H (letter): Difference between revisions

From Citizendium
Jump to navigation Jump to search
imported>Ro Thorpe
(New page: '''H''' is the eighth letter of the English alphabet. Its name is spelt 'aitch', as in 'he drops his aitches', referring to the habit of some speakers, notably cockneyss, not to s...)
 
mNo edit summary
 
(153 intermediate revisions by 7 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
'''H''' is the eighth letter of the [[English alphabet]]. Its name is spelt 'aitch', as in 'he drops his aitches', referring to the habit of some speakers, notably [[cockneys]]s, not to sound initial aspirated h, as in hòuse and héad (the accents show pronunciation: see [[English phonemes]]).
{{subpages}}
'''H, h''' is a letter of the [[Latin alphabet]]. It is the eighth letter of most variants, being placed after [[G (letter)|G]] and before [[I (letter)|I]], as is the case for instance in the [[English alphabet]]. Its English name is pronounced [ˈeɪtʃ], ''aitch'', as in 'he drops his aitches', referring to the habit of some speakers, notably [[cockney]]s, not to sound initial aspirated ''h'' in words like ''house'' and ''head''.  
 
==Use in English==
==Use in English==
h between vowels is a breath outwards, English’s only aspirate.  But it also combines with a number of consonants to form other consonants, and sometimes it is silent.
{{:English_spellings/Catalogs/Masterlist}}
'''h''' between vowels, and usually initially, is a breath outwards, an aspirate.  But it also combines with a number of consonants to form other consonants, and in many words is silent.
 
The aspirated '''h''' is much more common initially than medially (and final '''h''' is never aspirated): '''hòuse, héad, hêed, háppy, hôme, hélp, hínder, húrry, hurrây, hêave, héavy, héaven, héll, hŷpe'''.
 
{{:English spellings/Accents}}
 
When not initial, aspirated '''h''' sometimes looks misleadingly like a combination with another consonant, as in '''adhêre''', '''inhérit''' and '''dishàrmony''', but this is accidental and the '''h''' is sounded separately from the preceding consonant; '''h''' is also normally sounded between vowels, as in '''rehëarse, mahógany, ahŏy, ahéad''' and '''ahém'''; and in some names, like '''Mahôney''' (but silent in '''MacMàhon''').
 
Silent '''h''' occurs initially in '''hónest, hónour, hóur''' ''time'' (= '''our''' ''we''), '''héir''' ''fortune'' (= '''ãir''' ''breathe'') and in their derivatives: '''hónourable, hòurly''' &c; and in '''nìhilist''' (or '''nîhilist'''), '''exhåust''' and '''silhouétte'''; in the suffix -'''ham''' (in British English) in names of towns or surnames: '''Béckenham, Péckham, Twíckenham, Tóttenham'''; and in '''Jóhn''' (= the less common '''Jón'''; compare the German '''Johánnes''', where the '''h''' is pronounced, *Yohánness, and '''Kôhn''', '''ôh''', '''ôhm''', where silent '''h''' affects the pronunciation).
 
A silent '''h''' is also used to lengthen vowels, usually in interjections: '''àh! ôh! èh?''' or words from German: '''Kôhl, Kûhn, àùtobàhn''' (*òutobàn) and unstressed in '''Méndelssohn''' (*Méndəlsən). It is unstressed finally in '''Sãrah, parîah''' and '''verándah'''—all pronouncing '''ah''' as [[schwa]] (as with '''a''' in '''Sàra, Marìa''' and '''Miránda''').
 
In '''vêhicle''', silent '''h''' separates the '''i''' from the preceding '''ê''', making the '''í''' a syllable: *vê-í-kle – or as a schwa: *vêəkle, *víəkle.  And in names like '''Mêehan''' and '''Côhen''' the '''h''' is not pronounced as such: *Mêeyən and *Côwən (cf. '''Còwan''', where the '''w''' is written).
 
In '''Bahrâin''', '''Tehràn''' and '''Tàhrìr Squãre''', the '''h''' preceding the '''r''' is normally silent, sounding it being a [[spelling pronunciation]] used by some journalists, though some people called '''Àhmed''' may prefer to have its '''h''' pronounced. The '''h''' in '''Délhi''' is always silent.
 
