Nasal sounds in English
This lesson will focus on how to pronounce Nasal Sounds in English which also includes how to pronounce the –ing sound, which is something that troubles a lot of English learners.
That is, we see the -ing suffix in many gerunds such as “cleaning” or “working”, however, many people pronounce this sound incorrectly. Let us show you how to pronounce it!
This means all gerunds (verb + ing) as well.
Due to these three sounds /m/, /n/ and /ŋ/ being nasal and similar, we have grouped them in the same lesson.
Nasal sounds in English
- What is a nasal sound?
- Let’s take a quick look at the differences in Nasal Sounds in English
- /ŋ/ vs /n/
- /m/, /n/ and /ŋ/ – The Nasal Sounds sounds in English
- /m/ – This sound is representative of the letter m in most cases
- /n/ – Mostly representative of the letter n when it is on its own, and not representative of the letter pairs ng or nk
- /ŋ/ – This sound can only represent the letters ng and nk
What is a nasal sound?
Sounds such as /m/, /n/ and /ŋ/ in which the air tends to escape through the nose are considered nasal sounds.
/m/, and /n/ are very easy and intuitive, however, the /ŋ/ sound is not so easy.
We’ll be digging deeper to get to know how to pronounce all three sounds correctly, especially the /ŋ/ sound, which is not so easy at first glance.
Although these sounds are similar, they are still different and it’s also very important to differentiate them from the get-go.
Let’s take a quick look at the differences in Nasal Sounds in English
/m/
- Mice – /maɪs/
- Mother – /ˈmʌðə/
- Me – /miː/
As you can see, this sound /m/ is intuitive, and you should not have any issues.
/n/
- Nice – /naɪs/
- No – /nəʊ/
- Nylon – /ˈnaɪlən/
The /n/ sound is very regular, that is, it commonly represents the letter n, and it is not hard to pronounce at all.
/ŋ/
- Helping – /ˈhɛlpɪŋ/
- Ring – /rɪŋ/
- Brink – /brɪŋk/
The /ŋ/ sound never occurs in the initial position of a word. Moreover, this sound, /ŋ/ can only represent the letters ng or nk and never n on its own.
Even though /ŋ/ is not hard to pronounce, you do need to pronounce it correctly and avoid pronouncing it as /n/ when you have the letters ng or nk. We cannot emphasise this enough.
/ŋ/ vs /n/
You need to say:
- Sing – /sɪŋ/
- Bring – /brɪŋ/
- Sink – /sɪŋk/
And not:
- Sing – /sɪn/ = X
- Bring – /brɪn/ = X
- Sink – /sɪnk/ = X
/m/, /n/ and /ŋ/ – The Nasal Sounds sounds in English
Let’s revise these sounds /m/, /n/ and /ŋ/ one last time.
/m/ – This sound is representative of the letter m in most cases
- Man – /mæn/
- Mutter – /ˈmʌtə/
- Milk – /mɪlk/
- Mash – /mæʃ/
- Monday – /ˈmʌndeɪ/
- Mighty – /ˈmaɪti/
/n/ – Mostly representative of the letter n when it is on its own, and not representative of the letter pairs ng or nk
- Net – /nɛt/
- Nepotism – /ˈnɛpətɪzm/
- Need – /niːd/
- Nobody – /ˈnəʊbədi/
- None – /nʌn/
- Nit – /nɪt/
/ŋ/ – This sound can only represent the letters ng and nk
Remember, this sound, /ŋ/ does not represent the letter n on its own.
- Hang – /hæŋ/
- Mingle – /ˈmɪŋgl/
- Becoming – /bɪˈkʌmɪŋ/
- Shrink – /ʃrɪŋk/
- Think – /θɪŋk/
- Ink – /ɪŋk/
These three sounds /m/, /n/ and /ŋ/ are all nasal, easy to pronounce, and are also fairly regular regarding the letters they represent. However, when it comes to differentiating between the /n/ and /ŋ/ sounds, remember that /n/ is the sound you need to produce when the letter n is on its own, and /ŋ/ needs to be produced when you see the letters ng and nk.
More about English Pronunciation
- English Pronunciation — introduction
- English Pronunciation || Our Course
- Vowels
- Consonants
- Common pronunciation mistakes
- Contractions in English – How to pronounce them
- Introduction to IPA
- IPA Chart (International Phonetic Alphabet)
- The “ed” suffix of verbs
- 3 Pronunciation tips
- 3 pronunciation must-do’s!