Learning English Grammar

Sound of 's'

Letter 's' has two sound:

/s/ Sound

answer
beside
bus
false
gas
glass
kiss
list
lost
mask
sentence
spell
story
yes

If the word ends with any other voiceless consonant sound
(/f/, /k/, /p/, /t/ or /th/,
the final -s is pronounced as /s/.

cats
socks

soap
side
study

/z/ Sound

busy

does

easy

is

has

his

was

If the -s is in the middle of two vowels it is pronounced as /z/.

because

cheese

choose

music
please
pose
rose
these

those

use

If a word ends with voice consonant sound /b/, /g/, /l/, /m/, /ng/, /r/, /t/, /v/ or a vowel sound, the final -s is pronounced as /z/.

bags
sings