==='''h''' combining with preceding letters===
 
'''h''' is silent after vowels and before consonants (it is rare before consonants) and thus does not normally begin clusters (though see the final paragraph in the section above); instead, it shows great versatility in combining with preceding letters:
 
'''àh''', with silent '''h''', shows the long '''à''' sound, and is used in interjections: '''àh!'''  '''bàh!'''  '''blàh blàh blàh!'''  '''pàh!'''  '''yàh bôo!''', in German words: '''Màhler, Stàhl, Bràhms, àùtobàhn''' (òwt-), and also in '''Bahrâin''', though here some people pronounce the '''h''' separately, as it represents an Arabic aspirate sound.
 
'''bh''' occurs in various words from Indic languages, such as '''bháng''', '''Bhutàn'''; in the originals this represents a sort of aspiration, which is ignored by most English speakers.
 
'''ch''' as in '''choôse, bêach, chéck''' ''verify'' = BrE '''chéque''' ''money'', '''chàr, cóckroach, chát, chêek, chín, côach'''.
 
:Very often it is preceded by a redundant '''t''': '''ẁatch, wrétch, cátch, bátch, kétchup, ítching, wítch''' (for many speakers = '''whích''').
 
:But in some words taken from French, it is pronounced like '''sh''': '''chìc, machìne''', AmE '''moústáche''', BrE '''moustàche'''.
 
:Elsewhere, the '''h''' is redundant, and '''ch''' is pronounced '''k''': '''Bucharést''' (Bùka-), '''chŏrd, psychólogy, schoôner''' - while in '''chémist, àrchive''', '''schême''' it  prevents the following '''e''' or '''i''' from making the '''c''' sound like an '''s'''.
 
:The optional sound of [[International Phonetic Alphabet|IPA]] '''χ''' occurs in words from Scottish Gaelic (as also in German '''Bàch'''): '''lóch, Sássenach''' - optional because these are usually, by non-Scots, pronounced with a final '''k''' sound.
 
:The name '''Stráchan''' (-kən or '''ch''' as in '''lóch''') is sometimes pronounced *Stråw(a)n.
 
:'''ch''' is silent in '''yacht''', though it affects the quality of the preceding vowel: *yót.


The aspirated h is most common initially: háppy, hôme, hélp, hínder, hurrây, héaven, héll, hŷpe.
:'''chsi''' in '''fûchsia''' is pronounced '''sh''': *fyûshə.
When not initial, it sometimes looks misleadingly like a combination with another consonant, as in adhêre and dishàrmony, but this is accidental and the d and h are sounded separately; and it is also found between vowels as in rehëarse, ahŏy, ahéad and ahém.


Silent h occurs initially in hónest, hónour, hóur time (= our we), héir fortune (= ãir breathe) and in their derivatives: hónourable, hòurly &c; and also in nìhilist (or nîhilist), exhåust, in the suffix -ham in names of towns: Béckenham, Péckham, Twíckenham, Tóttenham, in Jóhn (= the less common Jón).
'''dh''' represents the voiced '''th''' sound in '''Rìyadh'''; in words from Indic languages, such as '''Bùddha''', '''Dháka''', the '''h''' represents a sort of aspiration in the original, which is ignored by most English speakers; the combination also occurs accidentally in compounds such as '''mádhouse'''.   
A silent h is also used to lengthen vowels, usually in interjections: àh! ôh! èh? or words from German: Kôhl, Kûhn, àùtobàhn (*òutobàn) and unstressed in Méndelssohn (*Méndəlsən) and unstressed finally in Sãrah, parîah and verándah - all ah as schwa.
In vêhicle silent h separates the i from the preceding ê, making the í a syllable:
*vê-í-kle – or as a schwa: *vêəkleAnd in names like Côhen and Mêehan the h is not easily pronounced as such: *Côwən and *Mêeyən.


h combining with preceding letters:
'''èh''' has a silent '''h''', and occurs in the interjection '''èh?''', showing vowel length, in '''Tehràn''' (which can also be Té-), and in names from German, like '''Lèhmann''' (although compare '''Lêhman''' ''Brothers'').
A mere breath when pronounced on its own, h is silent after vowels and before consonants and thus does not begin clusters; instead, it shows great versatility in combining with preceding letters (there are also more examples in the section on the preceding letter involved):


àh, with silent h, is used in interjections: àh!  bàh!  blàh blàh blàh!  pàh!  yàh bôo! 
'''[[GH|gh''': see GH.]]
In German words, it emphasises the long à sound: Màhler, Stàhl, Bràhms, àutobàhn (òwt-) and in Bahrèin the h can be pronounced.


