American English sound
/p/: how to pronounce “p” in pat, happy and stop
/p/ is made by closing both lips and releasing them, with no voice. At the start of a stressed syllable, Americans add a small puff of air: pin, paper, appear.
That puff (aspiration) matters more than it seems. Without it, many languages' /p/ sounds like a /b/ to American ears, so pie can be heard as buy.
/p/
the “p” sound
How to make the sound
- 1Close your lips and build up a little air behind them.
- 2Keep your voice off: no buzz in your throat.
- 3Release the lips with a small puff of air at the start of a stressed syllable.
- 4Hold a piece of paper in front of your mouth: it should move on pie, but barely on spy.
- Tongue
- tip-down
- Lips
- neutral
- Voice
- voiceless
Hear it in words
Tap a word to hear it.
At the start
In the middle
At the end
How it's spelled
- p / pp: pen, happy, apple
- silent p: psychology, receipt, cupboard
Common mistakes
No puff of air
An unaspirated p at the start of a word sounds like b to Americans: pie becomes buy. Add the puff.
Using /b/
In languages without a separate /p/, park can come out as bark. Keep the voice off.
Adding a vowel at the end
“Stoppa” for stop. End the word on the closed lips.
Who finds /p/ hard
Speakers of these languages often replace it with a sound from their own language. Linked languages have their own accent traps page.
Often say /b/ instead
Arabic
Minimal pairs
Each pair differs by one sound. If both words sound the same when you say them, practice this pair.
Try it
“Pam put the purple paper in the pocket of her backpack.”
Record a sentence and get a score for every sound, /p/ included. Free, no account.
Questions
Why does p sound different in pin and spin?
After s there's no puff of air: spin has a plain p, pin has an aspirated one. Americans don't notice it, but leaving the puff out of pin makes it sound like bin.
Is the p in receipt pronounced?
No: receipt is /rɪˈsit/. The p is also silent in psychology, pneumonia and cupboard.