Course outline
/θ/
Video lesson. The full description lives in the linked notes (Resource below).
The /θ/: tongue between the teeth, no voice
The /θ/ is made by pushing your tongue slightly between your teeth and blowing. It's voiceless: no vibration. If you speak Peninsular Spanish you already have this sound — the one in cinco; if you speak Latin American Spanish, it's new and has to be built from scratch.
How it's made
- 👄 Mouth: slightly open, no tension in the lips.
- 👅 Tongue: the tip peeks out between the teeth, gently.
- 🔊 Voice: voiceless — just air passing over the tongue.
You hear it in: think · thanks · thumb · math · nothing
⚠️ The typical Spanish-speaker mistake: swapping in /t/ or /s/. Think pronounced tink or sink is the most frequent error — and sink is a different word.
By the end you'll be able to: push the tongue out far enough, and keep think / sink and thin / tin apart.