Later sounds
Voiceless TH Sound
Stick the tongue tip out just barely between the teeth and blow air over the top of it. No voice - just a quiet leak of air.
- Sound
- /θ/
- Typical age
- By age 6
- Voicing
- Voiceless
- Type
- Interdental fricative
- Words here
- 104
How to elicit Voiceless 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.
- 1Stick the tongue tip out just barely between the teeth - a sliver, not a full stick-out.
- 2Blow air gently over the top of the tongue.
- 3No voice. It should be a quiet leak, not a hiss.
Elicitation strategies
Tips to help a child say this sound. Most need more than one.
Auditory
- A long, quiet "thhh" with the tongue out between the teeth.
- Contrast with /f/ (thin / fin) and with /s/ (thick / sick).
- Keep it gentle — forcing air turns it into a whistle.
Visual
- The most visible tongue position of any sound in English.
- Stick it out clearly between your teeth in a mirror and let them copy.
- Watch for a tongue that stays behind the teeth, which gives /s/ or /t/.
Gestural
- Flat hand level with your mouth, fingertips of the other hand poking just past it.
- The poking fingers are the tongue coming between the teeth.
- Hold the position still — this sound is long, so the hands stay put.
- For voiced TH, add a hand on the throat instead of changing the sign.
Tactile
- Their fingertip on their own tongue tip where it meets the top teeth.
- Hand in front for a long gentle stream of air over the tongue.
- Bite very gently on the tongue tip, then release just enough for air to pass.
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
“thumb, think, thin”The easiest place in a word, because the child gets to set up their mouth before they begin.
- 4
Words with it anywhere
“thumb, bathtub, bath”Middle and end are harder - the sound has to be produced while the rest of the word is already moving.
- 5
Short phrases
“three thick thumbs”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
“I hurt both of my thumbs on Thursday.”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
- voiced TH
- /t/
From voiced TH, whisper it. From /t/, put the tongue tip between the teeth instead of behind them and let the air leak through rather than popping.
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
34 wordsThe sound is at the beginning of the word.
1 Syllable14 words
- thumb
- think
- thin
- thick
- thank
- thorn
- thigh
- thaw
- thing
- third
- thirst
- thought
- thud
- thump
2 Syllables15 words
- thirty
- thirsty
- thunder
- thousand
- thistle
- thumbtack
- Thursday
- thermos
- thicket
- thimble
- thirteen
- thinner
- thoughtful
- thumbprint
- thinking
3 Syllables5 words
- theater
- thunderstorm
- thirstier
- thunderbolt
- thundercloud
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.
- think
- thank
- thing
- thought
- things
- thanks
- thinking
- thinks
- third
- thin
- thick
- thirsty
Medial TH
34 wordsThe sound is in the middle of the word.
2 Syllables23 words
- bathtub
- birthday
- toothbrush
- something
- nothing
- python
- healthy
- panther
- author
- earthworm
- toothpaste
- bathrobe
- toothpick
- athlete
- bathmat
- bathroom
- faithful
- pathway
- truthful
- earthquake
- southwest
- toothless
- toothpicks
3 Syllables9 words
- anything
- marathon
- athletic
- cathedral
- everything
- panther cub
- birthday cake
- healthier
- toothbrushes
4 Syllables2 words
- mathematics
- arithmetic
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.
- something
- anything
- nothing
- everything
- without
- birthday
Final TH
36 wordsThe sound is at the end of the word.
1 Syllable30 words
- bath
- tooth
- math
- mouth
- teeth
- path
- moth
- south
- earth
- cloth
- both
- month
- breath
- fifth
- sixth
- wreath
- health
- sloth
- birth
- booth
- broth
- fourth
- length
- ninth
- strength
- tenth
- truth
- twelfth
- warmth
- eighth
2 Syllables4 words
- beneath
- seventh
- birdbath
- sweet tooth
3 Syllables2 words
- tablecloth
- underneath
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.
- month
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.