ch as in choôse, bêach, chéck verify = BrE chéque money, chàr, cóckroach, chát, chêek, chín, côach.
'''hh''' occurs accidentally in '''withhôld, withhéld''' and '''hítchhîke''', where in each case the second '''h''' is aspirated as if beginning a new word; '''witch-hunt''', too, may appear without a hyphen. A non-accidental use is in Arabic '''Wahhàb''', '''Wahhàbi'''.
Very often it is preceded by a redundant t: ẁatch, wrétch, cátch, bátch, kétchup, ítching, wítch (= whích).
But in some words taken from French, it is pronounced like sh: chìc, machìne, AmE moústáche BrE moustàche.
Elsewhere, the h is redundant: ch as k: Bucharést (Bùka-), chŏrd, psychólogy schoôner - while in chémist, àrchive, schême it at least prevents the following e or i from making the c sound like s.
And it has a completely un-English sound in Scottish words (as in German Bàch): lóch, Sássenach - though these are often, by non-Scots, pronounced with a final k sound.


dh represents the voiced th sound in Rìyadh.  (I use it in respellings.)
'''ih''' occurs in '''nìhilist''' (or '''nîhilist''') where the '''h''' is silent or has the consonantal '''y''' sound, *nêeyilist (or *nŷilist).


èh is usually foreign, except for èh? (h silent).
'''kh''' appears in words from Arabic, Persian, Russian, Urdu and so on.  The pronunciation is the same as that of '''ch''' in '''lóch''' (a rasping in the back of the throat, IPA '''χ''') - and thus many speakers do not distinguish it from '''k''' alone: '''Khàlid, Khàn, shèikh'''. '''Khrùshchev''' (*Krùshchóff, either stressed) has three combining '''h'''s. In '''Khmér''', the '''h''' represents an aspirate in the original language: since this is not a natural place for an '''h''' sound in English, it is in effect silent, or even, in slower speech, a [[schwa]], *K(ə)mãir.  


[[Gh]] is the sorry relic of a sound no longer pronounced (except in exclamations of disgust, úgh! yeùgh! - it is the sound of Scottish ch in lóch, which in Ireland is indeed spelt lóugh) or mutated into the sound of f and ph.  See [[gh]].
'''ôh'''! (*ô), '''oôh'''! (), '''poôh'''! (*pû) are interjections; also '''Wínnìe the Poôh''' and, from German, '''ôhm''' = [[Cockney]] pronunciation of '''hôme''', with silent '''h'''.
Pronounced f: tróugh, cóugh, Góugh, enoúgh, toúgh, roúgh, sloúgh skin (cf. slòugh swamp, and the English town Slòugh, both *slòu).
More often it is silent as in slòugh swamp - with quite a variety of preceding vowel sounds and spellings: ŏught, sŏught, bŏught, cåught, nåughty, Våughan, Våughn, dôugh, èight, nèigh, wèigh, slèigh ride (= slây murder), wèight heavy (= wâit time), frèight, heîght, bòugh, throûgh, thôugh, Búrrôughs, sîght, nîght, nîgh, and even -ough as schwa BrE bòrough, Scàrborough, and thòrough, in AmE bòrôugh, Scàrborôugh, and thòrôugh, rhyming with fúrrôw.  fürlôugh has this pronunciation in British English also.


gh uniquely sounds like p in híccough (a variant spelling of híccup).
'''ph''' = '''[[f]]''' as in '''fâce''': '''Phílip''' (= '''fíllip'''), '''phôto, nýmph, phrâse, phâse, Dáphnê, phoênix, grāph''' (but '''Stêphen''' = '''Stêven'''). But in '''Phnóm Pénh''', *P(ə)nóm Pén, the '''h''' represents an aspirate, as with '''Khmér''', above.


