Month: May 2025

Making th sounds in English is a common problem that many English language learners face – but did you know that many native speakers also find th pronunciation difficult?

It really is a tricky sound to make! But many words contain th sounds in English and mastering this sound will ensure you communicate clearly and effectively. 

The Coffee Break English Show is a podcast series of informal conversations to help you understand some difficult topics in English. In the latest episode, Nick and Francesca look at the difference between f and th pronunciation as well as voiced and unvoiced th sounds.

Because this episode focuses on pronunciation, it’s best to watch the video or listen to the podcast episode while you read this article, to hear Nick and Francesca making the sounds.

So let’s get started and look at th sounds in English!

‘Th’ Pronunciation in English

For many language learners, the pronunciation of th is a big challenge because this sound doesn’t exist in their language, or at least not in the same way. Today we want to demystify th pronunciation so that you feel more confident in future.

‘Th’ Vs ‘f’

The first challenge between f and th sounds is understanding how to make them.

The big difference is the position of the tongue!

F sounds are made by putting the top teeth on the bottom lip and blowing air through the gap. The tongue stays in the mouth. 🦷

Th sounds are made by putting the tongue between the top and bottom teeth and blowing air around the tongue. You should be able to see the tongue if you look in a mirror! 😛

Another good way to practise this sound is to put a pencil, or your finger, in front of your lips and make sure you touch the pencil with your tongue when you make the th sounds. You will find some fun sentences to do this at the end of this blog! 👅✏️

Spelling Rules

Now let’s look at when to use each one. If you are looking at a dictionary post of a word, you will see the spelling and the phonemic transcription. Understanding phonemic symbols can help you with your pronunciation because written English does not always help you understand how to say words in English. 

The good news is, for the difference between /f/ and /θ/, we can trust the spelling!

f = /f/

/f/ is almost always spelt with one or two f’s. It is never spelt th. This spelling rule really helps to know when to make each sound. We sometimes see /f/ spelt with gh (laugh, enough, etc.) or ph (photo, phone, physics, etc.)

th = /θ/

/θ/ is always spelt with th. There are no exceptions to this rule! 🥳

TH – voiced or unvoiced?

Now we come to a small problem with th pronunciation. There are two ways to pronounce th in English. One is voiced 🗣️ and the other is unvoiced 🔇.

We can see a clear difference between voiced and unvoiced sounds with the letters f and v. To make an f sound, you put your top teeth on your bottom lip and blow air. To make a v sound, you do the same, but you vibrate your voice box. You can feel this happening if you put your finger on the front of your throat and make the v sound. For this, try making the sound of a Formula One car! 🏎️

We can apply the same rule between /f/ and /v/ to th sounds. For the voiced th sound, the tongue remains between the teeth, but now we are vibrating the voice box. The symbol for this sound is /ð/. 

Th = /θ/ (unvoiced) e.g. theatre, bath, truth 🔇

Th = /ð/ (voiced) e.g the, then, breathe 🗣️

If you would like more practice with th pronunciation, check out how to pronounce ‘Tuesday’ and ‘Thursday’ in episode 9 from the first season of the Coffee Break Show!

Spelling Rules

The difference between f and th is quite easy to see in spelling. Unfortunately, it is not so easy with the difference between the th sounds /θ/ and /ð/. There are some general rules we can follow but we have to be careful for exceptions. 

Both /θ/ and /ð/ can appear at the beginning of words but /ð/ is more common. 

Many determiners begin with a /ð/ sound: the, this, that, these, those.

The numbers three, thirteen, thirty and thousand all have a /θ/ sound.

Generally, when th is at the end of the word, we say /θ/ (unvoiced).

When th is in the middle of the word we normally say /ð/ (voiced). But there are many exceptions to this rule so be careful! The best thing to do is learn the patterns where these rules do apply.

Let’s have a look at some examples:

Let’s review 

So the fundamental difference between f and th in English is that /f/ needs the top lip on the bottom teeth, and /θ/ needs the tongue between the teeth, and /ð/ is the same but has a vibrating quality. As always, the best way to perfect these rules is to practise using the words and learning when to follow each rule. Now try saying the words in the visual below out loud! 🗣️

It’s your turn! 

Try saying these tongue twisters out loud to practise pronouncing these sounds correctly! Try this in front of a mirror and check you can see your tongue when making those th sounds. If you want, you can listen to Nick and Francesca saying them in the video, and repeat them after them.

👅🌪️

There are Thirty-three thick silk threads.

👅🌪️🌪️

Three thousand thick feathers float down the river.

👅🌪️🌪️🌪️

I thought a thought, but the thought I thought wasn’t the thought that I’d thought that I’d thought.

