rule 2, “Anytime the last ended sound of a
word is voiced, the vibration will carry forward
and transform the letter -s into a /z/ sound."
 A voiced sound is the one that makes the
vocal cords vibrate when producing a sound.

7. Voiced Sounds
Phonetic Symbols Consonant Example
/d/ D hands //
/m/ M systems
/v/ V doves //
/l/ L bells //
/r/ R cars //
/ɡ/ G bags
/n/ N questions
/y/ Y delays
/W/ W Strows
/b/ B cabs

8. -es Pronounced like /ɪz/
Rule 3: There are also some sound that required and
extra syllable to be articulated –es
"When the last sound of a word are /dʒ/ /tʃ/ /s/ and
/z/, the -es syllable is pronounced like /ɪz/“
Watches
Judges
Slices
Blazes