In other words gh merely represents a hard g, whether Germanic, ghôst, ghoûl, ghāstly or Italian, spaghétti (-tì); and h serves to distinguish dínghy boat (which can have hard g or silent g, but always the ng sound) from díngy dirty (soft g: *dínjy).
'''rh''' = '''[[r]]''': '''Rhôdes, rhôdium, rhododéndron, rhêsus, rhêtoric'''.


hh occurs accidentally in withhôld, withhéld and hítchhîke, where in each case the second h is aspirated as if beginning a new word.
'''sh''' is the normal way of showing the very common sound spelt '''ch''' in '''machìne''': '''shoòt, frésh, cásh, shêet, fâstish, Bangladésh, ásh, pólish, Pôlish, áshen, díshwasher, shùsh! sssssh!


ih occurs in nìhilist (or nîhilist) where the h is usually silent or has the consonantal y sound.
'''th''' represents two sounds, one the voiced version of the other.


kh appears in words from Arabic, Persian, Urdu and so on.  The pronunciation is the same as that of ch in lóch (a rasping in the back of the throat) - and thus many speakers do not distinguish it from k: Khàlid, Khàn, shèikh (or -k).
:Voiced '''th''' is used in certain functional, and therefore in many cases very common, words: '''thís, thát, thére, thén, thôugh, althôugh, thús, thérefore, thòu, the'''/'''thê ''article'' = '''thêe''' ''you'', and in '''òther, mòther, fàther, bròther, rāther, lāther'''.
But in Khmér (*Kəmãir) h is, uniquely, a vowel, schwa.


ôh! oôh! poôh! are interjections (also: Winnie the Poôh) and, from German, ôhm: silent h.
:Unvoiced '''th''' is not uncommon either, especially at the beginning and end of words: '''thínk, thŏught, throûgh, thòrough''' (AmE thúrrôw, BrE *thúrrə), '''thrôw, móth, bôth, ẁrath''' (-ó-), '''fífth''' (*fíth - though some pronounce the second '''f'''), '''fílthy'''. But the '''h''' is redundant in '''Thaîland''' (*Tŷland).


ph = f: nýmph, phrâse, phâse, Dáphnê, phoênix, grāph (but Stêphen = Stêven).
'''úh''' ('''h''' silent after '''ú''' or [[schwa|ə [schwa]]]) is used as in '''húh? úh?''' with the same interrogative meaning as '''èh?''', and (mostly AmE) '''úh-húh''' ''yes'', and in other improvised interjections; otherwise it appears in German names as '''ûh''': '''Kûhn'''.
rh = r: Rhôdes, rhôdium, rhodedéndron, rhêsus, rhêtoric. 
There are more examples in the section on r.


sh is the normal way of showing the very common sound spelt ch in machìne: shoòt, frésh, cásh, shêet, fâstish, Bangladésh, ásh, pólish, Pôlish, áshen, díshwasher, shùsh! sssssh!
'''wh''' = '''w''' in standard British English but is pronounced '''hw''' in American, Scottish, some northern English and other varieties: '''what, whére, why, whén, whéther''' (cf. '''wéather'''), '''sòmewhat, sòmewhere, anywhere''' (én-), '''nôwhere, whísky, whîte, Whítsun, wháck, whám'''.


th represents two sounds, one the voiced version of the other.
'''xh''' occurs in Albanian names such as '''Énver Hóxha''', where it represents the English '''j''' sound (*Hójja, beginning like '''Hódges'''), and in the African language '''Xhôsa''', where it represents a click sound, which English speakers tend to replace with a '''k''' or '''h''' sound.
Voiced th is used in certain functional, and therefore in many cases very common, words: thís, thát, thére, thén, thôugh, althôugh, thús, thérefore, thòu, the/thê article = thêe you, and in òther, mòther, fàther, bròther, rāther, lāther.
Unvoiced th is not uncommon either, especially at the beginning and end of words: thínk, thŏught, throûgh, thòrough (*thúrrə), thrôw, móth, bôth, ẁrath (-ó-), fífth (*fíth - though some pronounce the second f), fílthy.
but the h is redundant in Thaîland (*Tîland).


úh (h silent; or pronounced schwa) is used as in húh? úh? - same interrogative meaning as èh? - and (mostly AmE) úh-húh yes, and in other improvised interjections - otherwise it appears in German names as ûh: Kûhn.
'''zh''' has the sound of -'''si'''- in '''vision''' or -'''su'''- in '''pléasure''', which are the usual spellings for the sound.  As '''zh''' it occurs only in words from Arabic, Russian and other languages, as in '''Brézhnev'''.


wh = w (although some speakers pronounce it hw-): what, whére, why, whén, whéther (cf. wéather) sòmewhat, sòmewhere, anywhere (én-) nôwhere, whísky, whîte, Whítsun, wháck, whám.
==Scientific uses==


zh has the sound of -si- in vision or -su- in léisure, which are the usual spellings.  As zh it occurs only in words from Arabic, Russian and other languages: Brézhnev.
*H: henry, unit of electromagnetic inductance
*''h'': Planck's constant
*''h'': generic symbol for height[[Category:Suggestion Bot Tag]]

Latest revision as of 06:00, 25 August 2024

This article is developing and not approved.
Main Article
Discussion
Related Articles  [?]
Bibliography  [?]
External Links  [?]
Citable Version  [?]
 
