/p/

Press both lips firmly together to completely block the airflow. Build up a small amount of air pressure behind your lips, then release them quickly to let the air burst out. Your vocal cords stay silent throughout - if you touch your throat, you should feel no vibration.

The key feature of English /p/ is aspiration: a noticeable puff of air right after you release your lips. This happens when /p/ starts a word or a stressed syllable. Try holding a tissue in front of your mouth while saying "pat" - the tissue should flutter from the air burst. In contrast, after /s/ (like in "spot") or at the end of words (like "stop"), the puff is much weaker or absent.

Both sounds are made with your lips in the same position, but they differ in two important ways:

• /p/ is voiceless (no throat vibration) and strongly aspirated at word beginnings
• /b/ is voiced (throat vibrates) and has almost no aspiration

For native English listeners, the aspiration on /p/ is actually the primary cue that distinguishes it from /b/ at the start of words. If you say /p/ without enough aspiration, it may sound like /b/ to American ears.

Practice the aspiration contrast: say "pie" with an exaggerated puff of air (you might even feel it on your hand), then say "spy" more gently without the puff. Notice how the /p/ in "spy" sounds softer? That's unaspirated /p/. Word-initial /p/ needs that distinctive burst of air to sound natural in American English.