Later sounds
Voiced TH Sound
Tongue tip between the teeth exactly like voiceless TH, but turn the voice on so the tongue tickles.
- Sound
- /ð/
- Typical age
- By age 5
- Voicing
- Voiced
- Type
- Interdental fricative
- Words here
- 64
How to elicit Voiced TH Sound
Ways to help the child make the sound on its own, before practicing it in words.
Placement, step by step
Where the lips, tongue and teeth go.
- 1Tongue tip just between the teeth, exactly as for voiceless TH.
- 2Turn the voice on so the tongue tickles.
- 3Hold it, then add a vowel.
Elicitation strategies
Tips to help a child say this sound. Most need more than one.
Auditory
- A buzzing "thhh" with the tongue out — the start of "this" and "the".
- Contrast with /d/ (they / day) and with /v/ (that / vat).
- Hold it long so the buzz has time to register.
Visual
- Very visible, exactly as voiceless TH.
- Mirror, tongue out, slow and clear.
- Watch for the tongue pulling back behind the teeth as the voice comes on.
Gestural
- The same fingertips-past-a-flat-hand sign as voiceless TH.
- Add your other hand on your throat — the only difference between the two.
- Keep both hands still for the whole sound.
- Have them hold their own throat and feel it against yours.
Tactile
- Fingers on the throat: this one buzzes.
- Their fingertip on the tongue tip between the teeth to feel it vibrate.
- Hold voiceless TH and switch the voice on without moving the tongue.
How to teach any soundThe practice ladder, shaping from a sound they have, and what to do when it stallsShowHide
The practice ladder
Speech practice climbs. Each step is harder than the one below it, and the jump that trips most people up is the one from single words to real talking. Work at the step where the child is right now - not the one you wish they were on.
- 1
Just the sound
“thththth”The sound on its own, with no word attached. If the child cannot make it here yet, this is the whole job for now.
- 2
The sound in syllables
“tha, tho, thee”The sound glued to a vowel. Nonsense syllables are useful precisely because they carry no meaning - nothing to get in the way.
- 3
Words that start with it
“the, this, that”The easiest place in a word, because the child gets to set up their mouth before they begin.
- 4
Words with it anywhere
“the, mother, bathe”Middle and end are harder - the sound has to be produced while the rest of the word is already moving.
- 5
Short phrases
“this and that”Two or three words together. This is the first step where the child has to think about something other than the sound.
- 6
Whole sentences
“This one is mine and that one is theirs.”A full sentence of their own. Expect the sound to slip here even though it was perfect in single words - that is normal, not backwards.
- 7
Reading and telling
“a paragraph, a story about their day”Longer stretches of talking, with the sound coming up over and over. Reading aloud is useful because the words are already chosen.
- 8
All the time
“in the car, at dinner, with friends”Real conversation with nobody reminding them. This is the goal, and the only step that actually counts as finished.
Two rules. Do not skip a step because the child is bored - go back one instead. And if the sound falls apart when you move up, that is information, not failure: drop down a rung, get a few easy wins, and try again in a day or two.
Start with a sound they already know
- voiceless TH
- /d/
From voiceless TH, turn the voice on with the tongue already out. From /d/, slide the tongue tip forward between the teeth and let it buzz instead of tapping.
If it is not working
If a sound has not responded to several weeks of consistent work, stop and reconsider the target rather than drilling harder. There could be structural reasons a sound will not stabilize, and those need looking at before more practice will help.
Where this guidance comes from
- ASHA Practice Portal — Speech Sound Disorders: Articulation and Phonology — Treatment framework, cue taxonomy, and named treatment approaches.
- ASHA Practice Portal — Orofacial Myofunctional Disorders — Why a resting tongue posture or open bite may need addressing before sibilant therapy.
- Boyce (2015), Articulatory Phonetics for Residual Speech Sound Disorders: A Focus on /r/ — Bunched versus retroflex /r/, the obligatory pharyngeal constriction, and /r/ error patterns.
- Shriberg (1978), Utilization of the "Straw Technique" for Correction of the Lateral Lisp (LSHSS) — A straw at the midline as a tactile cue for lateral /s/.
Print it
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Initial TH
13 wordsThe sound is at the beginning of the word.
1 Syllable12 words
- the
- this
- that
- they
- them
- there
- their
- then
- than
- these
- those
- though
2 Syllables1 words
- themselves
High-frequency initial TH words
Some of these also sit in the lists above, and none of them are picture-card words - which is exactly why most lists leave them out. They are the words the child already says hundreds of times a day — so they carry more carryover value than any noun on this page. Target them in conversation, not in drill.
- the
- that
- this
- there
- they
- these
- their
- those
- though
- themselves
- theirs
Medial TH
43 wordsThe sound is in the middle of the word.
2 Syllables24 words
- mother
- father
- brother
- other
- weather
- feather
- either
- rather
- leather
- breathing
- bother
- gather
- southern
- northern
- clothing
- smoother
- bathing
- clothesline
- lather
- neither
- rhythm
- slither
- soothing
- teething
3 Syllables18 words
- together
- another
- grandmother
- brotherly
- fatherly
- feathery
- gathering
- grandfather
- motherly
- stepfather
- stepmother
- weathervane
- clothes hanger
- feather bed
- leather boot
- mother duck
- other side
- weather map
4 Syllables1 words
- altogether
High-frequency medial TH words
Some of these also sit in the lists above, and none of them are picture-card words - which is exactly why most lists leave them out. They are the words the child already says hundreds of times a day — so they carry more carryover value than any noun on this page. Target them in conversation, not in drill.
