In this lesson we are going to look at the v sound or the /v/ phoneme. As in the words:
- very /’veri/
- every /’evri/
- move /muːv/
The /v/ phoneme is from the ‘Consonants Pairs’ group and it is called the ‘Voiced labiodental fricative’. This means that you create friction between the bottom lip and top teeth while vibrating your vocal chords. Be careful not to get it confused with the w sound and remember the improtance of the teeth in making the sound.
How to pronounce the v sound
The v sound is made through the mouth and it is Voiced which means that you vibrate your vocal chords to make the sound.
It is defined by position of your lips and teeth and it is a fricative, which is a sound that is produced by high pressure air flow between a narrow space in the mouth. In this case it is between the bottom lip and the teeth.
To produce the sound rest your top teeth on you bottom lip and force air out between your teeth whilst voicing out.
How the v sound is Spelled
The /v/ phoneme is normally spelled with the letter ‘v’ as in the words:
- even /’iːvən/
- never /‘nevə/
- five /faɪv/
But in some rare cases it is spelt with the letter ‘f’ as in the word:
- of /ɒv/
Examples of the v sound
Here are some words that begin with the /v/ Phoneme:
- view /vjuː/
- value /ˈvæljuː/
- visit /ˈvɪzɪt/
- various /ˈveəriəs/
Here are some words with the /v/ Phoneme in the middle:
- never /’nevə/
- provide /prəˈvaɪd/
- however /haʊˈevə/
- level /ˈlevəl/
Here are some words with the /v/ Phoneme at the end:
- love /lʌv/
- have /hæv/
- give /gIv/
- live /lɪv/
So, that’s it for the v sound but we have made additional videos on each of the groups of sounds; Vowels, Diphthongs, Single Consonants, or Consonant Pairs as well as a video explaining the the phonetic chart.