D (letter)

D is the fourth letter of the English alphabet. Its name is pronounced like that of the River Dee.

Use in English

D is like t but voiced (compare dén and tén): the tongue touches the upper teeth: dóg, héad, dím, blòod, woòden, dàrling, dâinty, mádder, dûe, dāft, admîre, nâdir, hëard, bïrd, wörd, sád, bád, mád, gód, cód, said (*séd).

In the past forms of verbs it sounds like t if the preceding consonant is also unvoiced: loòked (*loòkt), híssed (*híst) - except in the case of t, after which it is necessary to sound the e as í: ẁanted (*wóntíd).

D is often found before g to make it clear that the g will have the soft j sound, although here it is really redundant, as the g is always followed by a front vowel, e, i or y: bádge, lédge, bádger, lédger, rídge, brídge, dódge, dódgy, púdgy, édge, édgy, lódger, lódging, Hódges, cúdgel, wédge.

D is often doubled, to emphasise the preceding short vowel: míddle, sádder, ádd, múddle, gíddy, ódd, pádding, wédded. There can be an accidental sustained double d in gránddad – or it can be simply grándad.

D begins consonant clusters: Édgbaston, adhêre, crâdle, admít, kídney, dréss, Édsel, advîse, ádze.

And flòod and blòod rhyme with múd (cf. moôd, òther).

See also

• Letter (alphabet)
• Alphabet
• Writing system
• Orthography
• Written language
• Writing