S, Z, SH, CH and J

Intermediate · Consonant Sounds

These "hissing and hushing" sounds are close cousins and easy to confuse. /s/ (sun) and /z/ (zoo) are a voiceless/voiced pair. /ʃ/ (she) is the "shh" sound, and /tʃ/ (church) and /dʒ/ (jump) add a little "t" or "d" burst before it.

Getting these crisp and distinct helps enormously with clarity, especially at the ends of words and in plurals.

The sounds

/s/ sun · /z/ zoo · /ʃ/ she (shh) · /tʃ/ church (ch) · /dʒ/ jump (j)

Rules & examples

  1. /s/ vs /z/ — same hiss, but /z/ buzzes.

    The voiced/voiceless pair for the tongue-ridge hiss.

    • sip / zip, bus / buzz, price / prize
  2. /ʃ/ "sh" — pull the tongue back a little and round the lips slightly.

    The quiet "shhh" sound.

    • she, shop, fish, nation, sure
  3. /tʃ/ "ch" and /dʒ/ "j" — a quick stop + a "sh"/"zh" release.

    ch = t + sh (voiceless); j = d + zh (voiced).

    • church, cheese, watch
    • jump, judge, age

Minimal pairs

  • sip / ship — /s/ vs /ʃ/
  • sheep / cheap — /ʃ/ vs /tʃ/
  • chin / gin — /tʃ/ vs /dʒ/
  • bus / buzz — /s/ vs /z/

Tips to remember

  • For "sh", imagine telling someone to be quiet: "shhh".
  • For "ch" and "j", start with your tongue touching the ridge (like t/d), then release into "sh"/"zh".

Common mistakes

  • ✗ Saying "ship" for "sip" or "chip" for "ship". → ✓ s = hiss, sh = hush, ch = t+hush — These three are distinct; blend them and words change.