/m/

Press your lips firmly together, creating a complete seal. Lower your soft palate (the back of the roof of your mouth) to open the passage to your nose. Now hum! The air flows entirely through your nasal cavity while your vocal cords vibrate. You should feel a gentle buzz in your lips and a resonance in your nose.

Try this test: make an /m/ sound and then pinch your nose closed. The sound stops immediately because you've blocked the only exit for the air. That's how you know you're making a true nasal sound.

In casual American English, /m/ can sometimes replace an entire syllable. In words like "rhythm" or informal phrases like "grab 'em," the final syllable is just the /m/ sound with no vowel before it. Don't add an extra "uh" sound. Just let the /m/ smoothly carry that syllable on its own: RITH-m, not RITH-um.

Both sounds are voiced nasals, but they differ in where you block the airflow. For /m/, your lips are pressed together. For /n/, your tongue tip touches the ridge behind your upper front teeth while your lips stay apart. Compare "some" and "sun"—your mouth ends in very different positions.

Hum a tune! Humming is just extended /m/. Feel where the vibration sits: in your lips and nose, not in your throat or mouth. Once you can sustain that buzzing sensation, you've mastered the foundation for a clear, natural /m/.