Greek Language/Two-letter Consonants
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Like two-letter vowels, the Greek language is also "equipped" with two-letter consonants (Greek: δίψηφα σύμφωνα), in other words, combinations of two consonants having one sound. The two-letter consonants seem to have been introduced to the language to cover the lack of specific phthongs (sounds), like [b],[d] and [g]. Below is a table presenting the two-letter consonants and some instructions about how to pronounce them.
Two-letter consonants
|
Pronunciation
|
Notes
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μπ
|
[b] / [mb]
|
Pronounced like ball or embassy depending on the place it is in the word; If μπ is situated at the beginning of a word it is pronounced [b], otherwise [mb]. |
ντ
|
[d] / [nd]
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Pronounced like down or Andes. |
γκ
|
[g] / [ng]
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Pronounced like goal or angry following the same rule as μπ; [g] at the beginning of the word, [ng] otherwise. |
γγ
|
[g] / [ng]
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Pronounced the same as γκ, but since there are no Greek words beginning with γγ, just [ng] pronunciation is used. |
τσ
|
[ts]
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Pronounced like cats or boots. |
τζ
|
[dz]
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Pronounced like kids or goods. |