- another
- together
- brother
- either
- others
- although
Final TH
8 wordsThe sound is at the end of the word.
1 Syllable7 words
- bathe
- breathe
- smooth
- with
- clothe
- soothe
- teethe
2 Syllables1 words
- sunbathe
High-frequency final TH words
Some of these also sit in the lists above, and none of them are picture-card words - which is exactly why most lists leave them out. They are the words the child already says hundreds of times a day — so they carry more carryover value than any noun on this page. Target them in conversation, not in drill.
- with
Phrases, sentences and reading
Using the sound in longer stretches of talking, once single words are easy.
Phrases 12
Most of these carry two targets, so each one is two chances to practice.
- this and that
- my mother and father
- the other one
- they are there
- all together
- rather than this
- another feather
- breathe with me
- smooth leather
- either one
- over there
- with them
Sentences 12
- 1.This one is mine and that one is theirs.
- 2.My mother and father are over there.
- 3.They would rather do it together.
- 4.Give me the other feather.
- 5.Breathe with me, in and out.
- 6.The leather bag was smooth to the touch.
- 7.Either one of those will do.
- 8.We watched the weather with Grandmother.
- 9.Those are the ones they brought.
- 10.My brother is taller than the others.
- 11.There is another path through the trees.
- 12.Then they gathered all of them together.
Reading passage
Weather Together
The weather was rather bad, so my brother and I stayed in with our mother and father. We gathered together under a smooth leather blanket and watched the rain. Then my brother asked whether it would clear up. Our father said the weather would do whatever it wanted. Either way, we were all together, and that was better than being out there.
Phonological awareness
Hearing and playing with the sounds inside words — the listening skill that reading is built on.
Rhyming
Word families built on words from the list above. Say the family out loud, then ask for one more that fits.
-at family
that, cat, hat, flat, rat, chat, bat, mat
rhymes with “they”
they, way, day, play, ray, lay, jay, clay
rhymes with “there”
there, where, their, care, hair, wear, fair, dare
-en family
then, when, men, ten, pen, den, hen
-an family
than, can, man, plan, ran, van, fan, pan
rhymes with “these”
these, freeze, breeze
Syllable counting and blending
Clap or tap once per syllable. To blend, say the parts with a gap and let the child put the word back together.
- the1
- themselves2
- together3
- altogether4
- this1
- mother2
- another3
- that1
Sound blending
You say the separate sounds, the child says the word. Start with the two- and three-sound words.
- /th/ /uh/the
- /th/ /ay/they
- /th/ /oh/though
- /th/ /i/ /s/this
- /th/ /a/ /t/that
- /th/ /e/ /m/them
- /th/ /e/ /r/there
- /th/ /e/ /r/their
- /th/ /e/ /n/then
- /th/ /a/ /n/than
- /th/ /ee/ /z/these
- /th/ /oh/ /z/those
Sound segmenting
The reverse, and the harder one. You say the word, the child breaks it into its separate sounds.
- the/th/ /uh/
- they/th/ /ay/
- though/th/ /oh/
- this/th/ /i/ /s/
- that/th/ /a/ /t/
- them/th/ /e/ /m/
- there/th/ /e/ /r/
- their/th/ /e/ /r/
- then/th/ /e/ /n/
- than/th/ /a/ /n/
- these/th/ /ee/ /z/
- those/th/ /oh/ /z/
Generalization
Word lists get a sound into a child’s mouth. Generalization is what gets it into their life. These are activities where the target words come up on their own, so nobody has to be talked into practicing.
Play-based ideas for young children
This or that
Hold up two things and offer a choice. Either answer gives you a "this" or a "that", and "neither" is a fine answer too.
Words that come up
this, that, these, those, the, them, they, there, mother, father, brother, other, another, with
Family photo book
Look through family photos and name who is who. Mother, father and brother are the highest-frequency voiced TH words a child owns.
Words that come up
mother, father, brother, grandmother, the, this, that, them, they, there, other, together, with
Feather and breath games
Blow a feather across a table. Take turns and talk about whose turn it is.
Words that come up
feather, weather, breathe, smooth, the, this, that, they, there, together, other, than, them
Conversation and verbal games for older kids
Rather you than me
Play "would you rather" - "rather," "than," "either" and "neither" are all voiced TH and all unavoidable.
Words that come up
rather, than, them, they, other, either, neither, whether, together, another, weather, mother
Weather report
Give a weather forecast for the week. "Weather," "whether," "the" and "there" are constant.
Words that come up
weather, whether, this, that, they, there, other, together, gather, northern, breathe, smooth
Then what happened
Retell an event in order. "Then," "they," "there," "this" and "that" carry every retell - which is why this sound matters so much.
Words that come up
then, they, there, that, this, those, other, another, together, brother, mother, either
Play it
- Patchy's Slides & LaddersRoll, count your way along, say the word. Ladders climb; land on Patchy and slide back down.Choose position and play
- Enchanted ForestBeat dragons, trolls and witches at rock, paper, scissors on the way to the finish.Choose position and play
- Crazy EightsMatch the color or the animal, say the word to play the card, go out first.Choose position and play
- Build a CreatureMix heads, bodies, tails, wings and extras into something silly. Two words per part.Choose position and play
- Color PatchyColor him in one piece at a time. Every area costs one word.Choose position and play
- Sticker ScenePick a place, then drag people, things and clothes onto it. Best game for phrases and sentences.Choose position and play
Each game opens with Voiced TH Sound selected. Choose a word position before playing. Score every production with Yes! or Not quite and a percentage appears at the bottom. Nothing is sent anywhere, and nothing is saved beyond this browser.