Master the pronunciation for the plosive consonants, t vs d
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| This is た て と. |
| And this is だ で ど. |
| By the end of this lesson, you'll be able to tell them apart, PLUS you'll be practicing them and on your way to perfect pronunciation! |
| I'm Risa, and this is Japanese Pronunciation Through Minimal Pairs. |
| The first group is |
| た (ta), て (te), と (to) |
| The second group is |
| だ (da), で (de), ど (do) |
| In the first group, the t sound in た (ta), て (te), と (to) is unvoiced and aspirated. It's similar to the t sound in the English word "tie," but with less breath and aspiration. |
| た (ta), て (te), と (to) |
| (3 seconds pause) |
| た (ta), て (te), と (to) |
| た (ta), て (te), と (to) |
| (3 seconds pause) |
| た (ta), て (te), と (to) |
| In the second group, the d sound in だ (da), で (de), ど (do) is voiced. This means that when you pronounce these sounds, your vocal cords vibrate. |
| だ (da), で (de), ど (do) |
| (3 seconds pause) |
| だ (da), で (de), ど (do) |
| だ (da), で (de), ど (do) |
| (3 seconds pause) |
| だ (da), で (de), ど (do) |
| Listen to the difference and repeat after me. |
| た だ |
| [1 sec pause] |
| て で |
| [1 sec pause] |
| と ど |
| た だ |
| [1 sec pause] |
| て で |
| [1 sec pause] |
| と ど |
| So, the key difference between the two groups is voicing. |
| Try to focus on whether your vocal folds vibrate or not when you pronounce these sounds. |
| Listen and repeat or speak along with me. |
| Ready? |
| たん/だん |
| (space for repetition) |
| たん/だん |
| てん/でん |
| (space for repetition) |
| てん/でん |
| とる/ドル |
| (space for repetition) |
| とる/ドル |
| Let's review. Respond to the prompts by speaking aloud. Then, repeat after me, focusing on pronunciation. |
| Do you remember the group of sounds that are voiced? |
| (3) |
| (2) |
| (1) |
| だ で ど |
| (1) |
| だ で ど |
| And the voiceless sounds? |
| (3) |
| (2) |
| (1) |
| た て と |
| (1) |
| た て と |
| Let's practice. |
| Compare the sounds in these two words. Which word has the voiced sound, and which has the voiceless sound? |
| たん/だん |
| (1) |
| たん/だん |
| (1) |
| だん has the voiced sound, and たん has the voiceless sound. |
| Let's try another. |
| (3 sec pause) |
| とる/ドル |
| (1) |
| とる/ドル |
| (1) |
| ドル has the voiced sound, and とる has the voiceless sound. |
| Now, listen to the following sentence. Which word has the voiced sound, and which has the voiceless sound? |
| (1 sec pause) |
| 天気が悪かったので、電気をつけました。 |
| (Tenki ga warukatta node, denki o tsukemashita.) |
| てんき/でんき |
| (3 sec pause) |
| By the way, if you watched til the end |
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