This editable Main Article is under development and subject to a disclaimer.

H, h is a letter of the Latin alphabet. It is the eighth letter of most variants, being placed after G and before I, as is the case for instance in the English alphabet. Its English name is pronounced [ˈeɪtʃ], aitch, as in 'he drops his aitches', referring to the habit of some speakers, notably cockneys, not to sound initial aspirated h in words like house and head.

Use in English

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
Use in English
Alphabetical word list
Retroalphabetical list  
Common misspellings  

h between vowels, and usually initially, is a breath outwards, an aspirate. But it also combines with a number of consonants to form other consonants, and in many words is silent.

The aspirated h is much more common initially than medially (and final h is never aspirated): hòuse, héad, hêed, háppy, hôme, hélp, hínder, húrry, hurrây, hêave, héavy, héaven, héll, hŷpe.

  • The accents show stress and pronunciation (see English spellings): A: sát, mâde, pàrk, cāst (cást/càst), åll, ãir; E: ére, êar, vèin, fërn; I: sít, mîne, skì, bïrd; O: sóng, môde, lòve, wörd, ŏr; OO: moôn, foòt; U: sún, mûse, fùll, pürr; W: neŵ, ẁant; Y: gým, mŷ, keỳ, mÿrrh.

When not initial, aspirated h sometimes looks misleadingly like a combination with another consonant, as in adhêre, inhérit and dishàrmony, but this is accidental and the h is sounded separately from the preceding consonant; h is also normally sounded between vowels, as in rehëarse, mahógany, ahŏy, ahéad and ahém; and in some names, like Mahôney (but silent in MacMàhon).

Silent h occurs initially in hónest, hónour, hóur time (= our we), héir fortune (= ãir breathe) and in their derivatives: hónourable, hòurly &c; and in nìhilist (or nîhilist), exhåust and silhouétte; in the suffix -ham (in British English) in names of towns or surnames: Béckenham, Péckham, Twíckenham, Tóttenham; and in Jóhn (= the less common Jón; compare the German Johánnes, where the h is pronounced, *Yohánness, and Kôhn, ôh, ôhm, where silent h affects the pronunciation).

A silent h is also used to lengthen vowels, usually in interjections: àh! ôh! èh? or words from German: Kôhl, Kûhn, àùtobàhn (*òutobàn) and unstressed in Méndelssohn (*Méndəlsən). It is unstressed finally in Sãrah, parîah and verándah—all pronouncing ah as schwa (as with a in Sàra, Marìa and Miránda).

In vêhicle, silent h separates the i from the preceding ê, making the í a syllable: *vê-í-kle – or as a schwa: *vêəkle, *víəkle. And in names like Mêehan and Côhen the h is not pronounced as such: *Mêeyən and *Côwən (cf. Còwan, where the w is written).

In Bahrâin, Tehràn and Tàhrìr Squãre, the h preceding the r is normally silent, sounding it being a spelling pronunciation used by some journalists, though some people called Àhmed may prefer to have its h pronounced. The h in Délhi is always silent.

h combining with preceding letters

h is silent after vowels and before consonants (it is rare before consonants) and thus does not normally begin clusters (though see the final paragraph in the section above); instead, it shows great versatility in combining with preceding letters:

àh, with silent h, shows the long à sound, and is used in interjections: àh! bàh! blàh blàh blàh! pàh! yàh bôo!, in German words: Màhler, Stàhl, Bràhms, àùtobàhn (òwt-), and also in Bahrâin, though here some people pronounce the h separately, as it represents an Arabic aspirate sound.

bh occurs in various words from Indic languages, such as bháng, Bhutàn; in the originals this represents a sort of aspiration, which is ignored by most English speakers.

ch as in choôse, bêach, chéck verify = BrE chéque money, chàr, cóckroach, chát, chêek, chín, côach.

