ZZ vs. JJ buzz vs. budge Sounds American English Pronunciation
Buzz, budge. Can you say these two words,
or does the ending confuse you? In this American
English pronunciation video, we’re going to
go over these two sounds.
Today we’re comparing the ZZ and the JJ sound.
One of the differences is that the zz sound
can be held continuously, zzzz. The JJ sound,
on the other hand, has a stop component, jj,
jj, jj, jj. So I have to pulse that because
there’s a stop in the airflow. But the difference
between these two sounds doesn’t stop there.
There’s a difference in the tongue position
and also the lip position. Let’s look at some
pictures.
First, let’s look at the lip position. You
can see in the left, in the zz sound, that
the lips are more relaxed. The corners are
actually pulling out a little bit. But in
the jj sound, on the left, there’s more tension
in the lips. The corners of the lips are coming
in, bringing the lips into a circle, while
the lips themselves flare out. For the Z sound,
the tongue tip touches lightly behind the
bottom front teeth while the front part pushes
up a bit. In the jj sound, the tongue tip
isn’t touching. So it’s pulled slightly back
while the front part of the top of the tongue
is lifting towards the roof of the mouth.
Now let’s look at a minimal pair up close
and in slow motion.
Jest. you can clearly see how the lips come
in but also flare for the jj sound. And now,
zest, where the corners of the lips remain
wide for the Z sound.
More minimal pairs: jealous, zealous. Joan,
zone. Jenn, zen. Fridge, frizz. Budge, buzz.
If you have difficulties with these two sounds,
you’re probably going to have to practice
them over and over in isolation. Then bring
them into just a word part, and then eventually
the whole word. You’re going to have to do
it slowly, thoughtfully, and repetitiously
in order to get the correct sound into your
habit.
Take, for example, the word ‘enjoy’, with
the jj sound. First, practice just the sound.
Jj, jj, jj, jj. Then the sound as part of
a syllable. -joy. [5x] Then bring it into
the entire word. Enjoy. [3x]
Or, the word ‘dozen’, with the zz sound. First,
isolate just the sound. Zz, zz, zz, zz, zz.
Then, that sound as part of a syllable. -zen.
[6x] And then, as part of the whole word.
Dozen. [5x]
I hope this video has helped to make it more
clear: the difference between these two sounds.
That’s it, and thanks so much
for using Rachel’s English.