Voiced consonant
A voiced consonant is a sound made as the vocal cords vibrate, as opposed to a voiceless consonant, where the vocal cords are relaxed. Examples are:
| Voiced | Voiceless |
|---|---|
| [b] | [p] |
| [d] | [t] |
| [g] | [k] |
| [v] | [f] |
| [ð] (them) | [θ] (thing) |
| [z] | [s] |
| [ʒ] (pleasure) | [ʃ] (pressure) |
In English, the main distinction between /b, d, g/ and /p, t, k/ is not that the former are voiced, but rather that the latter are aspirated. There are indeed several English dialects where /b, d, g/ are voiceless.
In Japanese, the voicing sign is a dakuten (゛). For historical (but not phonologically valid) reasons, the sign that turns h into p is called a handakuten, or half-voicing (゜).