V (letter)

V is the twenty-second letter of the English alphabet. Its name is pronounced vee.

Use in English

v is a voiced labiodental fricative, blown through the lower lip touching the upper teeth - a voiced f (compare vîle and fîle). This is in contrast to w, where both lips are used without touching each other or any teeth: whîle. Examples (the accents show stress and pronunciation: see English phonemes): vúlgar, véry, vāst, háve, wâve, and in spív and Slàv. But v is rare at the end of a word, and it is most commonly found in that position pronounced f in Slavonic (i.e. Russian, Bulgarian, etc.) names: Rachmáninov, Prokófiev, Krùshchev (-chóff), Mólotov; it is also in Névsky (pronounced v) and Tchaikóvsky (usually f).

Being rare at the end, v hardly ever needs to be doubled, as it is in révved úp thê éngine. So flívver is irregular: it rhymes with ríver. v does not normally have to be doubled after a preceding short vowel (usually é): séven, cléver, héaven, éver, évery, séver, bévy, lòver, drível, cívil. But before final y: chívvy, sávvy.

The preceding vowel is long in: êven, fêver, hâver, fâvour, sâviour, ôver, clôver, drîver, dîver, wâver, hâven and Stêven (the more regular spelling of Stêphen, which does not have an f sound).

As v does not normally end words, so it does not begin clusters.

See also

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