1) The blade and front of the tongue is placed behind your gum ridge (without touching it).
2) The lips are pushed forwards. 3) The sides of the tongue form a seal with the side teeth. 4) There is a shallow groove running down the centre of your tongue.
5) Breathe out while adding voice and you should feel the air vibrate between your tongue and the back of the gum ridge.
Spelling Spelling
g(e) s(u) s(io) s(ia)
odd spellings
front-on view to see groove
Frequency Example Words
sometimes genre, regime, sabotage sometimes usual, visual,
sometimes division, occasion sometimes Asia, Indonesia, Persian bijou, equation, jus, seizure, zhuzh
Sound + Vowel /ʒɑː
/ɑːʒ
- -
/ɑːʒɑː -
ʒԑː ԑːʒ
ԑːʒԑː
- - -
ʒiː iːʒ
iːʒiː
- - -
ʒɔː ɔːʒ
ɔːʒɔː
- - -
ʒuː/ uːʒ/
uːʒuː/
In initial and final position, /ʒ/ is not fully voiced so it may sound a bit like /ʃ/. However, the difference is maintained because /ʒ/ is made with a weaker muscular effort and breath force compared to /ʃ/.