Very often it is preceded by a redundant t: ẁatch, wrétch, cátch, bátch, kétchup, ítching, wítch (for many speakers = whích).
But in some words taken from French, it is pronounced like sh: chìc, machìne, AmE moústáche, BrE moustàche.
Elsewhere, the h is redundant, and ch is pronounced k: Bucharést (Bùka-), chŏrd, psychólogy, schoôner - while in chémist, àrchive, schême it prevents the following e or i from making the c sound like an s.
The optional sound of IPA χ occurs in words from Scottish Gaelic (as also in German Bàch): lóch, Sássenach - optional because these are usually, by non-Scots, pronounced with a final k sound.
The name Stráchan (-kən or ch as in lóch) is sometimes pronounced *Stråw(a)n.
ch is silent in yacht, though it affects the quality of the preceding vowel: *yót.
chsi in fûchsia is pronounced sh: *fyûshə.

dh represents the voiced th sound in Rìyadh; in words from Indic languages, such as Bùddha, Dháka, the h represents a sort of aspiration in the original, which is ignored by most English speakers; the combination also occurs accidentally in compounds such as mádhouse.

èh has a silent h, and occurs in the interjection èh?, showing vowel length, in Tehràn (which can also be Té-), and in names from German, like Lèhmann (although compare Lêhman Brothers).

gh: see GH.

hh occurs accidentally in withhôld, withhéld and hítchhîke, where in each case the second h is aspirated as if beginning a new word; witch-hunt, too, may appear without a hyphen. A non-accidental use is in Arabic Wahhàb, Wahhàbi.

ih occurs in nìhilist (or nîhilist) where the h is silent or has the consonantal y sound, *nêeyilist (or *nŷilist).

kh appears in words from Arabic, Persian, Russian, Urdu and so on. The pronunciation is the same as that of ch in lóch (a rasping in the back of the throat, IPA χ) - and thus many speakers do not distinguish it from k alone: Khàlid, Khàn, shèikh. Khrùshchev (*Krùshchóff, either stressed) has three combining hs. In Khmér, the h represents an aspirate in the original language: since this is not a natural place for an h sound in English, it is in effect silent, or even, in slower speech, a schwa, *K(ə)mãir.

ôh! (*ô), oôh! (*û), poôh! (*pû) are interjections; also Wínnìe the Poôh and, from German, ôhm = Cockney pronunciation of hôme, with silent h.

ph = f as in fâce: Phílip (= fíllip), phôto, nýmph, phrâse, phâse, Dáphnê, phoênix, grāph (but Stêphen = Stêven). But in Phnóm Pénh, *P(ə)nóm Pén, the h represents an aspirate, as with Khmér, above.

rh = r: Rhôdes, rhôdium, rhododéndron, rhêsus, rhêtoric.

sh is the normal way of showing the very common sound spelt ch in machìne: shoòt, frésh, cásh, shêet, fâstish, Bangladésh, ásh, pólish, Pôlish, áshen, díshwasher, shùsh! sssssh!

th represents two sounds, one the voiced version of the other.

Voiced th is used in certain functional, and therefore in many cases very common, words: thís, thát, thére, thén, thôugh, althôugh, thús, thérefore, thòu, the/thê article = thêe you, and in òther, mòther, fàther, bròther, rāther, lāther.
Unvoiced th is not uncommon either, especially at the beginning and end of words: thínk, thŏught, throûgh, thòrough (AmE thúrrôw, BrE *thúrrə), thrôw, móth, bôth, ẁrath (-ó-), fífth (*fíth - though some pronounce the second f), fílthy. But the h is redundant in Thaîland (*Tŷland).

úh (h silent after ú or ə [schwa]) is used as in húh? úh? with the same interrogative meaning as èh?, and (mostly AmE) úh-húh yes, and in other improvised interjections; otherwise it appears in German names as ûh: Kûhn.

wh = w in standard British English but is pronounced hw in American, Scottish, some northern English and other varieties: what, whére, why, whén, whéther (cf. wéather), sòmewhat, sòmewhere, anywhere (én-), nôwhere, whísky, whîte, Whítsun, wháck, whám.

xh occurs in Albanian names such as Énver Hóxha, where it represents the English j sound (*Hójja, beginning like Hódges), and in the African language Xhôsa, where it represents a click sound, which English speakers tend to replace with a k or h sound.

zh has the sound of -si- in vision or -su- in pléasure, which are the usual spellings for the sound. As zh it occurs only in words from Arabic, Russian and other languages, as in Brézhnev.

Scientific uses

  • H: henry, unit of electromagnetic inductance
  • h: Planck's constant
  • h: generic symbol for height