- three thick thumbs
- brush your teeth
- a warm bath
- both of them
- thirty-three
- think about it
- a thin thread
- north and south
- math homework
- thank you
- my birthday
- a cloth path
Sentences 12
- 1.I hurt both of my thumbs on Thursday.
- 2.Brush your teeth after your bath.
- 3.There are thirty-three things on the list.
- 4.Think about it and thank her afterwards.
- 5.The thin thread went through the needle.
- 6.We walked north along the path.
- 7.My math homework took three hours.
- 8.The moth flew over the thistle.
- 9.Thank you for the birthday present.
- 10.Open your mouth and show me your teeth.
- 11.The thick cloth kept out the thunder and rain.
- 12.Both paths lead south.
Reading passage
Thirty-Three Teeth
On Thursday, Theo went to the dentist for his birthday check-up. The dentist counted his teeth, looked in his mouth, and said everything was healthy. Theo thought about the thick toothpaste and the thin toothbrush he used at home. On the way out he thanked the dentist, then walked north along the path with his mother, thinking about cake.
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.
rhymes with “thumb”
thumb, come, from, gum, drum, hum, plum, crumb
-ink family
think, drink, pink, link, ink, blink, wink, rink
rhymes with “thin”
thin, been, win, pin, chin, bin, twin, tin
-ick family
thick, pick, kick, trick, chick, brick, click, lick
-ank family
thank, bank, tank, blank, yank, plank
-rn family
thorn, born, horn, warn, corn, torn, worn
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.
- thumb1
- thirty2
- theater3
- mathematics4
- think1
- thirsty2
- thunderstorm3
- arithmetic4
Sound blending
You say the separate sounds, the child says the word. Start with the two- and three-sound words.
- /th/ /eye/thigh
- /th/ /aw/thaw
- /er/ /th/earth
- /th/ /uh/ /m/thumb
- /th/ /i/ /n/thin
- /th/ /i/ /k/thick
- /th/ /i/ /ng/thing
- /th/ /er/ /d/third
- /th/ /aw/ /t/thought
- /th/ /uh/ /d/thud
- /b/ /a/ /th/bath
- /t/ /oo/ /th/tooth
Sound segmenting
The reverse, and the harder one. You say the word, the child breaks it into its separate sounds.
- thigh/th/ /eye/
- thaw/th/ /aw/
- earth/er/ /th/
- thumb/th/ /uh/ /m/
- thin/th/ /i/ /n/
- thick/th/ /i/ /k/
- thing/th/ /i/ /ng/
- third/th/ /er/ /d/
- thought/th/ /aw/ /t/
- thud/th/ /uh/ /d/
- bath/b/ /a/ /th/
- tooth/t/ /oo/ /th/
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
Thumbs up game
Show things and give them a thumbs up or thumbs down. Let them judge everything in the room.
Words that come up
thumb, think, thank you, three, thin, thick, bath, tooth, math, mouth, teeth, path, both, north
Toothbrush routine
Brush a doll's teeth, then your own. Count the teeth, check the mouth, talk about what is thick or thin.
Words that come up
tooth, teeth, mouth, thumb, thick, thin, bath, thirsty, three, health, cloth, both, think, thanks
Counting to three
Use "one, two, three" to launch every activity - jumping, throwing, racing. "Three" gets said dozens of times.
Words that come up
three, thirty, think, thumb, thank you, throw, both, math, path, with, teeth, thin, thick, thud
Conversation and verbal games for older kids
Think out loud
Solve a riddle or a puzzle while narrating your thinking. "Think," "thought" and "through" repeat constantly.
Words that come up
think, thought, thing, through, thanks, three, both, math, path, mouth, nothing, something
Thankful three
Name three things you are thankful for and why. "Thank," "think" and "three" every single round.
Words that come up
thankful, thanks, three, think, thought, both, birthday, everything, anything, nothing, north, healthy
Math talk
Talk through a math problem out loud. "Math," "three," "thirty," "thousand" and "both" all carry the sound.
Words that come up
math, three, thirty, thousand, fourth, fifth, both, worth, think, thought, through, nothing
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 Voiceless 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.