The Consonant W

The consonant w is warmer in sound than most other consonants. This sound originates from our lips which engender feelings, therefore warmth and softness in quality.

Because of these qualities it becomes particularly worthwhile (note the nature and effect of the two w's in this word) looking closely at words with w in them to draw out the full potential of w when speaking them.

For example, however forcefully I might try and pronounce the two "w's" in the word "worthwhile" in the above sentence they are unable to have the nature of an "impact" sound like d or t. In contrast, coming from the lips the consonant w is a "blown" sound.

An example of where however much you try, the above is the case, can be experienced through speaking the following dramatic description of a winter sea storm. Experience how impossible it is to form an "impact" sound with w:

"White topped winter waves were thrown against the sea wall by a howling westerly wind."

Return to a recent Post on this blog giving Dante's first three lines of the Divine Comedy:

Midways long the journey of our life,
I woke to find myself in a dark wood,
for I had wandered off from the straight path.

and experience through speaking these verse lines how appropriate and helpful the consonant w is in supporting the picture Dante sought to describe.

Find and create your own phrases and lines, experiment with speaking them and discover the whole nature of the consonant w.