The minimal unit of utterances produced in order to communicate is called . A single sound of these can make the difference between words. When the only difference between two words is one of these sounds, these words are called .

In English there are 20 sounds and 24 sounds. Vowel sounds do not always occur as a single one. When they are combined they are called . if it is two; and if we are talking about three vowel sounds together, they are called . Single vowel sounds are classified in two categories: and , and both single and combined vowels are considered sounds, that is, you have to vibrate your vocal cords in your larynx to produce them. Some consonant sounds are also , that is, they are difficult to hold for a while.

Apart from the vocal cords and larynx, there are other parts of your body that function as organs of speech. Most of these organs are in your , such as lips and , the articulators, as well as teeth, alveolar , and hard and soft .