In which one of the following words do the letters 'th' have a different sound (underlined)?

Question

Accepted Answer

In the English language, the digraph 'th' can represent different sounds. The two most common sounds are the voiced dental fricative /ð/ and the voiceless dental fricative /θ/. Let's analyze each option to understand why Option 4 is the correct answer:

1. **Option 1: \underline{	ext{th}}is**
   - In the word "this," the 'th' is pronounced as a voiced dental fricative /ð/. This is the same sound as in words like "that" and "there."

2. **Option 2: \underline{	ext{th}}at**
   - In the word "that," the 'th' is also pronounced as a voiced dental fricative /ð/. This sound is consistent with the pronunciation in "this" and "there."

3. **Option 3: \underline{	ext{th}}ere**
   - In the word "there," the 'th' is pronounced as a voiced dental fricative /ð/, similar to "this" and "that."

4. **Option 4: \underline{	ext{th}}in**
   - In the word "thin," the 'th' is pronounced as a voiceless dental fricative /θ/. This is a different sound compared to the voiced /ð/ sound in the other options. The voiceless /θ/ sound is the same as in words like "think" and "thank."

Therefore, Option 4 is correct because the 'th' in "thin" has a different sound (voiceless /θ/) compared to the 'th' in "this," "that," and "there," which all have the voiced /ð/ sound.