If you found this post interesting, make sure you listen to the full podcast episode with Nick and Francesca on The Coffee Break English Show. In this series, we talk about useful topics for English learners, so make sure to subscribe to our podcast feed and our channel on YouTube.

Plus, don’t miss your free worksheet – perfect for extra practice after the lesson! When you sign up, you’ll also receive our short coffee break-sized email lessons, delivered straight to your inbox every week, to help you build your English skills. 💪 You’ll even hear from Mark, the founder of Coffee Break Languages, who shares regular tips and motivation for learners of all levels. Sign up below! 👇

Try to practise the th sounds often at home! The more you practice, the more confident you will become. We recommend you make a list of the words with these sounds that you find difficult and practise saying them until you feel more confident making th sounds.

Remember that it’s ok not to sound exactly like a native speaker! The important thing is that you feel confident and comfortable when speaking and people can understand you.

Happy Coffee Breaking!

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Do you know the different ways to talk about future plans in English? Talking about your plans can be a little confusing as we don’t always use future tenses in English like we do in the present and past. Instead, we have different phrases we use to express specific ideas.

In this episode, Nick and Anabel look at will, be going to and the present continuous to see how we can express different ideas about our future plans in English.

The Coffee Break English Show is a podcast series of informal conversations to help you understand some difficult topics in English. In the latest episode, we discuss different ways to use future tenses in English to express future plans.

Continue reading to find out more and why not listen to the podcast as you go?

Let’s get started with will!

Future Tense Verbs – Will

Let’s look at will first. One of the most common meanings of will is to express spontaneous decisions. We can consider a spontaneous decision as the birth of our plan, it has just been decided and is still new. To create this form, we use will, plus the bare infinitive (without to).

If we are hungry, we might say “I’ll go and buy a sandwich”. If it is cold we might say “I will put on a jumper”. It is something I decide to do in the moment.

Examples in positive, negatives and question form:

✅ I will buy a new phone.

❌ I won’t buy a new phone.

❓ Will you buy a new phone?

Remember the contraction of will involves the subject and the last two letters of the verb will, with an apostrophe (‘ll). You may even hear this contraction with a noun but this is almost always only when we speak.

I’ll

you’ll

he’ll

she’ll

it’ll

we’ll

they’ll

Nick’ll

Anabel’ll (ok, this one is very difficult to pronounce!)

Future Tense Verbs – Be going to

We use be going to to describe the next stage of our plan. This is a decision which we have made in the past and we are now thinking about. We are now planning the details and it is our personal intention. We use the bare infinitive after be going to.

If I am talking about the weekend, I can say “I’m going to see my friends.” This means that the plan is being organised but maybe some details are not finalised.

Examples in positive, negatives and question form:

✅ I am going to buy a new phone.

❌ I am not going to buy a new phone.

❓ Are you going to you buy a new phone?

Future Tense Verbs – Present Continuous

When we have finalised the important details and our plan is complete, we can use the present continuous. This shows that our plan is fixed and the details are confirmed. We use present continuous for fixed plans.

Examples in positive, negatives and question form:

✅ I am buying a new phone.

❌ I am not buying a new phone.

❓ Are you buying a new phone?

Let’s review the future tenses in English

So let’s go over the different ways to use future tenses in English to express future plans.

First, we start with will to express a new plan. We make a spontaneous decision.

Then we use be going to when we have already made the decision and we now have a personal intention.

And finally we used present continuous to show we have finalised the details and we have a fixed plan.

Remember! The present continuous and be going to are very similar and express slightly different ideas but can often be used in the same context with little difference in meaning. Don’t worry if sometimes you’re not sure which one to use, it probably means you can use both! If you feel you need more practice with future tenses in English, we take a look at other ways to use be going to and will in Episode 5 of Season 3.

It’s your turn!

Now, let’s practise using the future tenses in English to talk about future plans! Look at the prompts and think about which future form would be best to use. The answers are at the end of the blog post but don’t look until you’ve thought about your answers!

1. It’s cold! (put on my jumper) …
2. I am busy tonight. (meet my friends in town) …
3. I’m on my summer holiday! Tomorrow (swim in the sea and sunbathe) …

If you found this post interesting, make sure you listen to the full podcast episode with Nick and Anabel on The Coffee Break English Show. We will release more episodes soon, about some more useful topics! Subscribe to our podcast feed and our channel on YouTube to learn when the next episode is available.

Plus, don’t miss your free worksheet – perfect for extra practice after the lesson! When you sign up, you’ll also receive our short coffee break-sized email lessons, delivered straight to your inbox every week, to help you build your English skills. 💪 You’ll even hear from Mark, the founder of Coffee Break Languages, who shares regular tips and motivation for learners of all levels. Sign up below! 👇

So, start trying to use different future tenses in English to be specific about your future plans when you can! Remember that when you learn new grammar, it will help you to express yourself as well as improving your understanding when listening to others. It’s all part of the language-learning journey. Are you going to try using these three future forms in your speech? Good luck!

Happy Coffee Breaking!

Here are some possible answers to the questions given above:

1. It’s cold! I’ll put on my jumper.
2. I am busy tonight. I’m meeting my friends in town.
3. I’m on my summer holiday! Tomorrow I’m going to swim in the sea and sunbathe.

Listen to the podcast

Do you ever get confused with must and have to? These two verbs can be used in similar ways but we have to be careful when we use them in the negative as the meaning changes completely. This is particularly difficult for some language learners as there may only be one word in their language for both must and have to.

The Coffee Break English Show is a podcast series of informal conversations to help you understand some difficult topics in English! In the latest episode, Nick and Francesca look at how we can use must and have to in the positive and negative forms and provide four simple rules to show their differences in meaning.

So, let’s get started and look at the rules for must and have to. Why not get a cup of coffee or tea to enjoy while you read and listen to the podcast episode?

1. Must

We use must to talk about obligations. They can be external rules or laws but they can also express an obligation or strong advice. Let’s look at some examples:

👨🏻‍⚖️

You must wear a seatbelt when you are driving.

We use must to show we are obligated to do this.

🫵🏻

You must keep your dog on a lead in this park.

This is a rule. You are obligated to do this when you are in the park.

⚠️

You must be careful when carrying a knife.

This is strong advice based on what we believe to be a good idea.

2. Mustn’t

We use mustn’t to talk about prohibition. We are saying that it is not possible or permitted to do something.

Let’s look at some examples:

👨🏻‍⚖️

You mustn’t drive on the right side of the road in the UK.

This is a law. We use mustn’t to show you are prohibited from doing this.

🫵🏻

You mustn’t look at your phone during the exam.

This is a rule. You are prohibited from doing this when you are in the exam.

⚠️

You mustn’t touch the oven, it is hot.

This is strong advice based on what we believe to be a bad idea.

3. Have to

We use have to to talk about necessity. Have to can often be used to talk about obligations as there is a strong similarity here with must, but the idea is that we need to do something.

👨🏻‍⚖️

You have to wear a helmet when you cycle on the road.

This is a law. We use have to to show that it is necessary to do this action in this context.

🫵🏻

You have to pay attention during the safety explanation on an airplane.

This is a rule. Have to demonstrates that this is something we need to do.

⚠️

You have to wear warm clothes in the winter in Sweden.

This is advice that shows something is necessary in order to avoid something happening (being cold), or to make something happen (being warm).

4. Don’t/doesn’t have to

When using must and have to, we need to be careful with the negative forms. Because we are considering the meaning of have to as something that is necessary, it is now easy to understand that the negative form means something that is not necessary. It can show that there is no obligation in this situation.

Let’s look at some examples:

👨🏻‍⚖️

You don’t have to wear a seatbelt when the car is parked.

This shows the absence of a law. We use don’t have to to show that it is not necessary to do the action.

🫵🏻

He doesn’t have to wear a shirt and tie in the office. They have a casual dress code.

This shows the absence of a rule. It demonstrates that this is something we do not need to do in this context.

👐🏻

You don’t have to take a medical kit when you go on a walk but it could be a good idea in case someone gets injured. 

This shows that there is no obligation to take the item. You have a choice.

Choosing between must and have to

Because there is such a similarity in meaning between must and have to, it can be difficult to know which one you should use in different contexts. But it is important to remember that you can normally use both without really changing the meaning. 

Must is generally stronger than have to, so when you are choosing which one to use, think about how important the information is and if it is urgent, it is best to use must. If you are only communicating something general that doesn’t need urgency or to be convincing, have to might be better.

If you want more practice with have to, check out Coffee Break English episode 4: season 4!

Here’s a visual summary of ‘must’ and ‘have to’

If you found this lesson helpful, make sure to watch the full episode of The Coffee Break English Show with Nick and Francesca, where we dive even deeper into must vs. have to! We release new episodes regularly, covering essential grammar topics to help you improve your English so make sure you subscribe to our YouTube channel so you never miss a lesson!

Plus, don’t miss your free worksheet – perfect for extra practice after the lesson! When you sign up, you’ll also receive our short coffee break-sized email lessons, delivered straight to your inbox every week, to help you build your English skills. 💪 You’ll even hear from Mark, the founder of Coffee Break Languages, who shares regular tips and motivation for learners of all levels. Sign up below! 👇

So, start practicing must and have to whenever you can!  Remember, small daily steps lead to big improvements. It’s all part of your language-learning journey.

☕ Happy Coffee Breaking!

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